It’s the fastest growing sector in UK business and underpins everything that we do, but the image of logistics has to change in order to meet the growing demand for skilled workers in a rapidly evolving industry.
Northampton College is teaming up with logistics employers and trade bodies to develop a new generation of digital-savvy workers who are eager to shape the future of this exciting and emerging sector. It has already developed a specialist Level 2 course in international supply chain logistics and several more are in the pipeline.
David Coombes, chief executive of Skills for Logistics – the UK’s leading End-Point Assessment Organisation specialising in the transport, logistics, supply chain and procurement sectors, said:
“Without a strong and robust logistics infrastructure, nothing happens, and people are starting to appreciate this more and more.“We’re at a point now where 29% of all sales are online and it is the logistics sector that has managed that growth.
“Since Brexit we’ve lost a lot of EU nationals from the sector and we need to work out where are we going to get that future talent from. Colleges play a big role in that and Northampton College is a perfect example. “Northampton is at the centre of the logistics triangle in the UK. Geographically it’s the best-placed college to take advantage of the opportunities logistics provides and it knows it has an important role to play.”
Traditionally seen as an industry involving little more than warehouses and trucks, there is a lot more to logistics in the 21st Century with an ever-growing demand for skills across a wide range of disciplines, from supply chain management and business administration to mechanical engineering and digital marketing.
David Coombes added:
“Logistics is a career option that college students need to consider seriously, and we need to engage the education sector and employers to come together and develop a curriculum that matches the needs of the local workforce and creates a ready-made talent pipeline.
“We need to make sure we’re there for the colleges as well to help them deliver the training and ensure learners are on track and ready to hit the ground running in the workplace.”
Skills for Logistics was a government funded skills sector council prior to 2015 when it was bought by Skills Group. It aims to raise awareness and promote career opportunities in the logistics, transport, supply chain and procurement sectors while building a pipeline of talented young people entering the industry.
It aims to increase the attractiveness of careers in the sectors by building professionalism around knowledge, skills and behaviour development and ensuring the educational standards specified in apprenticeships fully meet the national standard specified by the government.
Part of this work has seen Skills for Logistics team up with the college as part of its latest Ignite The Spark event on February 23, which will focus on careers in the sector by giving teams from local schools the chance to meet employers such as Wincanton, Urban Outfitters and Dachser before taking part in an interactive challenge giving an insight into the various job roles available within logistics.
To find out more about courses in logistics available at Northampton College visit the website here.
