Olympic Games 2012: Construction

Tom Brake
To ask the Minister for the Olympics how many people have undertaken training to NVQ skills level (a) one and (b) two as part of the construction project on the Olympic Park.

Tessa Jowell
Through the London Development Agency's Local Employment and Training Framework (LETF), delivered by the five Olympic host boroughs in partnership with the Olympic Delivery Authority, 3,446 local residents have been given Olympic-related skills training. This has included direct construction training such as plant, civils, rail and steelwork, as well as preliminary construction-related training such as site security. Training provision is based on specific forecasted demand for the skills requirements of the Olympic Park and Village and other local construction projects such as the Stratford City development and the East London Line Extension project.

The LDA uses three main training categories; Skills Basic, Skills Other and Skills Level 2. Skills Basic is equivalent to literacy, numeracy or ESOL at Entry Level 3 and above; Skills Level 2 is broadly equivalent to NVQ Level 2; Skills Other is formed of training between Skills Basic and Level 2, and this qualification has been specifically designed for use by the five host boroughs to deliver a range of short entry level courses based on the expressed requirements of employers.

For the year 2008-09, by the end of quarter 3 there had been 1,458 Skills Other trainees and 147 Skills Level 2 trainees. Of these, 665 trainees, all of who were previously unemployed, had already moved into new jobs. Activity has continued into January, February and March, and the next LETF update to cover the full year will be available on 1 May 2009. The numbers receiving training during 2007-08 were 1,749 Skills Other and 65 Level 2, and for 2006-07 (commencing late autumn) the numbers receiving training were 764 Skills Other, but no Level 2s.