UK based skills specialist Bournville sets up South Asia operations through India

Updated on: Tuesday, November 08, 2011

Bournville Training and Consultancy, the training and consultancy arm of the renowned Bournville College of Further Education, Birmingham, UK, announced the commencement of its South Asia operations with India as the primary hub. Through this venture, the company will provide a holistic training programme with globally recognised certifications in Europe, Australia, UAE and South East Asia to Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) across the country. Bournville is in talks with various reputed chambers of commerce like CII who have initiated and aligned with national programmes to create and upgrade ITIs. The company is commencing its India operations in collaborations with IT firm Globsyn Group and shipping company Seacom Group. For starters, it will work on the development of six ITIs training around 1,000 people in West Bengal followed by Mumbai and Delhi.

Speaking about the reasons for choosing West Bengal as the hub for South Asia, Norman Cave, Principal, Bournville College shared, “India came out as a perfect choice to commence our operations in the entire South Asia as the country has a high demand of the company products and services, business objective synergies, low competition and proximity to the ASEAN countries.” The firm will provide a holistic consultancy programme focusing on the three key aspects of training - content, infrastructure and technology. For this, it is also bringing in its international partners - Shepherd Construction for infrastructure development, Broadway Malyan for technology development and deployment and parent company Bournville University College, Birmingham which will provide the content having the experience of working with more than 450 companies in skill development. It also has firm plans to scale up its operations across other South Asia countries including Nepal, Bhutan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Bangladesh.

The content will be customised to not only India but also state and region specific requirements. Training sectors include hospitality and tourism, health care and management and training, training on motor vehicle, construction and English language skills. In the first phase of the operational commencement, Bournville will build capacity and capabilities by creating a cache of super trainers which will then help catalyse and downward filtration process. In the first phase these trainers with special skills will be given a teacher training programme in the UK. Bournville will also be deploying its trainers to India. The company plans to provide full educational consultancy services covering employer engagement, syllabus and programme development, facilities consultancy, staff training, infrastructure development management and governance along with a review system put in place to measure the impact of work that has been undertaken.

Sudeshna Chatterjee, Director of South Asia Development, Bournville Training and Consultancy Pvt Ltd said, “We are glad that we could flag off our new business enterprise in collaboration with noted partners. We have plans to set up partnerships with education ministries, trade and business associations, employers, colleges and universities. The menu-priced package for ITI upgradation is a consolidated programme curriculum which can be efficiently implemented by the company along with customised programmes, based on client requirements.”

UK based skills specialist Bournville sets up South Asia operations through India

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