Sector Skills Strategy Group

The ECFG was created in 2014 beneath the SSSG; its aims to establish a network of contacts of those embarking on a career within the energetics sector, such as apprentices, graduates and ensuring that they, along with those within the first 10 years of their career are fully represented in the plans that shape the future of the sector.

The ECFG meets quarterly and encourages the sharing of knowledge, creating a strong networking community and coordinating events and information, gaining visits to organisations within the sector. The chairperson of the ECFG engages directly with the SSSG as a voice which promotes the thoughts of tomorrow’s leaders to the sector leaders of today.

The main focus of the E&TWG is to maintain and raise the competence of personnel within the sector; this is achieved by supporting initiatives, such as the Ordnance Munitions and Explosives (OME) Apprenticeship Trailblazers and STEM Futures collaboration. They have established partnerships with universities across the UK to deliver the recently approved L6 OME apprenticeship. Future projects include the creation of a L1-L7 qualifications. In addition to offering their own training courses, IExpE have a robust course endorsement process which allows organisations to promote their training through IExpE.

One of the SSSG objectives is the sharing of lessons learnt in safety; the SWG steers this objective on their behalf, with their most prominent task being to discuss and disseminate instances such as near misses and accidents in the form of the Past Accident Reviews (PAR). In addition, as an aid to developing new toolkits, techniques and good practice guidance, the group run workshops as a platform for transfer of knowledge.