Digital skills training provider secures more than £400k to deliver courses across West Midlands

At Netcom Training we have secured more than £400,000 in funding from the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) to deliver bespoke training to more than 110 learners across the region.

The partnership with WMCA will see Netcom offering fully-funded placements in the region, supporting people aged 19 and over from priority groups with flexible courses of up to 16 weeks, while helping employers across the West Midlands to fill skills shortages they have identified.

Learners will be able to study courses in Cyber Security, Telecoms and Data Analytics – courses which have been selected by Netcom in direct response to the areas businesses in the West Midlands have said they lack key skills.

Additionally, a brand new course, Digital Marketing for Retiring Athletes, has been made available to support former competitors to transition into life after sports, arming them with the knowledge and tools to set up their own businesses.

Netcom – which recently achieved a ‘Good’ rating in its first ever Ofsted report – is a leading training provider with over 10 years’ experience in delivering professional qualifications in the IT and Digital industries. It works in partnership with the voluntary sector, faith organisations and other community groups to access typically ‘hard to reach’ talent pools, ensuring everyone has fair and equal opportunity to upskill in digital practices.

Kevin Vashi, Managing Director of Netcom, said: “The West Midlands has such a vast variety of employers, who all require a diverse range of skills to continue to compete at a national level.

“Our courses are designed with this in mind, ensuring we equip learners with innovative digital skills, build their talent and prepare them for employment, so they can access some of the many careers available to them in the tech industry – and all of it is fully funded.

“We’re especially pleased to be working with the WMCA to support retiring athletes with the next steps in their journey, helping them understand how to launch a business so they can continue to channel their sporting spirit and energy into their own success.

“Funding of this scale serves to unlock potential in people, especially those who feel they go under the radar and often miss out on opportunities. Our aim is to ensure nobody is left behind in the pursuit of digital skills building, and the WMCA shares that vision with us.”

As well as its courses in digital skills, Netcom runs bootcamps and workshops to prepare learners for the world of work, including sessions on tax returns, stakeholder management, becoming self-employed and more. Plus, once learners complete their courses with Netcom, they are automatically provided access to two additional courses – also fully funded – to broaden their skillset further.

Birmingham-based Netcom Training has recently also secured funding from the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority to provide 380 fully funded places in the region,150 fully funded places in partnership with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, 125 fully funded places with the Greater London Authority and 360 fully funded places with West Yorkshire Combined Authority. The company is now targeting a national rollout of its training programmes.

Courses with Netcom, funded by the WMCA, begin in January and can be found here.