Grant UK supports Jersey Green Skills Academy

A partnership between Jersey Electricity, Highlands College and local industry is striving to overcome the shortage of qualified, skilled low carbon heating technicians on the island. The Green Skills Academy was officially launched at the end of September with its purpose-built teaching facility located at the Highlands College in St. Saviour, Jersey. Using these new facilities, the Green Skills Academy in partnership with NOCN (National Open College Network) is delivering an accelerated two-year apprenticeship programme in low carbon technologies including air source heat pumps, ground source heat pumps, cylinders, solar thermal hot water and other low carbon systems.

Grant UK has a long-standing association with Highlands College with their Training Academy delivering OFTEC oil training and assessments at the College for many years. The development of the Green Skills Academy over the past few months has seen the installation of Grant renewables equipment including two Aerona 290 air source heat pumps with Aerona Smart Controllers, system volumisers and Quick Recovery 2 single coil and twin coil heat pump cylinders. This equipment will be used for both hands-on training and assessment of low carbon heating apprentices as part of the Green Skills Academy programme.

“The Green Skills Academy apprenticeship programme is an initiative we were keen to support,” explains Phil Stanley, Training Manager at Grant UK. “The training of the next generation of renewables installers through its apprenticeship model are objectives which closely align with our own focus here at the Grant UK Training Academy. We hope the Grant heat pump products installed will help the Green Skills Academy achieve its goals for training new Low Carbon Heating Technicians by 2030.”

Chris Ambler, Chief Executive of Jersey Electricity, said: "When we announced the Green Skills Academy earlier this year, we described it as an investment in Jersey's sustainable future. That vision now becomes a reality. This workshop is a state-of-the-art facility that stands comparison with the very best training centres in Europe and gives Jersey a learning environment that will benefit generations of apprentices to come.”

For further information about Grant UK’s Training Academy and courses, please visit www.grantuk.com/professional/training/.