Developing training for jobs in short supply: the Iron Academy in Stains
Practical notebook no. 16: (Re)developing productive activities in metropolitan regions
Thierry Petit, November 2024
The revival of local industrial know-how requires strong initiatives, such as production schools. These are state-recognised private technical schools that offer young people aged between 15 and 18 an adapted teaching model that combines practical exercises and theoretical courses on the same site. Each establishment is the result of needs expressed by companies in an employment catchment area that extends for around fifty kilometres. The Iron Academy in Stains is a special case among the production schools, since it is the result of an initial joint initiative by the TotalEnergies Foundation and the Fédération des écoles de production.
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Production schools, the distant heirs of the Boisart industrial apprenticeship workshops founded in Lyon in 1882, have 44 establishments in France, including three in the Île-de-France region (the Iron Academy in Stains, Icam Paris-Sénart and the Graines d’Avenir farm school in Magny-les-Hameaux). There are also 17 projects under development in the regions.
What is a production school?
Gathered within the Fédération nationale des écoles de production, created in 2000, these establishments offer free training to students who have dropped out of school and for whom traditional training is not suitable. They also respond to the needs of local companies for industrial occupations that are in short supply. As public schools without a contract, run by non-profit-making organisations20 , they differ from traditional vocational training courses in the content of their courses (meeting the specific recruitment needs of companies as close as possible to the employment area) and in their very practical nature, focusing on ‘doing’, with an emphasis on passing on know-how. This means that two-thirds of the time is spent in workshops (25 hours), while one-third is spent in classes at the lycée. These structures also aim to train young people to be immediately operational, thanks to the integration of the corporate culture during the training (35 h/week, work on real orders, customer relations, work on interpersonal skills, etc.).
How does a project come about?
Production schools are a solution for areas where there are both school drop-outs and industrial companies with unmet recruitment needs within a radius of no more than 50 kilometres. They are set up at the instigation of project leaders, whether they are a group of companies or their representatives (CCI, trade union), an area that wants to set up appropriate training for people who are failing at school, or an association that wants to finance a school project. The federation assists the project owner in developing their project and identifying potential partners. A preliminary opportunity study is carried out to check that the project is of interest to the local area and that it is compatible with existing provision before it is launched. However, the long-term viability of these courses depends on the long-term viability of the surrounding industrial fabric.
Private and public funding
Private production schools do not receive any subsidies from the French education system: it is the school itself that recruits and pays its teachers. The need for specific machinery and tools means that sponsorship plays an essential role, particularly during the investment phase. Depending on the Banque des territoires, which provides engineering support, this budget is between €0.5 and €1.2 million. On average, 50% of operating costs are covered by revenue from actual orders, and the remainder by support from the Region and the State.
The Iron Academy production school in Stains
To be inaugurated in September 2021 in Stains (Seine-Saint-Denis), the Iron Academy represents a special case among production schools, since it is the result of an initial joint initiative by the TotalEnergies Foundation and the Fédération des écoles de production. Private players and local authorities joined the project at a later stage. The Iron Academy offers a two-year vocational training course in metalworking for students aged 15 to 18, in response to the needs of companies in the north-western Paris region. Located on the TotalEnergies Industreet Foundation’s Campus for the Professions of Tomorrow, the school occupies 1,000 square metres of industrial premises, rented from the Foundation on a ten-year lease (the first two years are free of charge and the following eight years at a below-market price). The school is equipped with ten machines at a cost of one million euros. For its first class, it trained nine young people to respond to real orders given as subcontracts by partner companies (Enzyme Design, Metal System, Turpin Longueville, Sekatol, Sepelco, etc.), private individuals and local authorities (Le Bourget). The students have been able to work on prototyping projects or small series, such as a marquee, a staircase, several gates or doors, street furniture and a metal work of art in real-life conditions. These orders help to finance a third of the school’s operating costs.
Strong growth expected in the Paris region
Production schools have seen strong growth since 2018 with the law ‘for the freedom to choose one’s professional future’ of 5 September 2018 and the support of the Ministry of Industry. And their expansion is set to continue in Île-de- France, thanks in particular to the partnership signed with the Region (financial aid for investment and operation), with the ambition of opening 17 new schools. To find out more, contact the federation directly.
Partners The Foundation
TotalEnergies (leasing of premises at less than market price, financing of 50% of the cost of the machines). The French government through the France Relance plan (50% of the cost of the machines, one third of the operating costs, including rental of premises). The Île-de-France Region (one third of the operating costs, including rental of premises). EPT Plaine Commune, the towns of Stains and Pierrefitte (members of the board of directors, support through their youth services, local mission and links with associations). Points to watch The issue of identifying and then accessing suitable premises that are financially accessible to these structures is often central to the projects, with the triple constraint of premises that are suitable for receiving the public, accessible by public transport for a young and not very mobile public, and premises that are suitable for receiving machines. Local authorities often play a central role here.