A new Teesworks Skills Academy is to be established to help give local people the best skills possible to take advantage of the new jobs and opportunities that are being created for local workers at the Teesworks site.

The Mayor of Tees Valley Ben Houchen made the announcement and Teesworks is now seeking a delivery partner to set up the hub, help develop a skills plan to coordinate training and recruitment across the region and work with organisations to match employers with potential employees for the site.

When established, the Teesworks Skills Academy will link investors, employment hubs, skills providers, jobseekers and apprentices to create a world-class workforce for the future, equipped with the skills businesses at the site will need to grow and succeed.

The skills academy forms a major part of Mayor Houchen's plan for jobs at Teesworks, formerly known as the South Tees Development Corporation site, the UK's largest industrial zone which aims to create thousands of high-quality local jobs for local people, centred around advanced manufacturing, innovation and clean growth.

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Mayor Houchen said: "We are creating a huge number of jobs on the Teesworks site, and it’s critical that we ensure local workers have the skills needed to take advantage of these opportunities. That’s why I’m delighted to announce the creation of the Teesworks skills academy. The new academy help train people so they have the skills needed for the jobs coming to the site, meaning more money in their pockets for them and their families.

"We have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to deliver a site of national importance that will grow our economy by millions of pounds a year and employ thousands of people. Work has already begun to create construction jobs and get spades in the ground to redevelop our site for global investors and there are many more contracts yet to be announced.

"Now, we need to start looking to the future. There is no point in securing this investment and creating these jobs if people in Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool don’t have the skills to access them. So we’re looking for an organisation to work with us, investors and training bodies to help people secure these jobs for generations to come.

"This is a truly exciting, unique opportunity to shape our region’s workforce and improve people's lives."