The Roads Acad­emy offers an inno­v­a­tive devel­op­ment pro­gramme that aims at dri­ving change in the roads indus­try in Eng­land. Tar­geted at the whole sec­tor, the acad­emy is designed to ensure a sig­nif­i­cant change in how the indus­try thinks, behaves and per­forms to help us meet the chal­lenges that face us.

It brings together peo­ple work­ing in the High­ways Agency and sup­ply chain as part of a shared learn­ing expe­ri­ence. It will also help us all see things from each oth­ers’ per­spec­tive and improve col­lab­o­ra­tive work­ing in the sector.

Del­e­gates will develop an under­stand­ing of what it means to be a ‘world lead­ing roads oper­a­tor’ and the capa­bil­ity to ensure world class performance.

The acad­emy explores ways to deliver solu­tions that pro­vide value for money safely and sus­tain­ably, and iden­tify ways to reduce cap­i­tal and oper­at­ing costs, and con­tributes towards the sus­tain­abil­ity agenda by explor­ing new ways of doing things and chal­leng­ing exist­ing processes.

The pro­gramme is based around four res­i­den­tial work­shops over a 15 month period fol­lowed by 9 months of work­ing in an Inter­nal Con­sul­tancy Project Group, tak­ing learn­ing from the pro­gramme and apply­ing it to a project. A key aim is for del­e­gates to carry learn­ing and devel­op­ment over into the work­place, so as well as classroom-based learn­ing at Rof­fey Park Insti­tute, the academy’s aca­d­e­mic part­ner, each mod­ule also includes a mas­ter­class, action learn­ing sets and chal­lenge and inno­va­tion coach­ing ses­sions. Del­e­gates develop solu­tions based on real issues in the sec­tor and imple­ment these within their own and mem­ber organ­i­sa­tions through­out the pro­gramme and beyond. To ensure the Roads Acad­emy pro­gramme remains cut­ting edge and reflects the emerg­ing needs of the sec­tor the con­tent is designed so that it can change and develop to reflect chang­ing needs in the sector.

We are keen to share the ben­e­fits of the acad­emy across the sec­tor, so each Roads Acad­emy mem­ber organ­i­sa­tion is enti­tled to two places at each mas­ter­class, with the oppor­tu­nity to pur­chase addi­tional places. These events pro­vide oppor­tu­ni­ties to show­case and dis­cuss cut­ting edge ideas and best prac­tice from both within and out­side the roads sec­tor. Details of pre­vi­ous mas­ter­classes can be found on the  Roads Acad­emy mas­ter­classes page.

For more detailed infor­ma­tion about the Roads Acad­emy pro­gramme, includ­ing cur­rent infor­ma­tion about mod­ule top­ics and the qual­i­fi­ca­tion received upon com­ple­tion, please click on the link to the  Roads Acad­emy brochure (14.5MB PDF).

Organ­i­sa­tions from across the roads sec­tor are encour­aged to become mem­bers of the Roads Acad­emy. There are a num­ber of ben­e­fits asso­ci­ated with being a mem­ber. These ben­e­fits are:

• Access to cut­ting edge think­ing through atten­dance at mas­ter­classes deliv­ered by lead­ers from both indus­try and acad­e­mia. Up to two places at each event, addi­tional to any cur­rent delegate(s).
• The pres­tige of being a mem­ber and oppor­tu­nity to influ­ence and con­tribute to the future of the roads sector.
• A plat­form to pro­mote and share expe­ri­ences and successes.
• An oppor­tu­nity to nom­i­nate mem­bers of staff for the programme.
• Infor­ma­tion and knowl­edge to take back and share.

If your organ­i­sa­tion wishes to become a mem­ber of the Roads Acad­emy, please send an email to roadsacademy@highways.gsi.gov.uk or call 01234 796 512 for fur­ther information.

Details of the nom­i­na­tion and selec­tion process can be found on the Roads Acad­emy Nom­i­na­tions page.