Copart UK today announces the launch of a new Driver Academy Programme to recruit and train the next generation of HGV drivers for its expanding, self-owned, UK-wide transportation fleet.
Hot off the heels of an overhaul to our driver rewards package, this £1m+ programme has been launched in partnership with HGVC, the leading provider of commercial licence acquisition training courses in the UK, to secure the future supply of highly skilled Copart drivers.
The ambitious scheme, which aims to deliver 100 new fully trained drivers in the first year, is part of our wider expansion plans to continually enhance our vehicle collection and delivery capabilities across the UK, and is accompanied by our existing multi-million, multi-year, vehicle investment programme to ensure the ‘greenest fleet on the street’.
A Future-Proof Fleet
Currently, Copart operates the largest self-owned fleet in the salvage sector, with more than 250 directly employed specialist drivers and 18 locations strategically positioned throughout the UK.
Our nationwide transport capabilities, efficiency of service, and market resilience remain unmatched in the industry, meaning time to collect vehicles is greatly reduced. However, a recent survey by the Road Haulage Association estimates a shortage of more than 100,000 qualified HGV drivers in the UK.
Our Driver Academy Programme will not only help counter this skills shortage, but will also provide a professional, effective, and long-term pipeline of appropriate candidates training to be Copart HGV vehicle movement specialists. A role that each year becomes more and more skilled given the huge range of services Copart provides to its customers.
High Quality, High Pass Rates
In addition to sourcing and training candidates through to HGV licence completion, the HGVC-managed programme will offer a network of over 400 quality assured learning centres around the country, to ensure drivers stay connected to the most suitable training locations.
Impressively, the programme guarantees the fastest course completion times, the most comprehensive training modules, and therefore aims for the highest HGV pass rates in the UK as candidates taking HGVC training courses are 75% more likely to pass first time than the industry standard.
Centralised management for unrivalled learning
The Copart Driver Academy will be managed through a centralised system, with real-time communication lines provided by an innovative online portal. This gives Copart a wealth of ‘live’ information on the training and progress of all our drivers, as well the ability to source prospective candidates.
The programme also offers supporting modules for qualified drivers to help them maintain their periodic CPC training and upskill in various categories, delivered through HGVC’s extensive JAUPT – approved network.
These modules will include courses on driver first aid and emergency, safer urban driving, records and enforcement, and safe loading, all specifically tailored to the bespoke range of Copart multi-car transporters.
Additionally, the programme will undertake driver risk assessments which can provide Copart’s logistics team with crucial online data on driver behaviour patterns, as well as further training modules based on risk areas if required, ensuring Copart’s “Operational Excellence” is maintained.
Carbon Neutral Training
As a global leader in online vehicle remarketing and recycling, we are fully committed to environmental protection and sustainability under our Copart Cares campaign.
As a result, a key criteria for a training partner was that of sustainability. HGVC is the only UK provider to offer carbon neutral training.
HGVC pledges to plant a tree for every training Copart course undertaken, off-setting any carbon created by the vehicles used during the programme and directly aligning with Copart’s Plan-Net-Zero Programme – our formal commitment to becoming a fully sustainable business by achieving net zero emissions.
Jane Pocock, Managing Director of Copart UK & Ireland, said:
“The Copart Driver Academy is focused on ensuring that we continue to provide highly skilled and quality assured drivers across our fleet.
Whether it is recovering a vehicle direct from a Policy Holder or delivering one of the hundreds of thousands of vehicles we move a year, we know that having a self–employed, trustworthy, and fully accountable workforce is paramount to delivering world class logistics across the UK.”
Phil Briggs, Director of Operation Centres, Transport and Engineering, added:
“The Copart Driver Academy programme represents a significant investment into our transport and logistics capabilities and will enable us to select candidates who demonstrate the right attributes to join, and train within, our business without the usual qualification restraints.
This exciting new initiative will support our continued growth, despite wider HGV driver market constraints, and we’re looking forward to finding great people to join our business who we can train and develop to ensure that Copart’s ‘Operational Excellence’ is maintained.”