Centre Spotlight – HETA

This edition of our Centre Spotlight series looks at HETA, one of the leading engineering training providers in the Yorkshire and Humber region. Established over 50 years ago, HETA is a not-for-profit charity ‘Group Training Association’ which delivers apprenticeships and both standard and bespoke upskill training courses. As part of this, HETA offers a range of CompEx courses including Gas and Vapours (Ex01 – Ex04), Recognised Practitioner Programme (RPP) and the Foundation (ExF) course.

Can you describe what the journey was like to become one of the leading engineering training providers in the Yorkshire and Humber region?

In 1967, HETA was formed by local engineering companies across the Humber region to provide engineering training to plug the skills gaps in industry. To this day, we still follow the ethos of ‘by companies, for companies’.

We have a board of trustees that inform HETA of the direction and skills required across various industries within the engineering sector. This allows us to ensure that our training continues to be relevant and always meets the demands of the industry. With over 200 candidates joining us each year, the main function of the business is to provide apprenticeship training to the next generation of engineers.

Over the past 10 years, we have seen a substantial demand from our clients to upskill their existing workforce, and the commercial training side of the business has grown massively. Our commercial training offering ranges from a Safety Passport course to allow workers on site, all the way through to CompEx courses. This training enables HETA to provide the industry with the skills and competences to meet the sector’s demands.

One of the many reasons why we are one of the leading engineering training providers in the Yorkshire and Humber area is due to our state-of-the-art facilities. Significant investment is made across all three of our training facilities, with circa £10 million pound invested over the past five years. This includes a brand-new facility in Hull, which opened in 2018, a significant upgrade of our Scunthorpe premises in 2019, and a new facility in Grimsby that opened in August 2023.

We continue to see growth year on year in both terms of apprenticeship starts and upskilling training. We are proud to work with over 400 companies, including many national blue-chip companies.

When did you first start to deliver CompEx courses, and why did you decide to include them in your offering?

We started delivering CompEx training from our Scunthorpe premises in 2015. The growth in the number of candidates over the years has far exceeded our expectations. Our client demands were a big influence on our decision to move into CompEx training. It was clear there was a gap in the market for high quality CompEx training in and around the Scunthorpe area. The location was perfect due to the transportation links, and we have candidates travelling nationally to access our training. We’ve seen a great take-up of the Gas and Vapours (Ex01 – Ex04) qualification this year with courses almost filled to capacity.

Do you see a trend in the types of roles that CompEx course candidates operate in?

Our candidates that attend CompEx courses are generally from Oil & Gas, Utilities or the Energy sectors. As per the course specification, the candidates attending the Gas and Vapours (Ex01-Ex04) course are practising electricians with good experience. We have outstanding links with some of the largest companies nationally. The Gas and Vapours (Ex01 – Ex04) and the Recognised Practitioner Programme (RPP) are generally attended by experienced electricians, and those attending the Foundation (ExF) course is a mixture of roles looking for an understanding of working in an explosive environment.

Do you find many of your previous learners go on to undertake your adult upskill courses? 

We do have a high number of repeat practitioners that access our upskilling training, and it’s something that HETA is passionate about. We strive to ensure that our clients receive outstanding customer service from booking the course right through to the delivery of training. We aim to provide the client with an exceptional experience. We have a team of dedicated account managers that are the go-to between HETA and our clients. It’s having this relationship and the positive experience from candidates attending our training that allows us to win repeat business.

We have seen a good number of our apprentice learners return later in their careers to train again with HETA, which include competence qualifications, industry recognised qualifications or Higher Education such as Higher National Certificates. What is even more pleasing is when HETA alumni progress into management positions and then send their staff to train at HETA. This demonstrates the confidence they have in us.

Do you think the introduction of a new centre on South Humber Bank will improve your ability to deliver training in the region? 

Our new £5.5million facility in Grimsby, replacing our Stallingborough training base, will be a real game changer for the region. Our new centre will allow us to train even more apprentices and adult delegates. Moving into a modern purpose-built centre with outstanding facilities will enable HETA to reach another level in terms of both apprenticeship and upskilling training. Having increased space has allowed us to schedule a Higher National Certificate (HNC) cohort which is already fully booked. The feedback from our clients to the plans for the new centre has been extremely positive as they have bought into the vision of having a purpose built, very modern engineering training centre in the region. We can’t wait to welcome them to visit.

To read more about HETA, visit: www.heta.co.uk.