Members of Made in the Midlands South City College Birmingham has launched an Electric and Hybrid Vehicle course for engineers and aspiring engineers, a first for the college. This comes after a successful pilot scheme DfE Funded and supported by National Express. The course will benefit small garages that would usually pay over £1,000 per team member to access specialist training to meet the increasing demand for hybrid and electric car servicing and repairs. Engineers with these skills will also benefit businesses that are part of the development of EV and EV technologies.
South City College Birmingham is a leading provider of a wide range of hands-on courses. A vocational college based in Birmingham, the organisation offers students part-time, full time and apprenticeship courses from level 1 to higher education. What makes SCCB so unique, is its firm commitment to promoting and embedding equality, diversity, and inclusion for all of its learners, staff, and governors.
The launch event for the announcement of the college’s new Hybrid and electric vehicle training course took place on Friday 18th March at the Longbridge (Bournville College) campus and the ribbon was cut by Gary Sambrook, MP for Northfield and Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Councillor Muhammad Afzal. In a blog post published by the college following the launch they said:
“Hybrid and electric vehicles are the way forward in our region and nationally. More than 10 million electric vehicles (EVs) were on the road across the world in 2020. The European Automobile Manufacturers' Association, or ACEA, said registrations of hybrid electric passenger cars accounted for 20 percent of the total EU market during the third quarter (July-September 2021).
There is currently a skills gap in the developing technology and industry. The College's investment in new qualifications and facilities at the Longbridge (Bournville College) campus is providing local people with the opportunity to be trained at a higher technical level and gain jobs. While at the same time supporting the industry by enabling companies to employ skilled people and upskill existing employees. Normally this course would cost £1,500 per candidate.”
The training provided will upskill staff and students in routine maintenance, repairs and replacement, and development diagnosis, testing, and repair of hybrid and electric vehicle components. Essentially, candidates will gain a formal qualification and certification of skills in relation to understanding hazards around hybrid/electric vehicles and know how to reduce risks to yourself and others when working with hybrid/electric vehicles and more. The industry-standard qualification enables employees working with developing parts for EV batteries and technology to understand the end-user processes and enhancement of their job role and support progression into other roles.
The course in total is 5 days and candidates normally study the levels 2/3 for 2 days and then return around 4 weeks later to complete the level 4 over 3 days. Courses run every week and employers can contact the College’s Employer Services Team: call 0121 694 5066 or email business.dev@sccb.ac.uk for more information and to book.
