Government pulls the plug on HGV Skills Bootcamps

In a move that’s left many scratching their heads, the government is shutting down its flagship HGV driver training initiative — the Skills Bootcamps programme — after just three years on the road.

Launched in 2022, the 16-week Skills Bootcamps were designed to fast-track new HGV drivers into the industry. More than 20,000 people have earned their licences and landed jobs through the programme. Now, with the government calling time on it, thousands of would-be drivers are being turned away.

According to T&D’s sister title, Motor Transport, the Department for Education (DfE) has decided not to renew contracts with training providers – despite a continuing nationwide shortage of HGV drivers reported by key industry bodies. All training must now wrap up by 30 September, and no new recruits are being accepted.

What’s next? According to the DfE, future Skills Bootcamps for HGV drivers will be left to local (devolved) authorities. But here’s the kicker: according to The Logistics Skills Network, of the 12 mayoral combined authorities across the country, only London, Liverpool and the North East currently have any money set aside for HGV training.

The rest? No sign of new programmes on the horizon.

David Coombes, chair of The Logistics Skills Network, said: “This leaves a situation where for most of the country, the only funded HGV driver training is through an apprenticeship which requires learners to be employed for the 12-month duration of the programme.

“The Skills Bootcamps offered unemployed people and those wanting to change career a chance to gain an HGV licence and move up to a better-paid job in the haulage sector.

“DfE research shows 72% of HGV Skills Bootcamps completers have moved into gainful employment earning on average £13,000 a year more than the National Living Wage.”

He warned that ending the programme could quickly make the current driver shortage even worse, hurting the economy in the process.

“It will also give rise to a catastrophic reduction in training capacity which will constrain the country’s ability to deliver any large-scale HGV driver training programmes for the foreseeable future.

“The economy may not have the transport infrastructure it needs to deliver the government’s growth ambitions – including the delivery of building materials for 1.5 million new homes,” he warned.

This comes just after the RHA (Road Haulage Association) reported the UK needs over 40,000 new HGV drivers every year just to keep things steady.

The decision is also a gut punch for training providers. A recent survey by the Logistics Skills Network found nearly all HGV schools rely on Skills Bootcamps to some extent. For over a third, the programme makes up more than half their income.

Coombes laid out the stark reality: “These providers may now be forced to sell off their training vehicles and lay off instructors and undoubtedly, many will be forced into closure.

“Without the hoped-for Skills Bootcamps contract extension, there will be a deficit of at least 15,000 new HGV drivers to replace drivers leaving the sector each year.

“The impact of this would be 150,000 tonnes of freight per day, not collected nor delivered. It will also create a critical gap in training provision and disrupt the supply of newly qualified HGV drivers,” he warned.