Representing a £1.5 million investment in skills training over the next five years from Anamore, one of the UK’s leading specialists in building remediation, the ‘Anamore Academy’ is a Higher-Level Apprenticeship (HLA) programme in partnership with South West College.

Over the next five years, the company intends to employ a minimum of 25 HLAs through the new skills initiative, with two HLA’s and one placement student already employed within the initial 2024 cohort.

The Anamore students will gain an Ulster University accredited Foundation Degree with the option of progressing onto further higher education qualifications.

The Academy, which will allow the students to ‘learn as they earn’ will focus primarily on construction qualifications, but also other expertise in HR, Accounting, Business Development, Health & Wellbeing and Administration.

This new initiative builds upon Anamore’s growth in recent years but also seeks to address the talent gap within Northern Ireland and the wider UK construction industry.

Welcoming the launch of Anamore Academy, Minister for the Economy, Dr Caoimhe Archibald said: “As we improve building safety following publication of the Grenfell Inquiry Report, it is vital that our local workforce learn the skills required to meet future challenges within the industry.

“This example of positive collaboration between the further education sector and local business will help provide construction apprentices with knowledge, skills and qualifications in building safety, cladding remediation and other fire safety measures.”

James McCallan Co-Founder at Anamore said: “The building remediation sector is a niche industry within construction. Post-Grenfell, we have seen a huge demand for our services across the UK and increasingly worldwide. This has placed even greater importance on the need for a skilled team and we want to champion home-grown talent here in Northern Ireland, to give local students the practical and technical skills that will give them the foundations to succeed in their chosen career.”

Celine McCartan MBE, Chief Executive of South West College added: “The launch of Anamore Academy is a welcome collaboration between the higher education sector and the construction industry. South West College is ready to work with Anamore to ensure that all programme participants receive the best possible start to their construction careers.

“With 2 Higher Level Apprentices and 1 placement student already enrolled in Anamore Academy, we begin to see the positive outcome of such an innovative programme. Building safety is a specialised sector within the construction industry and we need to train more students and apprentices in this field with the skills to complete such work. Anamore Academy serves as a key milestone in developing skills for our local workforce to do just that.”

Anamore are hosting an Enterprise and Employability Cross-Campus Competition Day for South West College first-year BTEC construction students on 2^nd April 2025. The aim of the event is to bring together students from all three campuses, to collaborate and create innovative solutions to help to develop their technical and employability skills. Anamore hope to provide work placement opportunities in the coming years for BTEC students, with the hope of students progressing into the Anamore Academy HLA Programme in future years.

Prospective applicants can apply online for enrolment in Anamore Academy later this year at the following link – https://swc.ac.uk/courses/apprenticeships

(Left to Right) Noreen McGirr, SWC Higher Level Apprenticeship Manager, James McCallan – Co-Founder of Anamore, Celine McCartan, SWC Principal and Chief Executive, Mairead Haughey – Compliance Manager at Anamore, Programme Participants – Michael Coyle, Conn Sweeney, Darragh McPhillips and Dr Danielle McKelvey, Curriculum Manager – Department of Sustainability, Construction and Transport at SWC.