Social Value.
Supporting our Community
Cammell Laird has been at the forefront of UK shipbuilding and ship repair for more than 120 years. It has played a pivotal role in supporting the Merseyside community, sustaining vital jobs and creating a lifeline for the Merseyside, North-West and the wider UK economy.
Cammell Laird provides huge potential for skilled employment in engineering trades in the region. We have a policy of recruiting locally first and then nationally.
Skills for the Future
Since 2005, Cammell Laird has put over 300 apprentices through its multi-award-winning apprenticeship programme - making it one of the biggest in the UK maritime industry.
Around 70 apprentices were given the opportunity to contribute to the RRS Sir David Attenborough project and develop vital experience. Our approach to skills retention and development is also reflected in our supply chain.
We proactively seek local suppliers and subcontractors, and we expect our supply chain to have a ratio of 1:10 apprentices to employees.
Economic Factors
Cammell Laird’s aim is to provide sustainable employment for the communities and industries which support us.
Our policy is to re-invest our profits in our employees and our shipyard, to develop and build the facilities and increase capacity.
As we maintain our growth, we continue to invest in our facilities to ensure they are of a modern standard. Our continued investment in our facility, workforce and our supply chain reinforces our position as the world’s leading shipbuilder and shiprepairer.
Our Supply Chain
Cammell delivers significant economic value through its supply chain.
In the last five years alone, Cammell Laird has spent around £400M in the supply chain on a vast array of goods, services and materials which support both the operation/infrastructure of the shipyard itself and the vessel / construction projects which we have delivered to clients. Of that around a third (£130M) has been spent in the local area, benefiting more than 300 businesses.
Cammell Laird has a robust approved list of suppliers which are assessed to ensure that they can provide the right quality of product on time, every time.
Making An Impact
Cammell Laird’s most recent build - the RRS Sir David Attenborough is a Polar Research Ship whose contract was valued at c£150M, with over 80% of that budget spent with UK registered companies.
£23M was spent on UK Shipbuilding skills and facilities and an estimated £7M recouped through income tax on shipyard employees and subcontractors working on the project. One and half million manhours was expended in the shipyard developing and sustaining vital shipbuilding skills.
Supporting the Local Community
Cammell Laird is committed to supporting our local community and the company works with and supports various third sector organisations.
The child poverty figure for our community (Birkenhead and Tranmere) is circa 40% and is amongst the highest in the UK.
Through donations, fundraising dinners and sponsored events, the Company has raised in excess of £110,000.
National Shipbuilding Strategy
In March 2022, Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited Cammell Laird to announce the National Shipbuilding Strategy Refresh.
Designed to reinvigorate the shipbuilding and maritime sector across the UK regions as part of the government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda, the National Shipbuilding Strategy Refresh outlined the government’s plans for the UK shipbuilding enterprise and supply chain, which includes delivering a pipeline of more than 150 new naval and civil vessels.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Defence Secretary Ben Wallace undertook a tour of Cammell Laird’s facilities and met with apprentices. The tour also included meetings on board Type 45 vessel HMS Dauntless.
Boris Johnson, Prime Minister, said:
“Merseyside has been vital to the UK shipbuilding industry for centuries, and I was delighted to see first-hand today the breadth of British talent designing and building our ships of the future.
“Our shipbuilding strategy will continue to drive technology development and ensure we are levelling up across every dock, port and shipyard in the UK.”
