Following a successful contract bid, Cogent Skills is to facilitate the development of the UK’s first National Occupational Standards (NOS) for hydrogen production, storage, and transportation.
Government plans for a thriving hydrogen sector are set to unlock investment of £4 billion by 2030¹ as well as supporting thousands of high quality green jobs. The announcement of new technical standards to be developed in collaboration with employers in the industry is a critical step towards establishing a highly skilled and competent workforce, and underpins the UK’s ambition to become a global leader in green technologies.
With over 23,000² separate NOS already developed, the new occupational standards will set out the standards of performance individuals must achieve, together with the knowledge and skills required to work safely and effectively in the hydrogen production, storage and transportation industry. Widely recognised across all four nations, NOS are an important part of the skills landscape, recognised by employers, regulators and awarding bodies, and can be directly transferred into qualifications or training programmes, influence job descriptions or be used as a measure of workplace competence.
Ian Lockhart, Standards Manager at Cogent Skills, commented; “We’re looking forward to working with partners to develop the new National Occupational Standards for hydrogen. Cogent has a rich history of working collaboratively across the science industries to support the needs of employers. The creation of new technical standards for hydrogen is an important step in supporting the growth of green jobs as we transition to a low carbon economy.”
Due to be completed by March 2023, Cogent Skills are currently recruiting employers and stakeholders from across the sector who are keen to play a leading role in the development of these ground-breaking new standards. Cogent are looking to hold a virtual introduction to developing the Hydrogen national occupational standards on the 11th of August for more information please contact [email protected] or [email protected].
1 https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-government-launches-plan-for-a-world-leading-hydrogen-economy
