A NEW skills centre has officially opened its doors at Appledore Shipyard.

The launch, on Monday, was hailed as a groundbreaking initiative by shipbuilding director, Andy Hamilton.

The skills centre is a joint Babcock and trade union project with longer term aims of providing support and facilities to local businesses and schools.

It was officially opened by Devon county councillor and former shipyard worker, Cllr Andrew Eastman, and Paul Kenny, general secretary of the GMB.

Mr Hamilton said: "This has been a ground breaking initiative that demonstrates the benefit of government, industry, trade unions and the educational institutions working together in partnership."

There are now 30 new apprentices at the shipyard working on the £50 million aircraft carrier project.

A commitment to a partnership approach to skills development was underpinned by the formation of a GMB led steering group, fully supported by Unite.

The group includes representatives from the unions, management, TUC unionlearn, Train to Gain, and Petroc.

As well as the apprenticeship scheme, the group has also arranged literacy and numeracy courses in addition to adult skills training in welding and fabrication and train the trainer courses, all involving over a third of the workforce.

The skills centre was a key aim of the project achieved through a successful bid for TUC unionlearn Skills for the Future funding, matched by financial input from the company.

The North Devon yard made its first contribution towards the Ministry of Defence's aircraft carrier projects — 300 tonnes of steel blocks called sponsons — last summer.

The next big installment, a huge bulbous bow, which weighs more than 33 double decker buses, is one of two bow units set to leave Appledore on March 31 to form part of the HMS Queen Elizabeth warship. It marks the completion of a key stage in one of the shipyard's most significant projects to date.