This unique programme has been developed in partnership with the West Midlands Combined Authority and is designed to give you the skills you need to work in construction.

The Construction Gateway is free if you are unemployed and all candidates will receive a CSCS card, plant training and an interview with one of the region’s many construction companies.

The college maintains close links with the delivery partners for HS2 and we are working to ensure local residents have the right skills to work on these projects.

As the largest construction college in the region, we are very excited to be working with Balfour Beatty VINCI, Flannery, VGC Group and Danny Sullivan Group on new training programmes, aimed at getting people into construction jobs quickly. Two programmes are on offer, depending on the level of experience in the construction industry.  

View our Balfour Beatty VINCI page

SWAPs are led by employers and are linked with live job opportunities that give you experience in a particular sector or industry. Sectors for SWAPS include care, customer service, retail, business and many more.

View our Job Seekers page 

South & City College Birmingham is the largest provider of English, Maths and ESOL courses in the region and you’ll find classes held at our seven campuses across the city.

These courses are free of charge for job seekers and we combined many of these programmes with vocational training to support you into your chosen career path.

View our English, Maths and ESOL courses

We offer a range of apprenticeships and have a dedicated team who work with employers to find the best vacancy for you.

View our latest apprenticeship vacancies

For advice on apprenticeships and how to apply please contact the team by email at apprenticeshipteam@sccb.ac.uk

We also offer a huge range of courses in many subject areas.

What are they and how can you use them?

We offer apprenticeships to support new vacancies within your organisation or to progress your existing workforce.

• Apprenticeships are funded through the apprenticeship levy (a levy taken by HMRC on a monthly basis and held in a digital account) and can only be spent on apprenticeship training.
• Any funding that you don’t use is taken back by the government.
• If you choose not to use the levy, the government will provide 95% of funding for apprenticeships aged 19+.
• In many sectors, apprenticeships are available from level 2 through to level 8.

All apprenticeships that are available or in development can be viewed on the Institute for Apprenticeships website.

Our apprenticeships team can provide you with full guidance on the grants and processes, and offer a free-of-charge apprenticeship recruitment service.

South and City College Birmingham offer the below apprenticeships, however, we are open to all apprenticeship standards if there is sufficient demand.

Business and Finance

• Advanced Digital Marketer
• Higher Professional Accounting / Taxation Technician
• Intermediate Customer Service Practitioner
• Advanced Assistant Accountant
• Advanced Junior Content Producer
• Advanced Business Administrator

Construction

• Advanced Installation Electrician / Maintenance Electrician
• Intermediate Property Maintenance Operative
• Advanced Refrigeration Air Conditioning and Heat Pump Engineering Technician
• Advanced Surveying Technician
• Advanced Gas Engineering Operative
• Advanced Building Services Design Technician
• Advanced Plumbing and Domestic Heating Technician
• Intermediate Carpentry and Joinery
• Advanced Carpentry and Joinery
• Higher Construction Site Engineering Technician
• Higher Building Services Engineering Technician
• Intermediate Bricklayer
• Intermediate Groundworker
• Intermediate Tramway Construction Operative

Early Years

• Advanced Teaching Assistant
• Advanced Early Years Educator
• Engineering
• Advanced Engineering Technician
• Health & Social Care
• Intermediate Healthcare Support Worker
• Advanced Lead Adult Care Worker
• Intermediate Adult Care Worker
• Advanced Senior Healthcare Support Worker

IT

• Advanced Infrastructure Technician
• Higher Cyber Security Technologist

Motor Vehicle

• Advanced Motor Vehicle Service and Maintenance Technician (light vehicle)
• Advanced Bus and Coach Engineering Technician

What are they and how can you use them?

A traineeship is similar to an apprenticeship, but the trainee is not a paid employee of your organisation.

Candidates are aged 19-24 and can hold up to a Level 3 qualification – this could be a way of building a talent pipeline that leads to a paid apprenticeship.

Candidates on a traineeship will need to complete a maximum of 240 hours of work experience over a maximum 1-year duration and will receive support from the college.

There is currently a £1,000 grant per traineeship candidate supported by the employer

What is it and how can you use the scheme?

The KickStart scheme is aimed and 16-24 year-olds who are in receipt of universal credit and are considered to be at risk of long-term unemployment by their job centre coach.
The government will fund 25 hours a week of work including NI contributions for a maximum of six months, but you can choose to top this up to offer more hours. You will also receive a grant of £1500 per candidate to support setup and training costs.

To apply directly for KickStart you must be able to offer a minimum of 30 placements, otherwise, you will need to work with an intermediary who is supporting a number of employers who each have smaller placement opportunities. If this is of interest, we can guide you – get in touch today at apprenticeships@sccb.ac.uk.

South and City College can offer KickStart employers a range of support for your KickStart candidates, including:

• Employability training – An online 30-hour employability skills package delivered throughout the six-month placement. This training can be tailored for groups and the cost is negotiated with the employer and can be funded from the £1500 grant. The training includes end-of-programme support should there not be a position available for the candidate.
• Mentoring/buddy support – Assign each KickStart candidate with a mentor/buddy who will contact them on a regular basis to provide support whilst they are at work and help to overcome any issues or barriers. They will also liaise with line managers on a monthly basis to identify areas for development and collect success stories to share.
• Vocational qualifications – Utilise AEB (adult education budget) funding for candidates aged 19+ to help them complete a range of sector-specific qualifications that support them into further employment and progression when in work.

What is it and how can you use it?

The capacity development fund is designed to help colleges like ours increase work experience placements in preparation for T-Levels. This is aimed at 16-18 year old full-time college students, completing a minimum of 45 days’ work experience with the organisation. There is potential grant funding of £750 per work experience placement to help cover any setup costs.

South & City College Birmingham is launching T-Levels in a variety of subjects each academic year and is calling for employers to be part of our industry boards. This will allow you to help shape and design the curriculum of the future, giving you access to a talent pool of candidates that meet your current and future needs.

View our T Levels for Employers video

What are they and how can you use it?

If an employer or group of employers has five similar vacancies, we can offer a free-of-charge pre-employment/recruitment solution to support them in finding the right staff for their businesses. We design the programme with you, the employer, to meet your needs. Then we recruit unemployed candidates and put them through a tailored programme of between 6-12 weeks.

You must commit to offering work experience and a guaranteed interview with an anticipated conversion rate of progressing 75% of candidates into work.

What is it and how can you use it?

We work closely with the West Midlands Combined Authority, which has control over the AEB (adult education budget) that funds training for anyone aged 19+.

We can ask for Flexibilities in this budget in order to fund training and qualifications that are not traditionally funded. To do this, we need to show that – as a result of the funding – there will be a job opportunity or the chance for the candidate to progress to a higher-paid role or more hours.

Examples of these flexibilities include:

• fully funded diplomas in adult care for the health and social care sector
• 50% funded NVQs in construction management
• AAT Level 3 and 4 diplomas for the unemployed
• 18th edition electrical training for the unemployed

If the demand is there, we can put together a business case to apply for Flexibilities.