Thames Tideway Tunnel has signed up to a charter pledging to support technicians and apprentices to achieve professional status.

Thames Tideway Tunnel joined other engineering and infrastructure companies, including Amey, Carillion and Crossrail, to sign the EngTechNow charter, which sets out commitments to boost the status and recognition of engineering technicians and recently completing apprentices.

Phil Stride, Head of Thames Tideway Tunnel, said:

“The huge demand for engineering professionals on infrastructure projects like ours in turn creates a need to formally recognise those who meet the professional standards expected of people working in our industry.

“With our own civil engineering technician apprentices we’re encouraging them to achieve EngTech status and we’ll certainly be expecting our contractors to encourage the same of their staff.”

Thames Tideway Tunnel’s Skills and Employment Manager Scott Young signed the charter at the parliamentary launch of a report which says the UK’s future economic growth will be hindered by a significant experience gap in engineering if good practice for developing technician careers is not adopted more widely.

The Thames Tideway Tunnel project will create more than 4,000 direct sustainable jobs and another 5,000 jobs indirectly. The project has pledged one apprenticeship for every 50 site workers.

Blane Judd, Chief Executive of EngTechNow, co-signed the charter. He said:

“Engineering talent underpins the productivity of the whole UK economy, so with a major skills and experience gap looming, it is great to see high profile infrastructure projects like Thames Tideway using their influence to drive a solution.”