With headquarters in Perth, the UK-listed company has teamed up with STEM Returners to support people who have taken a career break or are looking to return to the sector, said a company statement. The 12-week programme will help people with STEM skills restart their career and all returners who take part will have the opportunity to gain a full-time position with SSE [Scottish and Southern Energy]. 

The company has already announced more than 1,000 new jobs since June as part of its £7.5bn investment programme over the next five years to spur a green recovery from the pandemic. The wider energy industry will need to recruit around 200,000 people in the next decade, SSE estimates, to plug a skills gap and bolster the race to net zero emissions targets.

The STEM Returners programme is open to candidates across Scotland who have any length of career break, have an engineering background and are keen to work in its SSE Renewables or Transmission businesses. 

Further job creation news from Scotland is expected as First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is to put “a national mission to create jobs” at the heart of her plans for the year ahead, the BBC reports.

Ahead of an upcoming speech, Sturgeon has said: “Equipping people with skills for the future to keep them in work or get back into employment will be critical. From our young people entering the job market for the first time to older workers who need to retrain, we will make sure that no one is left behind.”

• Comment below on this story. Or let us know what you think by emailing us at [email protected] or tweet us to tell us your thoughts or share this story with a friend.