§ Mr. Edward DaveyTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have(a) been 957W funded, (b) been trained and (c) started work having been trained by the Ambition:Construction programme since it was launched in 2001. [119949]
§ Mr. BrowneIn 2001 we launched the Ambition initiative to help unemployed and disadvantaged people gain the right skills to meet the needs of employers in key sectors such as construction.
Ambition:Construction has been operational since June 2002 with pilots currently running in six locations. Training is provided across the full range of building skills including bricklaying, roofing, plastering, joinery, glazing and painting and decorating. The aim of this training is to provide participants with the skills they need for a wide variety of jobs in the construction industry, including house building.
By the end of May 2003, 775 people had been funded by Ambition:Construction. Most of the training courses on this programme last 6 months and so only 184 have so far completed training. Of those, 171 have obtained jobs.