Sizewell C event in host town shows huge local appetite for apprenticeships

• Over two hundred people attend booked-out apprenticeship event in Leiston
• Of 1,500 Sizewell C apprenticeships, 540 will go to people from Suffolk
• Jess Asato MP: “This investment in skills and training is creating real opportunities”
• Jack Abbott MP: project puts young people “at the vanguard of turbocharging our country’s economic growth and energy security.”
• Sizewell C to host next jobs fair with DWP at University of Suffolk on 3 March 

Hundreds of local people turned out to a Sizewell C apprenticeship fair this week, as the project looks to employ 540 of its 1,500 apprenticeships in Suffolk.

Over two hundred people attended the event at Leiston Sports and Social Club, with over a dozen of Sizewell C’s suppliers and partners also hosting stalls to showcase the range of apprenticeship opportunities available for the region.    

At the start of the year, Sizewell C announced it was launching 35 new apprenticeship placements – the first of nearly 100 new early careers roles that will be available on the project over the next few months.  

Apprenticeships at Sizewell C will cover a vast range of areas, from cyber security and nuclear engineering to HR consultancy and countryside working.  

Sarah Hancock, HR Director at Sizewell C, said: “Apprenticeships are the lifeblood of our organisation, and they are going to transform and be the future of the construction industry, so we’re really passionate about making apprenticeships a real success here.  

“Of the 1,500 apprenticeships we’re offering, we’ll deliver 540 for Suffolk – so we’re really looking for people who represent our local community. And there’s a real appetite for apprenticeships in this area: this was our first apprenticeship event, but there were people queuing out the door to talk to us and our suppliers. It was fantastic to see and this kind of event is a really direct and effective way of showcasing the many opportunities we have for local people.”  

Sizewell C suppliers and partners at the event included Tru7, Galldris, Dalkia, G4S, Blackwell Earthmoving, VolkerFitzpatrick, Oxford and Cotswold Archaeology, Amentum, Mace, East Coast College, University of Suffolk, College of West Anglia, Suffolk New College & the Eastern Education Group. Sizewell B was also at the event outlining its own apprenticeship opportunities.     

David Wake, Head of Apprenticeships at Galldris, based in Ipswich, said: “The Sizewell C project is giving people living in this area a great opportunity to develop a career. There are opportunities at entry level all the way up. Apprenticeships are a great way of learning and earning at the same time.”  

The Sizewell C project has also launched over 30 industrial placements, with roles ranging from creative content, project management, and quality engineering; 19 graduate placements are also becoming available this year; and the Sizewell C Summer Internship Scheme will open in early 2025, offering paid summer placements to young people hoping to join the nuclear industry.  

Sizewell C – which recently celebrated a year of construction – has pledged that at least a third of the 7,900 peak construction workforce – around 2,600 jobs – will come from East Anglia. Last year, it made a series of more specific regional pledges, aiming to deliver at least 500 jobs to people from both Lowestoft and Ipswich during the construction phase, launched a new regional jobs fair series with the Department of Work and Pensions, and opened a brand-new employability hub, Nucleus, in partnership with East Coast College. 

Jess Asato MP for Lowestoft said: “With at least 1,500 apprenticeships available through Sizewell C, young people in Lowestoft no longer have to leave to find high-skilled, high-wage jobs—they can build their careers right here in our town. This investment in skills and training is creating real opportunities, giving local people the chance to be part of the growing clean energy sector and the UK’s net-zero future. Lowestoft is establishing itself as a hub for clean energy, bringing long-term employment and growth to our community.” 

There are over 60 apprentices at Sizewell C already, and that number is expected to double by the end of the year.  

Minister of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, The Rt Hon Lord Hunt said: “Nuclear is delivering thousands of new jobs for British people as well as offering world-class apprenticeships that set young people up with well-paid, challenging and rewarding roles that put them at the forefront of the UK’s clean energy superpower mission.

“Sizewell C is championing supporting young people into the nuclear industry, creating life changing opportunities for people across Suffolk and the surrounding area.”

Across Suffolk, the project is delivering a Sizewell C Jobs Service in partnership with the region – ensuring that local employment is maximised. It is providing a £23m fund to enhance facilities and resources in local colleges, Higher Education and training providers and improve skills. And its ‘Young Sizewell C’ initiative – which aims to help raise visibility and accessibility for young people to help them gain important opportunities on the Sizewell C project and supply chain – has so far seen over 1,300 sign-ups, while 200 schools have accessed the project’s Power Up education resources. 

Jack Abbott, MP for Ipswich and the Government’s Mission Champion for the East of England, said: “Last year, I was proud to sign an agreement with Sizewell C that, as well as guaranteeing at least 500 jobs for Ipswich residents, builds on Sizewell’s generous apprenticeship and early careers offer, through a renewed partnership with the University of Suffolk, Suffolk One, and Suffolk New College, including expanding the College’s engineering, welding and fabrication courses, supporting the development of a Welding Centre of Excellence, scoping the development of an Electrical Engineering Centre of Excellence, and developing a Regional Construction Skills Roadshow. All of this will support our local young people into secure, skilled, well-paid employment.

“As transformative as this will be for Ipswich and Suffolk, the benefits of Sizewell C expand far beyond our local area, too. This is a project of national significance that will ensure thousands of young people across Britain, whether as part of construction or the wider supply chain, will have the opportunity to be at the vanguard of turbocharging our country’s economic growth and energy security.”

Sizewell C will host its next jobs fair with DWP at the University of Suffolk on 3 March.