NCC working with Mayor of London’s new Academies Programme to create thousands of jobs

New City College has been announced as a partner in the Local London Green and Digital Mayoral Academy (LLGDMA) – part of the Mayor of London’s new £44m Academies Programme, which was launched this week.

The programme aims to support the creation of over 60,000 new jobs in London by 2030 and will help Londoners access a range of careers and opportunities across the region, focusing on sectors such as creative, digital, green, health and hospitality.

The LLGDMA will focus specifically on digital and green skills, which are vital for London to reach its net zero targets. New City College will collaborate with 11 other Further Education colleges and 9 London councils – including London Borough of Havering, London Borough of Redbridge, London Borough of Tower Hamlets and London Borough of Hackney – helping to develop a responsive skills plan, create events and further build strategic networks.

This new academy will expand on the Mayor’s Construction Academy (MCA) model.  The LLGDMA will complement the existing MCA hubs, ensuring skills needs are met as the need for green and digital technologies continues to grow.

Jamie Stevenson, New City College Group Executive Director – Apprenticeships & Business Development, said: “We are delighted to be part of the Local London Green and Digital Mayoral Academy.  This will enable us to work with stakeholders to identify new jobs, deliver the skills required, progress students into sustained employment and develop their careers.

“By working together we will be able to maximise our resources to support businesses to grow and progress, which enables individuals to gain sustained economic well-being.”

The objectives of the Academy include:

• Reduce barriers to learning and employment unlocking work experience, traineeships, apprenticeships and jobs
• Retrain and upskill current industry experts for transition into new jobs as the Green and Digital sector develops
• Ensure that London’s industries access the skilled workforce needed to decarbonise and innovate through digital technology
• Improve recruitment and engagement across our local communities especially among the under-represented groups
• Upskill college staff

Director of the Local London sub-regional partnership, Sarah Murray, says: “The Green and Digital Sector Skills Academy is great news. It will be a key component in preparing our future workforce – both young people in their first employment, and existing employees that need to up-skill.  We applaud the partnership of FE colleges which is testament to the collaborative way in which our colleges work together.

“The development of the digital sector and emergence of the green sector provide a unique opportunity for our economy to grow and prosper.  Partnership working between employers, the sub-regional partnership of local authorities and education and training providers is key to leading that growth for our residents and businesses, and we look forward to working with the sector academy to make that happen.”