Professional Builder is going ‘Inside the Dulux Academy’ to find out what the manufacturer is doing to support decorators through every step of their career.
Demand for highly skilled professional painters and decorators is on the rise again following lockdown, yet the decorating industry itself is facing a long-term labour shortage and skills crisis. We’ve seen a lack of new and young workers moving into the trade, leading to a shrinking and ageing workforce. Recent research shows that the average age of a UK decorator is 50, while 66 per cent of decorators are set to retire within the next 10 years.
Recognising this issue from an early stage, Dulux took matters into their own hands by launching Dulux Academy at its Decorative Paints UK Headquarters in Slough in 2016, approved by City & Guilds and the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB). With the objective of training up to 4,000 tradespeople a year, it became the UK’s first dedicated training centre for professional painters and decorators. The flagship two-storey centre combines two practical training areas and upstairs classrooms that includes space for up to 100 course attendees. Today, the facility offers over 50 courses – delivered by its team of expert Skills Development Consultants – designed to support every element of decorating, split into five core areas: Product, Application and Innovation; Sustainability; Colour & Design; Health & Safety; and Business Skills.
To help realise its ambition of having its training facilities within 100 miles of a decorator, Dulux Academy has also been expanding its reach across the UK. This includes bringing its courses to several partner colleges, and to new sites across the UK, including Altrincham, Norwich, West Thurrock and, most recently, Scunthorpe.
Building the workforce of the future
To date, over 10,000 trade professionals have used the training courses, and the company is now committed to doubling this number over the next five years. There will also be a wealth of initiatives that will support existing tradespeople while also promoting the painting & decorating profession to attract and build the workforce of the future.
This activity includes the new Dulux Academy Apprentice Season Ticket, launched to coincide with National Apprenticeship Week in February this year. Open to all painting and decorating apprentices enrolled at a college or with a learning provider, the Apprentice Season Ticket provides users with access to an online learning hub and face-to-face courses at venues across the UK, online subject clinics and a network of peer-to-peer advice and support, among other benefits.
An industry for everyone
With women making up just 20 per cent of UK appliers, Dulux Academy says it is strengthening its commitment to promoting gender diversity and equality across the industry with incentives that promote the success and achievements of tradeswomen, while also highlighting the benefits of choosing painting & decorating as a profession.
Dulux Academy has sponsored and contributed to a whitepaper that identifies the inequalities and challenges faced by women in decorating and construction, while also offering solutions to how these industries can adapt to promote a safer and more welcoming environment for female workers. At the same time, it is continuing to offer both face-to-face training courses and online Free Academy Live sessions that were first introduced to support decorators during lockdown restrictions. These are now helping to meet the needs of female decorators looking for more flexible work options to fit around their family and other commitments. Over 40 per cent of trade professionals currently learning with Dulux Academy online are female, while women make up 20 per cent of Academy attendees on face-to-face courses.
BRIDGING THE SKILLS GAP
With 2022 shaping up to be a year of significant growth for painting & decorating, and demand for professional tradespeople expected to rise, Dulux Academy will continue to support the industry with accessible training. If you’d like to attend a Dulux Academy course yourself, visit: https://academy.duluxtradepaintexpert.co.uk/
Testimonials
Simon Medlin, Medlin with Paint, Wooburn Green, Buckinghamshire
Simon Medlin has used Dulux Academy courses to support his business and the development of his apprentices. This includes his most recent apprentice, Jordan, who has improved his decorating skills via the Academy while in turn teach Simon about the benefits of social media such as Tik Tok to market his business.
Simon says; “Jordan has completed the Digital Murals and Feature Walls course and Spray Introduction course with Dulux Academy, and his wallpapering has really come a long way. Much of what we’re teaching him now is how to hone his skills to the highest standard possible, and the Academy courses have really helped him in this regard. Thanks to Jordan, we also now have an Instagram page and we’re on TikTok too, where we can share more details about the work we do quickly and more frequently with customers.
Read the full case study here: https://www.duluxtradepaintexpert.co.uk/en/editorial/case-study-simon-medlin
Rachel Bates, BATES&MiSONS, Chard, Somerset
Rachel Bates said Dulux Academy courses were invaluable to her when she decided to move into decorating after making a career change to better support her family. She says; “When I started my decorating career, I went on numerous Dulux Academy training courses to learn as much as I could about painting and decorating. This includes their digital murals, wallpapering and kitchen spraying courses, which have been hugely helpful, and we receive great support and advice through the Dulux Academy Facebook page too.”
Rachel says she is proud to be a female decorator and would encourage other women to join the trade. “It’s a brilliant job to be in and you’re able to turn out beautiful work that you can take real pride in. I’ve also had lots of praise from people when they see me in town with my decorating whites on. If I were to retire tomorrow, those are the positive aspects I’ll always remember.”
Read the full case study here: https://www.duluxtradepaintexpert.co.uk/en/editorial/case-study-rachel-bates
