Navantia?UK?targets? 500?apprentices?by 2030
Navantia?UK has set a target of hiring?500 apprentices?by?2030?to support the business’ expansion in?shipbuilding, engineering?and?in?supplying the?offshore?energy?industry.?
Courtesy?Navantia?
Following its purchase of Harland & Wolff’s assets last year,?Navantia?UK?is investing in building a new generation of industrial skills in three of the UK’s four nations – England,?Scotland?and Northern Ireland.?
The target of 500?by 2030?is being announced on the first day of National Apprenticeships Week.?The company was named by the Sunday Times last year as one of the UK’s Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers.?
Navantia?UK offers both Level 2 and Level 3 apprenticeships. Of?the 90 apprentices to be hired in?2026, 35 are likely to be at Harland & Wolff Belfast,?20 at?Navantia?UK’s Appledore shipyard in Devon,?20 at?Methil?in Fife?and 15 at Arnish?on the Isle of Lewis.?
A variety of roles will be on offer. Existing apprentices are involved in pipe fitting, welding, computer aided?design?and a range of other skilled careers.??
Navantia?UK has a?£1.6 billion?contract to build three Fleet Solid Support ships for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, which will deliver vital supplies to Royal Navy warships at sea. Other activities include building commercial vessels, ship?repair?and supplying the offshore energy industry.?
Investing in apprenticeship training is key to?Navantia?UK’s strategy as it expands operations and?modernises?facilities.?A?£115 million investment?programme?is underway across?Navantia?UK’s yards as work begins on the three FSS ships. Work includes installation of new robotic plasma cutting systems, lifting cranes, refurbishment and expansion of buildings and automated quality control processes.??
The first steel was cut for the FSS?programme?at Appledore in?December?and an £8 million barge is under construction in?Methil?to transport blocks between England and Northern Ireland.?
Helen?McTockell, Apprenticeship and Training Manager at?Navantia?UK, said:?“Since our acquisition of Harland & Wolff,?we’ve?made apprenticeships a top priority.?Navantia?UK is?establishing?itself as a new force in British industry and to do that,?we’re?looking for the?very best?of talent across the country.?
“Apprentices can look forward to embarking on promising careers in highly skilled roles, with support and backing from qualified instructors.?We’re?proud to be one of the UK’s top apprenticeship employers and this year,?we’ll?be taking our recruitment to a new level.”?