§ Mr. John Evansasked the Secretary of State for Employment what present facilities are available for retraining in the North-West of England; and where they are located.
§ Mr. Harold WalkerI am informed by the Manpower Services Commission that under the Training Opportunities Scheme (TOPS) in the North-West region there are eight skillcentres—at Blackburn, Hindley, Liverpool, Manchester, Maryport, Runcorn, St. Helens and Trafford Park, and annexes at Manchester and Kirkby. These provide approximately 1,700 places in skilled construction, engineering, automotive and electrical/electronic trades and 46 places in short industrial courses.
There are also educational establishments in most towns in the region and 14 employers' establishments, offering training in a much wider variety of occupations. For these establishments a precise number of places available cannot be given as, in addition to exclusive TOPS courses, TOPS trainees can be accommodated on an "in-fill" basis on existing college courses.
About 5,350 TOPS trainees will have been trained in educational establish- 410W ments in the region in the current year and over 1,600 in employers' establishments. The Training Services Agency is constantly seeking to expand this figure by arranging new courses with other employers.