Green skills, bright futures: how apprentices are helping shape the next generation of green tech

Blackburn Meadows plays a key role in powering South Yorkshire — and now, it’s also helping shape the future of green skills. Since opening in 2015, the biomass-fuelled combined heat and power plant has been converting UK-sourced recycled waste wood into up to 30MW of electricity and 25MW of thermal energy — enough to power around 69,000 homes and businesses across South Yorkshire.

But as impressive as the technology is, it’s the people behind it that are helping take the site’s innovation to the next level.

This year, three digital apprentices joined the team at Blackburn Meadows as part of a degree apprenticeship programme run by FDM Group and Sheffield Hallam University. Their final-year project was designing an AI-powered system to help monitor PPE compliance — a smart solution with real-world safety implications.

Ensuring all contractors on site are wearing the correct PPE is a vital part of maintaining a safe working environment. Traditionally, this has relied on human checks. But the apprentices saw an opportunity to bring a fresh perspective — and the power of AI — to the process.

Their system helps automatically detect whether contractors are wearing appropriate protective gear as they enter the site. This has the potential to improve response times, reduce non-compliance, and even influence safety culture across E.ON’s wider operations.

For Jess Dhariwal, Site Manager at Blackburn Meadows, the benefits of the apprenticeship project go far beyond the tech itself:

“At E.ON, we’re always looking for ways to make things smarter and more efficient — whether through digital innovation or improved operational integrity. Working with apprentices from FDM and Sheffield Hallam University, we were able to identify solutions that support both.

This project has the potential to reduce PPE non-compliance — not just at Blackburn Meadows, but across other sites and the industry more widely. What stood out most was the mindset the apprentices brought with them: a willingness to challenge the status quo, and an ability to look at our operations through a digital lens.

Apprentices shouldn’t be seen as junior resources — they are contributors from day one. With the right guidance and a clearly defined challenge, they can exceed expectations and bring real energy to a site. In a world where digital and green skills need to work hand in hand, apprentices like these help bridge the gap between theory and practice.”

Shaping a smarter workforce
This project is part of a wider drive across E.ON to invest in early-career talent — supporting the next generation of engineers, analysts and digital problem-solvers as they enter the world of energy.

Whether it’s through our Net Zero Training Academy in the West Midlands, our investment in degree apprenticeships, or our partnerships with organisations like FDM, we’re creating opportunities for people to apply their skills where it matters most.

The work at Blackburn Meadows shows what’s possible when those opportunities are matched with real-world challenges. With digital apprentices tackling site safety through AI, it’s clear the future of green energy won’t just be powered by innovation — it will be powered by people, too.