The funding can be used for a wide range of government-approved green skills apprenticeships, helping build capabilities in areas including low-carbon heating, electrical vehicle infrastructure, energy efficient construction and sustainable supply chains.
Opportunities range from tradespeople training to fit solar panels or heat pumps or to install electric van charging infrastructure, to professionals taking on degree apprenticeships such as environmental practitioner or sustainability business specialist.
It is hoped that the initiative will help close the growing gap between the roles needed to support the UK’s green transition and the availability of people with the skills needed to fill them.
ISEP CEO Sarah Mukherjee MBE said that Royal Mail’s decision to unlock apprenticeship levy funding is a strong example of how large organisations can use their influence to build capability in a practical and scalable way, supporting businesses right across the economy.
“With close to one million young people in the UK currently not in employment, education or training, initiatives like this show how the transition to a low-carbon economy can become a powerful engine for opportunity,” she continued.
“Green skills are not only critical to delivering net zero – they are essential to creating more inclusive pathways into meaningful work.”
The UK is undergoing a structural shift towards a low-carbon economy, which can unlock significant benefits, including lower energy costs, reduced operating expenses, improved resource efficiency, productivity gains, and greater resilience against fuel price volatility.
As an employer of 130,000 people, Royal Mail has an important role to play in supporting the UK’s transition. Its own Steps to Zero strategy is well underway, including the electrification of its fleet and network efficiencies such as reducing domestic flights.
However, meeting its target of net-zero emissions by 2040 also depends on an economy wide transition, with supply chains, customers, and infrastructure all evolving in tandem. Its new fund is designed to help accelerate the transition by building the skills needed across the wider economy.
Miles Durrant, head of climate strategy at Royal Mail, said: “As low-carbon technologies become established, the challenge is no longer just innovation but deployment.
"Advances in areas such as electrification and sustainable construction must be matched by a workforce capable of deploying them at scale and driving down costs. This fund is about helping to build that capability across the economy.”
The fund is now open for applications to businesses and organisations in England and Wales. Learn how to apply here.
Photography: Royal Mail
Chris Seekings is the Deputy Editor of ISEP’s Transform magazine, which is published biomonthly for ISEP members. Chris’s role involves writing sustainability-related news, features and interviews, as well as helping to plan and manage the magazine’s other day-to-day activities.
