As part of his drive to boost access to skills and employment in the Capital, the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has announced details of his planned Crossrail Tunnelling Academy, which will provide Londoners with the chance to gain qualifications in a variety of roles essential to the project and to London's economy in the coming years.

The Academy, which will be created through a partnership between Crossrail and the construction industry, is planned to open in Spring 2010. The institution, for which Crossrail is currently in discussions with Newham on its preferred site, is expected to train some 1000 people between now and 2015, providing the skills necessary for work in a variety of tunnelling roles.

The Mayor is investing £8 million in the project, which he hopes will help deliver the skilled workforce needed for the construction of Crossrail, Europe's largest transport infrastructure project, which at its peak will employ some 14,000 people and will provide a crucial boost for London's economy. Another 7,000 jobs will be supported indirectly through related services such as manufacturing equipment for the project. The vast majority of these jobs will be undertaken by people in London and the UK, particularly those living in boroughs along the Crossrail route which are some of the most deprived in the UK, and creating a lasting skills legacy for London.

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The Mayor said: "Like every city, ours is grappling with effects of the global downturn, but with Crossrail construction starting shortly, and TfL's multi-billion pound modernisation of the Tube ramping up, engineering can provide a huge and vital economic boost and help London become the true engineering capital of Europe.

"I want to make sure that Londoners benefit from the opportunities that this scale of work - not seen in the Southeast for 50 years - can offer. That's why, across the GLA group, we are cultivating hundreds of apprentices, working to spark young people's interest in engineering, and are investing £8 million in the Tunnelling Academy, which will give many hundreds the skills necessary to be a part of the exciting and rewarding work of building London's long-awaited Crossrail."

(CD/KMcA)