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Five years of closing critical skills gaps, putting technology in the hands of people who need it most and building programmes designed to outlive the funding. Last night, that work was recognised with the NSAN People Power Award, Skills Leading Change 2026.
We are delighted to share that 3D 360 Ltd has been named winner of the People Power Award, Skills Leading Change at the 2026 National Skills Academy for Nuclear (NSAN) Skills Awards, one of the most prestigious evenings in the nuclear sector calendar.
The evening was a genuine celebration of the talent, commitment and ambition that runs right through the nuclear skills community. To be recognised alongside so many outstanding organisations and individuals made this award all the more meaningful. NSAN put on a brilliant night, and we are grateful to everyone who made it possible.
Within weeks, the team expanded from 5 to 25 printers, operating around the clock and collaborating with others to supply thousands of visors across the North West. It was during this time Paul joined forces with fellow engineer Lee Fogg, who had also been working on ventilator adaptors and PPE solutions.
Their shared commitment to social value had deep roots. Both had volunteered with the Motor Neurone Disease Association’s South Lancashire Branch – a connection that laid the groundwork for their partnership.
Together, they redesigned key PPE components to meet higher safety standards, combining Lee’s product safety experience with Paul’s regulatory expertise. Over 5,000 visors were distributed — manufactured at pace but with risk management and CE compliance at the core.
What the award recognises
The People Power Award recognises organisations that have driven meaningful change through skills, people and social value. For 3D 360, that has always been the whole point.
Since founding the business in 2020, our mission has been straightforward: close critical skills gaps, make advanced technology accessible to the people and communities that need it most, and leave something lasting behind. Skills development is not a route to social value for us. It is the social value.
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The impact in numbers
Our independently verified outcomes to date include:
- 2,200+ learners completing fully funded or subsidised programmes, with strong performance against priority group targets including unemployed people, over 50s, returners and those in insecure work
- 80%+ of learners securing employment or achieving career progression as a direct result of training
- 600+ businesses upskilled across advanced manufacturing, EV and nuclear
- £350,000+ of 3D printers gifted to businesses and individuals in the Northwest, plus £65,000+ of free equipment to 400+ schools and education facilities
- 375,000 school children gaining access to specialist digital manufacturing equipment, forecast to reach 750,000 over the 5-year lifetime of the equipment
- £2.5M+ in independently verified social and local economic value
- A first Ofsted inspection rated Good, with notable comments on learner outcomes and quality of education
Our nuclear pathway
Our Government funded Nuclear Project Management Skills Bootcamps creates a structured pathway for entry-level candidates and career changers ready to step into project delivery roles, covering nuclear regulation context, risk, stakeholder management, APM PFQ preparation and direct employer connections.
Our Advanced Manufacturing Skills Bootcamps take the same employer-connected approach, building practical technical capability in 3D printing, CAD, digital manufacturing and Industry 4.0 technologies
Alongside this, further funded and fee-based programmes are in development, expanding our nuclear pathway to meet growing demand across the sector’s talent pipeline.
Our L.I.F.T. programme, delivered with partners including Sellafield Ltd, NUVIA and Eclipse Energy, delivers 16x more measurable social value than traditional outreach and has reached 14,000 students to date, with 28,000 projected over the programme lifetime.
Last year, a new dedicated Skills Academy CIC was launched in Cumbria, currently running programmes including IMI Accredited EV Skills Bootcamps. The Centre is now established as a permanent hub for Britain’s Energy Coast and the wider low carbon supply chain.
This one belongs to the community
Awards like this do not happen in isolation. To every learner who backed themselves, every employer who opened a door, every school and partner who believed in what we were building and every collaborator across the nuclear sector who has pushed this agenda forward, this recognition is as much yours as ours.
The nuclear sector has extraordinary people in it. Being in a room full of them last night was a privilege. Winning was a bonus.
