2009 Report to Government on National Research and

• a shortage of skilled manpower in the UK that could affect the defence,
nuclear power and health sec<strong>to</strong>rs and have serious implications for the
long-term management of radioactive wastes;
• a projected requirement for 15,000 <strong>to</strong> 19,000 trained personnel <strong>to</strong> be
recruited <strong>to</strong> the nuclear sec<strong>to</strong>r by around 2017;
• a nuclear industry that has become heavily dependent on generic
provision, i.e. recruitment of good quality graduates from non-nuclear
specific degree courses;
• a fragile specialised post-graduate training sec<strong>to</strong>r in the nuclear area;
• a <strong>to</strong>p priority of increasing vocational and technical skills, with a
recommendation <strong>to</strong> quadruple the number of apprentices by 2013.
4.7 The most recent report, a more detailed analysis by Cogent (Cogent, <strong>2009</strong>),
forecasts a skills gap of up <strong>to</strong> 14,000 by 2025, which equates <strong>to</strong> a need for 1,000
new recruits a year, with the main drivers being:
• an ageing workforce that retires earlier than the UK workforce in general
• a shift in skills from electricity generation <strong>to</strong> decommissioning
• a demand for skills <strong>to</strong> operate a new batch of nuclear power stations.
4.8 It is clear from all of these reports that the situation had declined <strong>to</strong> the point of
grave concern and, although this has been recognised and measures begun <strong>to</strong>
address it, arrangements are not yet adequately rebuilt for the future. This is
especially the case for the decommissioning and radioactive waste management
programmes and there will be competition between these areas and the
expected new build programme.
Nuclear Skills - Training
4.9 Many bodies and organisations are involved in the provision of nuclear skills in
the UK and the relationships between them are complex (Figure 3).
4.10 The current approach <strong>to</strong> training is based on a “skills pyramid” (Figure 4) in which
the sizes of the sections approximate <strong>to</strong> the relative numbers required. In keeping
with the main conclusions of a Cogent report (Cogent, 2008), most of the initial
efforts were concentrated on the lower part of the skills pyramid. This
emphasised the skills needed at these levels and demanded by employers but,
with this being addressed, attention is now turning also <strong>to</strong> the upper areas of the
pyramid.
CoRWM Document 2543, Oc<strong>to</strong>ber <strong>2009</strong> Page 64 of 151