This article was originally published in the Sunderland Echo. To view the original click here.
Many of you will have walked over Keel Crossing for the first time heading to the match a couple of weeks ago.
It’s an exciting time for Sunderland. Our city’s riverside is undergoing an ambitious regeneration and Sunderland College’s Housing Innovation and Construction Skills Academy, the landmark building on the Wear’s south side, is at the heart of it.
Not only that, it’s set to become one of Labour’s Construction Technical Excellence Colleges, forming a key part of our mission to unlock apprenticeship opportunities and boost home ownership.
Backed by a £100 million investment to support the construction sector, deliver our commitment to build 1.5 million homes and help young people into well-paid jobs, the college is one of ten that will form a national network of excellence, built on cutting-edge resources, expert teaching, and strong employer partnerships.
At Sunderland College, young people will get the high-quality construction training they need to get a good job, and employers will find the skilled workforce they need to grow, right on our doorstep.
That’s how we can tackle skills shortages, unlock opportunity and build the homes this country needs.
Labour was elected on the promise of change – particularly for those crying out for opportunities to get on in life, to build careers and livelihoods in skilled occupations.
That’s why we’ve already started to cut red tape and make life easier for young people and employers.
We’ve announced new foundation apprenticeships that will open the door to industries like construction, to people who wouldn’t otherwise have considered it.
We’ve cut the minimum length of an apprenticeship so people can get their foot in the door of a new career more quickly, and we’ve put the power into employers’ hands to decide what English and maths qualifications their adult apprentices need, so that people can complete their apprenticeship without getting stuck in a doomloop.
And most recently we’ve announced ambitious changes to post-16 education, reintroducing maintenance grants for disadvantaged students and introducing our new V Levels, so that every young person has more choice, support and opportunity when they finish school, regardless of where they’ve come from.
We’re already starting to see our Plan for Change bearing fruit: apprenticeship starts, participation and achievements are all up under Labour.
This isn’t tinkering around the edges. This is fundamental reform designed to make the system work better for our young people, for employers, and for our economy.
More opportunity, new homes, stronger growth for Sunderland. That’s the difference a Labour government makes.