Free Webinar: Unlocking the Skills Agenda

Event Overview

This webinar explores how local control, industry collaboration, and Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) can help address skills shortages and improve retention in the construction industry.

Bringing together a regional contractor, a social impact consultancy, and a further education provider, the session will focus on:

How can greater local control of funding and closer industry collaboration improve skills development and retention in construction?

Topics include:

The impact of MMC on current and future skills requirements

Embedding social value and employment outcomes into project delivery

Building stronger partnerships between industry and education providers

Aligning curriculum with real employer needs to support entry routes and career progression
Creating locally relevant skills pipelines through collaborative working

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What attendees will gain

Insight into practical, locally driven skills solutions

Real examples of collaboration between industry and education

Understanding of how MMC is reshaping workforce demands

Ideas to improve recruitment, progression, and retention

Kier

Sarah Morton, Regional Director

Will provide an industry leadership perspective on how contractors are responding to social value expectations and shaping skills pathways through live projects.

Akerlof

Penny Anderson, Head of Social Impact

Will share how to move beyond tick box approaches, and how social value can be effectively integrated into construction and education partnerships.

Warrington & Vale Royal College

Liam Bretherton, Director of Curriculum & Quality (Construction)

Will discuss how colleges are adapting to better support learners and employers in the built environment.

Our speakers

Sarah Morton

Regional Director, Kier Construction

Sarah Morton

Regional Director, Kier Construction

Sarah Morton is Regional Director at Kier Construction, with responsibility for leading major projects and teams across the region. She brings extensive experience in delivering complex construction programmes while embedding social value, skills development, and community benefit within project delivery.

Penny Anderson

Head of Social Impact, Akerlof

Penny Anderson

Head of Social Impact, Akerlof

Penny Anderson is Head of Social Impact at Akerlof, supporting organisations across the built environment to define, deliver, and evidence meaningful social value. Her work focuses on translating policy and ambition into practical action and measurable impact.

Liam Bretherton

Director of Curriculum & Quality (Construction), Warrington & Vale Royal College

Liam Bretherton

Director of Curriculum & Quality (Construction), Warrington & Vale Royal College

Liam Bretherton leads construction curriculum and quality at Warrington & Vale Royal College. He works closely with employers to ensure education provision aligns with industry needs and supports clear progression routes into construction careers.