Celebrating 20 years of developing people, skills and future mobility at the BMW Group Academy UK and Ireland.

The BMW Group UK & Ireland Training Academy is celebrating 20 years of developing people, underlining the BMW Group’s long‑term commitment to building skills in the UK and Ireland automotive sector.

Opened in 2006, the purpose-built training academy spans more than 5,400 square metres and combines technical workshops, classrooms and simulated showroom environments, reflecting the real-world settings in which retailer teams operate.

Since opening, the academy has supported training across the BMW, MINI and BMW Motorrad brands, with over 150,000 courses delivering more than 370,000 face-to-face training days.

Tracy McGarva, General Manager, BMW Group Academy UK and Ireland commented, “For 20 years, the BMW Group Academy has been central to developing the skills and capability of our retailer network across the UK and Ireland. As the industry evolves at pace — from electrification to digital retail — our commitment to investing in people remains unchanged, ensuring our Retail Partner teams are ready to deliver the future of premium mobility”.

“Supporting apprentices and early‑career talent has been a cornerstone of the Academy from the very beginning, creating long‑term capability and sustainable careers across our Retail Network”.

Over the past two decades, the academy has evolved to reflect major industry shifts, delivering training across electric vehicles, high‑voltage systems, digital retail and connected technologies. In 2022, BMW Group Academy UK became the first IMI TechSafe™ Centre of Excellence, recognising its leadership in EV and safety‑critical vehicle training and its contribution to raising industry standards.

In January 2026, the Academy supported the launch of the new BMW iX3 and successfully delivered new product training to over 6,500 Retailer staff in just six weeks, ensuring consistent knowledge, confidence and readiness across the network.

From the very start, a core focus of the Academy has been supporting the training of apprentices. With dedicated on-site facilities supporting early-career development and long-term upskilling, the number of apprentices has grown from 160 in 2006 to 450 students now working across the network and benefitting from this focused investment in development.

This milestone was celebrated last week at the annual Awards ceremony, which recognised the commitment and achievements of apprentices and retailer colleagues from across the BMW, MINI and BMW Motorrad network.

This year’s event marked the graduation of 144 apprentices beginning their careers with BMW Group Retailer Network, alongside recognition for newly qualified Master Technicians who have reached the next stage of their professional development. Awards were also presented for outstanding achievement, including Apprentice of the Year.

ENDS

The BMW Group

With its four brands, BMW, MINI, Rolls-Royce and BMW Motorrad, the BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial services. The BMW Group production network comprises over 30 production sites worldwide; the company has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

In 2025, the BMW Group sold 2.46 million passenger vehicles and more than 202,500 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax in the financial year 2025 was € 10.2 billion on revenues amounting to € 133,5 billion. As of 31 December 2025, the BMW Group had a workforce of 154,540 employees.

The economic success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. Sustainability is a key element of the BMW Group’s corporate strategy and covers all products – from the supply chain through production to the end of their useful life.

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For further information please contact: 

Helen Wilson
Corporate and Brand Media Relations Manager
Tel: 07815 372480
Email: Helen.Wilson@bmw.co.uk

Chris Overall
Head of Corporate, Brand and Internal Communications
Tel: 07815 370 990
Email: Chris.Overall@bmw.co.uk

Christina Burnham-Hepe
Corporate Communications Director
Tel: 07815 371 206
Email: Christina.Burnham-Hepe@bmw.co.uk