The 2-year Erasmus+ Sector Skills Alliance project “BlueEDU” was completed in January with the results now published on the project website. The project examined training provision for staff working in the cage-based aquaculture industries in Northern and Southern Europe. It was led by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) with partners including the Federation of European Aquaculture Producers, University of Stirling and Pisces Learning Innovations.

Outputs from the project include a set of videos and reports detailing the current status of education and training within the cage aquaculture sector. This s most developed in Norway and Scotland but even in these countries considerable gaps in provision were found. An example video is shown below.

Key report outputs include:

• D3.1 – Analysis and investigations of existing studies and research-based data on skills gaps in aquaculture industry and VET supply

• D4.1 – An evaluation of the derivation and application of occupational definitions to VET design and delivery in the aquaculture sector

• D4.2 – Occupational standards for European cage farmed salmon, correlated to cage based production in the Mediterranean area.

• D5.1 – BlueEDU European aquaculture VET inventory description of the VET system in a number of countries

• D5.2 – European aquaculture VET, identification of best practice

• D6.1 – Qualitative analysis of skill gaps and VET needs

• D6.2 – European salmon farming industry’s VET needs

• D6.3 – An analysis of the European aquaculture industry’s VET needs

A full list of outputs is provided on the BlueEDU website