Extra construction skills and training places have been created thanks to a six-figure investment from the Mayor of the East Midlands.
Chesterfield’s Construction Skills Hub has expanded with the creation of two new classroom spaces – creating an additional 45 training spaces at the site – thanks to the funding.
Based in Mastin Moor, the Construction Skills Hub is primarily funded through the Staveley Town Deal, but additional funding from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund – via the Mayor of the East Midlands, Claire Ward – has allowed for its expansion.
Mayor of the East Midlands, Claire Ward said: “Investing in skills is essential to driving growth across the East Midlands and the Construction Skills Hub shows how high-quality training can help people move into good local jobs.
“Funding support means the Hub can expand, giving more residents the chance to gain the practical, in-demand skills employers need.
“By backing initiatives like this, we’re helping people progress while building the workforce needed to deliver new homes, infrastructure and regeneration across our region.”
The Construction Skills Hub is a sector specific training facility. Since opening, more than 150 students have trained at the Hub across trades including groundworks, bricklaying, electrical, plumbing and site joinery, with progression routes into degree-level apprenticeships.
Over the next decade the Hub will provide careers insights, training and work experience for more than 5,000 learners from school age to adults seeking to re-skill.
As well as the two new classroom spaces, the £108,000 of funding will also support new adult skills courses and targeted bootcamps, helping to tackle skills shortages and open up pathways into work. There is also an additional cabin, that acts as a student support hub, to accommodate additional staff needed to support the increased learner demand.
Hub students gain real-world experience from day one, supported by industry-leading tutors and with direct access to employers. The hub’s unique training model equips students with practical skills and knowledge that the sector needs to tackle the well-documented skills and recruitment gaps in construction.
The hub is run in partnership between Chesterfield Borough Council, Chesterfield College and the University of Derby at the heart of Devonshire Group‘s development site at Mastin Moor.
Councillor Tricia Gilby, Chesterfield Borough Council leader and vice-chair of of the Skills and Employment Partnership, said: “The Construction Skills Hub is a fantastic example of how the public, education and private sectors can work together to create training opportunities for local people that will allow them to benefit from a growing local economy. This additional funding will help expand the number of students at the hub and ensure more local people can benefit from this innovative approach to training so that they gain the right skills so they can grasp the opportunities available in a growing construction sector.”
From all of the students that have progressed from the Construction Skills Hub into employment, 69 per cent are progressing into construction-based jobs, against the national average of 23 per cent for construction-based college learners.
This latest investment forms part of EMCCA’s wider programme, with the authority allocating nearly £30 million over the next year to drive economic growth, deliver infrastructure improvements and support community-led projects across Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. More than £25m is being delivered through the UKSPF, alongside a further £4m from EMCCA’s own Investment Fund, ensuring enhanced support for local businesses, skills development and communities across the region.
Published on: 19 June 2026
Categories: News, Skills and Employment