The Green Skills Centre, based at the College’s Stephen Burke Construction Academy in partnership with St. Modwen Homes, includes equipment for solar installations (including photovoltaic systems), solar thermal installations, air source heat pumps, and EV charging installations.

It will focus on providing specialised training on renewable energy and retrofit technologies. 

The Centre, partly funded by the Local Skills Improvement Fund (LSIF) to support the drive for green skills development, was officially opened by Samantha Niblett MP during a launch event.

The event also provided an opportunity for representatives from the construction industry to gather, tour the facilities, and learn more about the training available. 

In addition to the Centre’s official unveiling, the event also featured the announcement of a partnership between BSDC and Checkatrade, the UK’s leading home improvement platform. Checkatrade connects vetted tradespeople with consumers for quality upgrades, fixes, and retrofits. 

The collaboration will explore promoting sustainable practices and upskilling local trades to adopt greener technologies in the Midlands.

Checkatrade recently launched its Trade Skills Index alongside the Skills Minister. The index identified the huge number of additional tradespeople and apprentices needed to achieve national housebuilding and decarbonisation goals.

The Centre aims to help businesses address sustainability challenges by providing hands-on experience and training in renewable energy and green technologies.

As part of its broader vision to advance green skills education, the College has also developed an innovative higher education module, ‘Alternative Sustainable Solutions in Construction,’ nationally recognised and incorporated into the Higher Technical Qualification (HTQ) in Modern Methods of Construction course.