Skills bootcamps were a rapid-fire response to shortages in key industries. Jason Noble shines a light on HGV driver training to find out whether the approach is working, and what it means for apprenticeships…
Back in the summer and autumn of 2021, with Covid-19 an ever-present threat, the chronic shortage of lorry drivers was making headlines.
It was just one of multiple industries facing a dire skills shortage. However a perfect storm of lockdowns, a boom in online shopping and a post-Brexit exodus of EU drivers, saw it become one of the most high-profile.
Supermarket shelves emptied as lorry logjams grew. At the time, the Road Haulage Association (RHA) estimated a shortfall of 100,000 drivers, prompting haulage firms to offer generous wages and four-figure sign-on bonuses.
