PHAM NEWS | DECEMBER/JANUARY 2025 Training& Education 33
How to accelerate the renewable rollout
It’s a critical time for the industry and if the Labour government doesn’t get its training policy right, it could stall progress on transitioning homes and businesses onto low carbon heating, says David Knipe, OFTEC’s technical and training manager.
be retiring over the next fi ve to ten years and the number entering the sector isn’t enough to keep pace. This comes at a time where we need to expand the workforce to meet the demands for renewable heating technologies. If this doesn’t happen, the UK is at risk of missing its net zero targets and commitments. So, here are four areas we need to focus on.
W
Apprenticeship levy A key decision is the future of the Apprenticeship Levy. It was introduced in 2017 but has been heavily underutilised by heating businesses. Criticism was levelled at its lack of funding, complexity and limited fl exibility. This made it particularly diffi cult for small and medium sized fi rms who often don’t have the resource or time to take advantage. Labour has recognised this and
introduced a new Skills and Growth Levy, working closely with employers and training providers, to make it more accessible. This could encourage more employers to take up the scheme and bring more people into the industry. However, we need to see the full details, which have yet to be published.
Course funding Another area Labour needs to focus on is reskilling the existing workforce. Up to now, the priority has been heat pumps, which the government has said are the primary technology to deliver decarbonisation. We’ve seen successes in this area with
the Heat Pump Training grant and, to date, over 2,500 technicians have taken advantage of the funding and completed a course through OFTEC’s network of training centres. However, it’s very clear that interest is directly aligned with funding. Quite simply, if fi nancial support isn’t there then technician uptake drops considerably. As it stands, the government hasn’t
confi rmed whether more funding will be available for the grant after the end of March. While Labour has said budgets are tight and diffi cult decisions are needed, they do recognise the long term value of spending to invest and drive future growth. Indications are therefore that Labour will extend the funding. The challenge is that training typically needs to be booked three months in advance. If an announcement isn’t made by January, we may see an unnecessary drop-off in technicians enrolling for the fi rst few months of the new funding year.
Thinking ahead More broadly, alongside these individual schemes, we need to see the government’s
hile there is an existing highly skilled workforce of heating installers and technicians, many of these professionals will
OFTEC off ers heat pump training to technicians (picture courtesy of Gastec)
David Knipe Technical and training manager at OFTEC
overall long term training plan for the heating sector. Businesses and sole traders budget and plan years in advance. However, this is diffi cult when there is
uncertainty every year with some training schemes ending, others being introduced and funding allocation changing. This has a knock-on eff ect to training centres too who need to ensure they have the resources available. An overarching strategy will provide clarity and certainty across the sector.
Heat pump transition Finally, while Labour has reaffi rmed its commitment to decarbonisation, there are still several unanswered questions. The current approach seems to be to broadly continue with the previous government’s heat pump fi rst approach. However, during the election campaign,
the Party said they would not force people to rip out their boilers. The previous 2035 ban on the installation of new fossil fuel boilers also appears to have been scrapped. This uncertainty is refl ected in the low uptake of heat pump accreditation after training has been completed. Training decisions made by heating
technicians will depend on the potential market. There is growing awareness that many oil heated homes won’t be able to transition to a heat pump without signifi cant cost and disruption. That’s why we continue to call on the government to recognise the role of renewable liquid fuels as a straightforward and low cost alternative. However, currently, the off - grid sector is in limbo without a clear sense of the direction of travel.
Mind the gap There’s a real risk of the so called ‘mind the gap’ scenario where the government sets out a roadmap to accelerate the rollout of renewable heating technology without the workforce having had enough time to reskill. A multi technology approach which supports both heat
pumps and renewable liquid fuels would therefore lead to a quicker transition to low carbon whilst also recognising the diverse nature of UK housing stock and the need for diff erent solutions. This net zero strategy needs to be fully
integrated with the training sector. To date, there has been a lack of coordination and neither will be successful in isolation. Right now, there is a huge opportunity to
accelerate the transition to net zero with the support of a diversifi ed workforce working hand in hand. With our expertise across both the
training sector and technical delivery of renewable heating technologies, OFTEC will continue to work proactively and positively with the government to achieve this ambition. ◼
phamnews.co.uk/125/24
CELEBRATING OVER 20 YEARS OF TRAINING EXCELLENCE
Heat pump training now available...
NORTHOLT | LUTON | BASILDON | SITTINGBOURNE
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44
