BQ2 Special Report: Education, Apprenticeships and Training

SPECIAL REPORT:

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING RIGHT APPROACH Attitude and culture, vital commodities NEW INITIATIVE To the gain of advance manufacturing TALENT SEARCH Wanted: a magnificent six

CONTENTS

CONTACTS

04 NEWS

ROOM501 LTD Bryan Hoare Director e: bryan@room501.co.uk

There’s much to report in a changing sector

EDITORIAL Peter Jackson e: p.jackson77@btinternet.com

14 SPEED THE ESSENCE We may be closing our skills gap with Europe

16 THE RIGHT APPROACH Attitude and culture are two vital commodities

24 PLATFORM FOR NEW MANUFACTURING Advance manufacturing gets a new initiative

35 GREEN AND FREE Easy entry now for SMES Into low carbon opportunity

38 TRUSTED PARTNER New role, new approach at college of change

46 A MAGNIFICENT SIX TO LEAD Search is under way for a magnificent six

48 ON THE ROAD TO A FUTURE Good openings now for youngsters in construction

PRINCIPAL WITH A CHALLENGE

28 EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

DESIGN & PRODUCTION room501 e: studio@room501.co.uk

SPECIAL REPORT:

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

WELCOME Welcome to this edition of BQ2 in which we examine the relationship between business and education in the North East.

It is remarkable how quickly the question of educating tomorrow’s workforce and providing the skills needed by business has moved up the political and economic agenda in this country.

This has followed inevitably from the financial crisis of 2008 and the subsequent determination that the UK economy should be rebalanced away from finance and towards manufacturing. After this strategic rethink however, soon came the realisation that we no longer had sufficient trained engineers to support an economy based on making things.

The problem is compounded by the fact that the baby boomer generation is coming up for retirement, creating an even wider skills gap. Furthermore there is growing political resistance to immigration to fill that gap, this presents a huge challenge. However, as this report shows, there are real grounds for optimism. The issue is now at the top of the agenda, particularly in the North East. There is a real willingness on the part of businesses to engage with the educational process, investing serious time and money.

This is leading not just to a significant revival in apprenticeships but also a willingness to experiment with new forms of schools and colleges. Underlying all this, we detect a clear determination that the training of young people will be rigorous and relevant.

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PHOTOGRAPHY KG Photography e: info@kgphotography.co.uk Chris Auld e: chris@chrisauldphotography.com SALES Heather Spacey Business Development Manager e: heather@room501.co.uk @Heather_BQ Rachael Laschke Business Development Manager e: rachael@room501.co.uk @Rachael_BQ or call 0191 426 6300 Audrey Atkinson Sales Manager e: audrey@room501.co.uk t: 0191 426 8205

room501 Publishing Ltd, Spectrum 6, Spectrum Business Park, Seaham, SR7 7TT www.bqlive.co.uk Business Quarter (BQ) is a leading business to business brand recognised for celebrating entrepreneurship and corporate success. The multi-platform brand currently reaches entrepreneurs and senior business executives across Scotland, The North East, Yorkshire and the West Midlands. BQ has established a UK wide regional approach to business engagement reaching a highly targeted audience of entrepreneurs and senior executives in high growth businesses both in-print, online and through branded events.

All contents copyright © 2015 room501 Ltd. All rights reserved.

While every effort is made to ensure accuracy, no responsibility can be accepted for inaccuracies, howsoever caused. No liability can be accepted for illustrations, photographs, artwork or advertising materials while in transmission or with the publisher or their agents. All company profiles are paid for advertising. All information is correct at time of going to print, February 2015.

room501 Publishing Ltd is part of BE Group, the UK’s market leading business improvement specialists. www.be-group.co.uk

BQ Magazine is published quarterly by room501 Ltd.

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Catering students get inspiring mentor, North East college sets a cracking pace in attainment, student Rebecca is an engineer of distinction, digital entrepreneurs carry an international flavour now >> A chef to look up to Former North East Chef of the Year, Dave Kennedy takes over Newcastle College’s student run a la carte restaurant this month.

Kennedy, who has worked at restaurants such as 21 Queen Street, the Black Door, Food Social at the Biscuit Factory and most recently at Vallum Farm, joined the college at the start of February.

He will work with the college’s professional cookery and hospitality students to bring the Chefs’ Academy to the standard of the country’s top commercial restaurants.

Kennedy developed his career working in several Michelin-starred restaurants in London.

He was named North East Chef of the Year in 2007 and won a string of awards for the Black Door. He has employed many students from the college over the years.

He said: “Having been a student myself, I feel it’s important to invest time in the future of hospitality. I want to use the experience and skills I have developed throughout my career to help the students. I also want to build on the excellent standards that have been set in the Chefs’Academy and increase its customer base and popularity.”

Professional cookery student Sam Martin, 18, said: “To work with one of the best chefs in the North East is a massive opportunity and honour.”

Rob Kleiser, director of the Lifestyle Academy at Newcastle College, said: “It’s a great privilege to have Dave as part of the Chefs’ Academy team. His experience and extensive knowledge working in and running some of the region’s top restaurants will be of huge value to the students. We are very proud of the reputation that the Chefs’ Academy has built and the support we have received from industry has been absolute testament to our success. What we need to do now is take the success to the next level and this is where Dave can really help us.”

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Gateshead College’s Judith Doyle said the latest figures confirmed the college as one of the best performing in England

>> Gateshead College has secured a position as one of England’s best performing colleges Latest figures reveal a success rate of 91.8% - more than 8% above the national average – which puts Gateshead in the top 10% of colleges.

This represents a 9% increase over the last three years with 16-18 year old students doing particularly well, performing more than 9% above the national average for this age group.

A Level success rates stand at 99%, more than 4% above the national average.

Gateshead College’s principal and chief executive Judith Doyle said: “These are a fabulous set of results confirming that we are moving ahead confidently, with strong performances across all areas of the curriculum. “I’m incredibly proud of my staff team and our students who have achieved such fantastic results. However, our work is not just about statistics and data. Our focus remains on ensuring a well-rounded, top quality learning experience for each and every one of our students, supporting them to realise their potential. This ensures they’re leaving us with the skills, ambition and confidence that gives them a real edge when it comes to securing employment, going on to further training or university or starting their own business.”

College wide, there were a number of the courses turning in strong performances – results for science, engineering, manufacturing, motor vehicles, hair and beauty, health and social care, travel and tourism, administration and business management were all above the national average for the same subjects.

There was also a marked improvement in the number of students passing GCSE re-sits in mathematics and English. Figures reveal this was more than 10% above the national average and crucially those achieving A* - C grades were also well ahead of the national rate, particularly in mathematics, which was way above the sector norm by 20%.

This latest success follows news announced last month that Gateshead College is also in the top 10% of apprenticeship providers in England for a third year in a row.

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EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

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>> Rebecca engineers win Teesside University student Rebecca Thompson has won an award for excellence in engineering presented by the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) North East.

She has been awarded the ICE Student Prize after excelling throughout her Civil Engineering degree, for which she achieved a first class honours classification and graduated at the top of her class.

The ICE Student Prize is awarded to one Teesside University student who has performed best in the last two years of their four year civil engineering course, on the recommendation from their course leaders.

Thompson, 22, who is from Blyth, has already secured a job at Alan Wood & Partners, at its Sheffield office, for when she completes her Masters in Structural Engineering at Newcastle University next year.

She said: “I am delighted to have won such a prestigious award, which came as a shock to me. It is very pleasing to be recognised by my lecturers, and it was a huge honour to receive a first and graduate at the top my class.

Winning the ICE Student Prize will put me in good stead as I begin my career, and I am looking forward to progressing within the industry.”

Penny Marshall, ICE North East regional director, said: “The ICE Student award is presented to someone who has exceptional engineering talent and demonstrates a great commitment to the industry, and Rebecca is a deserving winner of the award.

“She has worked extremely hard throughout her studies and has a real hunger to progress in civil engineering. I would like to wish her all the best with her Masters and career.”

>> International advance Middlesbrough-based TTE Technical Training Group is driving for overseas development and has created a role in its sales team to support the international growth.

Jennifer Jordan has been appointed as technical sales assistant and will work alongside TTE’s sales managers to establish and maintain relationships

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

with key players in industry.

Jordan, 23, from Middlesbrough, joins after graduating from Sheffield Hallam in 2013.

TTE, which is based in Middlesbrough, delivers skills development programmes in the engineering, oil & gas, process, chemical and manufacturing sectors as well as designing, operating and managing technical training facilities overseas in locations such as Azerbaijan, Ghana and Oman.

The company also provides technical vocational training for 16 to 25-yearolds in the form of vocational study programmes and employer-sponsored advanced apprenticeships.

TTE is a charity having a not-for-profit status with surpluses generated from its subsidiary businesses, TTE International and TTE Apprenticeships, re-invested in the Group to provide training and apprenticeship opportunities for young people in the North East Jordan said: “TTE is a well-respected company with a reputation second to none. I am extremely proud to have been chosen to continue the quality work it does and look forward to applying the skills I’ve acquired at university.”

Alan Wallace, UK & European technical training manager at TTE, said: “Jennifer will be a real asset to the company and is already an integral member of our team.

It’s great to be able to welcome such a young talent with fresh ideas who will help expand our reach.”

>> Lighthouse inspires Digital entrepreneurs have launched an animation studio of international flavour with the help of a fellowship scheme.

Pharos Creative, which provides bespoke 3D animations for films, television commercials and computer games has been founded by three DigitalCity fellows.

The studio, which is based in Teesside University’s business incubator at the Victoria Building, has already won a number of contracts, including a commission to design an animated advert for a

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NEWS

leading financial institution.

Pharos Creative is run by Emil Bachvarov from Bulgaria and Ivan Jerez from Spain, who founded the company with Niall Walsh from Loughborough. They met whilst studying Computer Animation at Teesside University and after graduating in 2013 applied for DigitalCity Fellowships.

The Fellowship scheme, which is based at the university, offers graduates up to £4,000 to cover their living costs while they develop a business product or idea. They are also able to access industry-specific mentoring as well as facilities at Teesside University.

Bachvarov said: “We wouldn’t be here without the DigitalCity scheme.

“Obviously the financial support was very useful, but, perhaps more importantly, was the access to the facilities and the mentoring. It was great to be able to talk to industry professionals.

“Many of them had started the same way as us and it was extremely useful to see how they worked and operated in their own studios.”

Having completed their fellowship, Pharos moved into incubator space at Victoria House. There, the team are also able to access support and advice from Teesside University’s enterprise team.

Recent work includes a 3D animation for Sedgefield’s NETPark, in collaboration with Spearhead Interactive, another company founded by former DigitalCity Fellows.

They named their company after the Pharos lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the seven ancient wonders of the world.

Bachvarov added: “It was extremely technically complex for its time and provided light and guidance and I like to think that sums up a lot of our values.

“We’re all extremely passionate about our work and the fact that we are a multinational team means we are able to bring a lot of different cultural influences to what we do.”

Steve Dougan, professional development manager at DigitalCity, said: “It is DigitalCity’s aim to create a collaborative digital hub in the Tees Valley and so it is extremely satisfying to see talented animators from across Europe decide to set up their business here in Middlesbrough.”

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>> Chemoxy blazes trail A Tees-based chemical company is a trailblazer for a new national apprenticeship scheme. Chemoxy International, which has sites in Middlesbrough and Billingham, is one of the first companies to advertise for an apprentice under the new Trailblazers scheme.

The company invited applications for a QC Laboratory Technician, who will complete an Advanced Level Apprenticeship and the successful candidate will join the eight apprentices already at the company.

The Trailblazers scheme was created after employers and trade bodies across eight sectors put apprenticeships under the microscope, resulting in a raft of changes which saw apprenticeships redefined and revised to better meet the needs of employers.

Ian Stark, Chemoxy chief executive, said: “This new position is the first we’ve advertised under the Trailblazers scheme and we are proud to be at the forefront of the new project.

“Trailblazers is about making sure young people embarking on their careers develop the correct skills-set to meet the changing needs of industry. Chemoxy’s Middlesbrough

site has been in operation since 1868 and has a long history of supporting apprentices.

Around 20% of Chemoxy staff began as apprentices and right now we have eight apprentices – a laboratory technician, two mechanical technicians and five process operators.

“Many of those who joined the company as apprentices have progressed to senior positions including our plant manager Daniel Arkle.”

The company’s latest apprentice recruit under the former apprenticeship scheme is Jack Grieves, 18, who joined the company recently after training provider TTE placed him at Chemoxy for work experience.

Andrew Purvis, Chemoxy training and development manager, said: “When Jack came to us for work experience he was without a sponsor, and we were so impressed with his attitude, his enthusiasm and his professionalism that we offered to support the remainder of his apprenticeship.

“We will be looking for a similarly impressive candidate for the Trailblazing QC Laboratory Technician Apprenticeship.”

Last year Matthew Hancock, Minister

>> Education, skills high on firm’s agenda Engineering firm ElringKlinger (GB) is offering a helping hand to tomorrow’s engineers by sponsoring a prize fund for Teesside University students.

The prizes, totalling £550, were awarded this year to four students completing BEng Mechanical Engineering courses in the University’s School of Science and Engineering.

Prizes this year went to graduates Mohamad Jenaban, MEng Mechanical Engineering and Jordan Hill, BEng Mechanical Engineering, along with Daniel Hill and Ross Gibson, both second year BEng Mechanical Engineering students.

The company has strong links with Teesside university and has previously taken Teesside students on placement during their degree.

Ian Malcolm, ElringKlinger (GB) managing director said: “Education and skills continue to be high up on our agenda and we continue to support and recognise the need for promoting engineering as a career, to bridge the skills gap we are currently facing.

“It is always encouraging to see young people taking an interest and actively pursuing a career in the sector and equipping students with the skills they need to establish themselves for a successful engineering future is something we hope to build on through our relationship with Teesside University.”

Among the prize winners was part-time BEng (Hons) Mechanical Engineering student Ross Gibson, 22, from Trimdon Station. He said: “I would just like to express how privileged I am to receive such an award”. Professor Farhad Nabhani, from the university’s School of Science & Engineering, said: “Collaborations between the university and industry are of mutual benefit to those involved and we look forward to continuing our successful partnership with ElringKlinger, which has enabled the university to offer students industrial placements in real working environments.”

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of State for Business and Enterprise, told the Voice of Apprenticeships Conference that Trailblazers involved companies across eight sectors “rewriting the rulebook”.

He said the project resulted in hundreds of pages of complex apprenticeship frameworks condensed to a two-side description of the skills, knowledge and attitude employees need to demonstrate in a particular industry, and how they should be assessed, whether through written tests, practical observations or interviews.

>> IT girls advance An IT training academy in North Shields has reported a growth in the number of female IT apprentices. The Wolf Academy, which was set up by software development firm the Wolf Group to combat the IT skills shortage in roles such as programmers, developers and analysts, now has 20% of its apprentices being female.

The Tech Partnership revealed just 16% of the IT industry is made up of women and the gender gap is worsening.

A report by the education trust Centre for British Teachers (CfBT) found that only 15% of applicants to computing courses were female, while the percentage of women employed as IT and Telecoms professionals in the UK has declined from 22% in 2001 to just 18% in 2011. Managing director of the Wolf Group Marc Fowler, said: “We hope that by releasing our diversity figures we can encourage other businesses to do the same.

Demonstrating transparency, acknowledging failings and committing to change through real action is a vital part of transforming the IT industry in the region.

“I would encourage more women to join the ICT sector because there are a significant number of opportunities in all kinds of disciplines that you may not anticipate.”

Currently the Wolf Academy has around 20 students enrolled on its programme.

Four months into her IT apprenticeship, Amy Topping, said: “I’m beginning to feel a lot more prepared to enter full-time employment.

There was a lot of pressure to go to university after school and a misconception that the best jobs are saved just for those with degrees.

I can say from first-hand experience that this isn’t the case.”

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COMPANY PROFILE

The world is changing fast – welcome to the world of Ford Aerospace and Ford Component Manufacturing Be quick, it’s one in which we’re not only keeping pace with the present, but sprinting into the future - and it’s our people who are taking us there.

By working to make our company strong by investing in our current and future workforces – and in the communities we serve – we are an employer of excellence.

The Ford Engineering Academy is pioneering advanced training so that 16 to 24 year olds from across the North East can gain the employability skills they need to push Britain’s economy forward. We invest internally in the most modern training programmes as part of our major commitment to apprenticeships - and for existing staff to upskill or reskill.

The fact that we have gained Investors in People (gold) proves much, as does our membership of the South Tyneside Workplace Health Alliance, a commitment to the wellbeing of our workforce.

As members of the Advanced Manufacturing Forum, the region’s largest grouping of engineering and manufacturing specialists, we are at the forefront of initiatives for business growth and good practice – helping other companies, as well as ourselves, to thrive.

We also specialise in offering STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subject advice and guidance, and employability support for those who need it.

On top of that, we delight in opening our doors for work experience opportunities and for schools –

hopefully inspiring the engineers of the future.

We are delighted to have been named winner of the prestigious Developing People Award for Yorkshire, Humberside and the North East in EEF/Aldermore’s Future Manufacturing Awards.

A national final beckons.

Of course, it takes more than just people to make Ford the success it is, but being passionate about investing in our workforce has played a major part.

Visit us at www.ford-aerospace.com www.ford-components.com

“Nifco is a great place to work, and I have gained some really good experience while working here. I definitely feel like I am ready for the world of work, as I near the end of my apprenticeship with the company.”

Ewan Sorby Finance Department Ewan Sorby, 18, from Hartlepool, is completing an apprenticeship at Stockton Riverside College, working in Nifco’s busy finance department

Nifco UK is an award winning manufacturing company, based in Stockton on Tees.

The company is a key part of the Nifco Inc group, a global supplier of functional plastic parts for the automotive industry.

The company is helping to put the North East on the map as a place for manufacturing, and with an order book that is full for the next five years and an impressive list of customers including Ford, Honda, Nissan and Toyota to name but a few, the future is bright for this leading company.

To find out more about Nifco UK, visit www.nifcoeu.com • www.nifco.com • www.nifcoeu.com •

Global Functional Plastics

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Carole Kitching: Project puts region on the map

>>War on cyber theft Newcastle College has become the only UK college and the only provider in the North East to secure Government funding to develop skills that supports the National Cyber Security Strategy. The college is also the only one in the country to have validated its own Foundation Degree in Cyber Security. It was awarded almost £35,000 from the Higher Education Academy (HEA) and the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) to invest in a project to develop the skills of graduates and address a shortage of cyber security skills.

The funding will be used to develop a Cyber Security Lab within the college’s Digital Skills Academy to support employers in the IT sector to identify and address any skills gaps. It will also support a series of student projects with industry partners ContiTech, NCG IT Services and Verrimus.

Carole Kitching, principal at Newcastle College said: “If the UK is to be equipped to respond to cyber threats, and the cyber security sector is to grow, we need to strengthen the pipeline of cyber talent and help prepare students for entry-level security career opportunities.

“There is a huge national shortage in cyber security skills and this project will help to put the region on the map in terms of world-class training as well as

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help to support the National Cyber Security Strategy.”

Karen Fraser, consultant in academic practice (innovative pedagogies) at the Higher Education Academy, said: “Newcastle College’s project, Active Cyber Security Learning in a Vocational HE Setting is an exciting proposal that seeks to develop an innovative approach to active learning in cyber security through breaking down the perceived barrier between current industrial practice and academic learning.”

Gavin Saul, operations director at Verrimus, said: “Information security and its applications to businesses and organisations in real life situations, is often misunderstood and misrepresented.

Verrimus is eager to engage with the next generation of information protection practitioners, through guest lectures, threat briefings and situational exercises. Verrimus, as providers of privacy protection services (including counter-espionage services) worldwide at the highest level, understands the issues and blockages our clients experience when implementing information protection policies and we are happy to pass on our knowledge and expertise and assist Newcastle College to be at the forefront of vocational learning.”

>> Start-ups prospering Two start-ups are growing in Sunderland after developing their businesses at a dedicated enterprise facility at the University of Sunderland.

Northern Bear Films has joined Sunderland’s creative business community, making the leap from university incubator space to offices in Sunderland’s Software Centre and PR company M.A.D. Communications is operating from an office in St Peter’s Gate.

Two University of Sunderland graduates launched Northern Bear Films in 2013.

Aman Sharma and Jerome Vyland met while studying MA Media Production and BA Design Multimedia and Graphics at university. Prior to setting up the company Sharma was producing independent films under the name of Northern Bear and Vyland was working as a freelancer.

They joined forces to work full time on

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growing their business at the Enterprise Place, a dedicated environment at the university for fledging businesses.

Sharma said: “The idea of working together and combining our skills sounded really good and the natural progression for us was to produce advertisements and films through our new company Northern Bear Films.”

Vyland said: “As recent graduate entrepreneurs we didn’t think we’d be given such a professional environment to work in at the university and we were really impressed to see the amount of support provided in terms of mentoring, office support, business networking and PR. “Moving into our own office space at the Sunderland Software Centre has definitely opened doors for new collaborations and opportunities for growth.”

M.A.D Communications was set up by directors Amy Armstrong and Marie Donnelly, who also met at university while studying a Masters in Public Relations.

They began their entrepreneurial journey when they submitted an application to the university’s business planning competition. This provided a springboard for their company and after being crowned the competition winners, the four entrepreneurial graduates all received guidance and use of the facilities at The Enterprise Place which helped them to develop their businesses, make connections within the city and secure commercial contracts.

Vince Robson, The Enterprise Place business development manager, said: “After working with us for a year and building up reputable businesses, both companies are now able to stand on their own two feet. Aman, Jerome, Amy and Marie are positive role models for the current and next generation of student and graduate entrepreneurs developing their ventures at the University.”

>> Sheep are film stars Members of a rural community have had a sneak preview of a documentary which charts the life of a tenant hill-farming family as they try to breed the perfect sheep.

Two previews of the independent documentary Addicted to Sheep have been held for stakeholders and members of the local community in Upper Teesdale. >>

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

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The film – made with Teesside University support - documents a year in the life of Tom and Kay Hutchinson and their three children as they farm a flock of pedigree Swaledale sheep in beautiful, but remote, Forest in Teesdale.

The film has been produced by Magali Pettier of Provenance Films and Jan Cawood of Tin Man Films.

Both Pettier and Cawood are former fellows of DigitalCity, based at Teesside University, and were supported by the University with the post-production phase of the project.

With the help of a successful crowd-funding campaign, which raised more than £8,000, including £3,500 from Heart of Teesdale and Heritage Lottery Fund, Pettier and Cawood were able to work with Matt Dennis, an experienced editor to develop the 62 hours of raw footage into the 85 minute documentary.

The finished product was shown to invited guests over two nights at Upper Teesdale Agricultural Support Services in Middleton-inTeesdale, in County Durham.

Pettier said: “We were delighted with the audience’s reactions, the comments were overwhelmingly positive and I am glad that I have been able to do justice to the challenging work undertaken by the Hutchinson family and other tenant farmers.”

Mr Hutchinson, who attended the preview with his family, said: “Allowing a film crew to share your family’s intimate moments can be quite daunting.

“However, we felt we could trust Magali to capture the essence of what drives farming families like ours to do what we do, particularly with her own experience of growing up on a small family farm in France.

“Seeing yourself projected onto a movie screen was quite a revelation, but we are all delighted with the finished product and feel it portrays our life and work in Upper Teesdale in a positive light, showing both the highs and lows of farming in the North Pennines.”

Pettier and Cawood are entering the film into several international film festivals as well as other distribution channels.

Michael Ryding, director of DigitalCity, said: “We are so pleased to have been able to provide support and encouragement, as well as funding through the Fellowship programme, to both Magali and Jan.”

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handPICKED for success are (l-r) Julie Patterson (shop manager) and Adam Wilson (assistant shop manager), Michael Hepple (apprentice), Abbie Brown (apprentice).

>> Shop showcases young talent A new Gateshead shop is to give entrepreneurial students the chance to showcase their retail flair and grow their fledgling businesses.

Gateshead College has secured £50,000 of funding from Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) to launch the handPICKED project, an independent outlet where students will be able to trial their retail ideas and ambitions before going to market on their own.

Opening for business at the Intu MetroCentre, handPICKED will accommodate dozens of retail focused start-ups established by students. The college anticipates that more than 100 young entrepreneurs from the college will be involved during the project’s 18 month trial.

In addition to retail experience, the shop will offer students the chance to develop skills such as market research, product merchandising and customer service.

Local traders and craft-makers from across the region, who make handmade gifts such as jewellery, handbags, stationary, soft furnishings, home ware and food to the public, will also be able to use the shop as an outlet. handPICKED is a social enterprise with all profits going to the Gateshead College Foundation, which aims to ensure people from across the North East can access funds to enable them to develop their skills.

Gateshead College is a GAZELLE college, committed to deploying entrepreneurship as a driver for change in the education sector and it set up the Northern Stars enterprise society, which gives students the opportunity to discuss their business ideas with established business mentors and sell their products to staff and students within the college. Gateshead College students set up 27 businesses in 2013 alone.

Judith Doyle, principal and chief executive at Gateshead College, said: “This is great example of the innovative investments we are making in our students to enhance their learning and bridge the skills’ gap.

“We are equipping them with the entrepreneurial knowledge and training that will stand them in good stead for a successful career, providing that all important edge that employers look for in an employee. It is part of our wider aim of ensuring that our students are the most highly prized in the jobs market.”

Helen Atkinson, Intu’s marketing manager, said: “We are committed to supporting up-and-coming and new young entrepreneurs with the vision, products and ambition to succeed in the highly competitive world of retail.”

The RBS funding will pay for the running costs of handPICKED and the employment of a dedicated retail manager, who will oversee commercial activity at the trading unit. The money came from RBS’s Inspiring Enterprise grant programme, which aims to encourage people to explore enterprise, build their entrepreneurial skills and launch a successful business.

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>> Ford award North East high technology components makers Ford Aerospace and Ford Component Manufacturing have won a training award and are now up for a national title.

The firm has secured the Developing People Award for Yorkshire, Humberside and the North East in EEF/Aldermore’s Future Manufacturing Awards – and will now compete for the national title in April.

Its success in a category which celebrates the achievements of manufacturers that have done most to build skills, harness talent and develop employees follows a series of training initiatives. These include the creation in 2013 of the Ford Engineering Academy, a partnership with South Tyneside College to train 16 to 24 year olds, the upskilling and reskilling of existing staff, and incentives for those approaching retirement age to stay in employment. Judges for EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation, and banking group Aldermore, praised it for recognising the importance of workforce skills and its parallel investment in staff development and training.

Ford chairman, Geoff Ford said: “Winning is a fabulous recognition and affirmation of the far-sighted programmes we have in place for our dedicated workforce.

“A company is only as good as its staff and for a business to succeed it must invest in its people, and that is exactly what we have done time and time again.”

Chief executive of South Tyneside College Lindsey Whiterod said: “To overcome the significant skills gap, companies must do all they can to encourage young people into industry and better encourage those already working in the sector to stay and become as highly skilled as possible.

“These are widely faced challenges, and I hope this award success will encourage other companies to act as Ford have.”

The Ford Engineering Academy mixes on-thejob and workshop training with academic classroom teaching in six-month programmes for school-leavers. Ford also operates an apprenticeship programme and has policies to encourage experienced staff to learn new skills and for others to stay in post past retirement age.

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

>> New training protect Automotive parts manufacturer ElringKlinger (GB) is investing in skills development with the appointment of a training officer at its Redcar site.

Theanna De Sancho, 24 and from Redcar, has joined the HR & Training team at Kirkleatham Business Park where she will be responsible for developing the company’s existing in-house apprenticeship programme and ‘Year in Industry’ schemes.

De Sancho previously oversaw 52 apprentices in her role of training coordinator at ICL Fertilizers, formerly Cleveland Potash near Staithes.

In her new role she will be responsible for working across ElringKlinger’s 200-strong workforce, developing employees within the company – from starters to longer serving members of the team.

She will also work closely with local education providers including both Teesside and Northumbria Universities and Middlesbrough College to build upon existing links and future STEM partnerships, for employees and students alike.

De Sancho said: “ElringKlinger (GB) is an ambitious company, which is continuously expanding and investing in its employees.

I’m going to be working on a number of new projects within my role, coordinating training across all areas of the business.

We have some exciting plans in the pipeline for 2015 so watch this space.”

Managing director Ian Malcolm has spoken of closing the region’s engineering skills gap and ensuring a stream of fresh talent is encouraged into the industry.

He added: “Whilst it is essential to seek the future engineering stars of tomorrow, we can’t ignore the importance of our existing manufacturing workforce here in the region, not just in the automotive sector.

This is one of the key aims of Theanna’s appointment here at ElringKlinger (GB).

“The North East boasts a highly skilled, ageing employee base, which possesses invaluable expertise. Investing in them throughout their career before they reach retirement and finding innovative ways

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for their skills and knowledge to be shared with the next wave of recruits will pay off dividends in the future.”

>> Car parts maker puts careers on track Apprenticeships are at the heart of Nifco UK’s ethos, with the company’s own managing director and 11 of the company’s 13 senior managers having entered business through an apprenticeship.

BQ speaks to the man at the helm of Nifco, Mike Matthews MBE, about his views on the role of apprenticeships in modern business.

“One word. Crucial. That is my view of how important apprenticeships are to the North East’s businesses,” says Mr Matthews.

“Companies – not just in the manufacturing sector, but across the board - need to start to get active and take on new, fresh talent.

It is not somebody else’s job to train the next generation – it is everyone’s responsibility.

And it starts now.”

Nifco is a company that has apprentices working across each department of the business. The Japanese-owned business, which manufactures plastic components that are used in the engines and interiors of cars produced by Nissan, Ford and Jaguar Land Rover among others, has 24 apprentices, and has made a commitment that each and every year it continues to recruit, it will add at least six apprentices to its team.

“The skills gap that is so often talked about is not a myth – it is not hype. It is serious and we need a concerted effort from the business community to address it. Small business has a really important role to play in this too.

We all need to ensure that the North East has a skills pipeline that reflects the sectors we expect to flourish in the future.”

Nifco works closely with local schools, colleges and training facilities as well as universities to ensure it plays a part in bringing through future talent.

“We’re really active in this arena now. We regularly visit schools. We invite schools to visit us. We have an open door policy.”

For more information about Nifco UK, visit www.nifcoeu.com or call 01642 672 299.

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>> Innovation the key Garage equipment supplier Gott Technical Services is teaming up with Gateshead College for a second year to challenge the region’s automotive students.

Last year director of the Morpeth-based company Ian Gott met students to set them the task of designing a new tool or item of clothing for use in the workshop to make the lives of technicians easier.

The winners were Orin Rowe and Sean Patton, both 18 at the time, awarded first place for their ‘Magni-mate’ design – a magnetic holder to prevent tools being lost in the workshop.

This year students are being asked to pair up to develop a novel idea for a tool, protective clothing or a workshop invention of any kind – all with the goal of acting as a solution for those in the automotive industry.

The winners will get the opportunity for work experience in a garage or in an engineering role depending on their course, and will receive Halfords’ vouchers along with the second and third place entrants.

Gott said: “I’m a strong believer of nurturing talent from education stage in order to inspire them to pursue a career in the industry.

“This brief really gets them thinking about how the commercial workshop operates and how they themselves can have an impact on productivity, which then results in profitability.

It’s a rewarding experience to see the students investing their time in something that they can put their stamp on from the beginning and I’m looking forward to seeing their work.”

The brief is open to students of different ages and disciplines across IMI Motor Vehicle, Engineering and Welding & Fabrication courses, all delivered from the college’s dedicated Automotive, Engineering, Manufacturing and Logistics Academy. The entries will be collated and passed to the Gott Technical Services team to judge the winners and runners up. Gavin Batie, automotive manager at Gateshead College, said: “Our courses give students first-hand experience and skills that are relevant to their chosen career. Competitions like this are a great example of how we partner with employers to ensure our students leave us equipped with not only a qualification, but also with industry contacts.”

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>> Soap from bacteria A company which has developed a ground-breaking way of growing ‘soap’ from bacteria has been shortlisted for an award. TeeGene Biotech, a Teesside University spin out venture, has developed strains of bacteria which produce biosurfactants, which act like soap and help to emulsify different liquids.

Unlike, traditional surfactants which are made using synthetic materials, biosurfactants can be manufactured in a laboratory and are fully biodegradable and have minimal impact upon the environment. The biosurfactant market in Europe is already worth £511m and is expected to grow to £1.35bn by 2030.

TeeGene Biotech’s method of processing the biosurfactants allows the company to scale production to meet the demands of industrial sectors ranging from cosmetics to biopharmaceuticals. Other uses include oil recovery, reducing pollution and food processing.

TeeGene Biotech’s pioneering research has seen the company reach the finals of the Industrial Biotechnology Leadership Forum (IBLF) awards. The event brings together leading figures from industry, academia and government agencies. Each of the finalists take part in a five minute Dragons’ Den style pitch to judges.

Dr Pattanathu Rahman, founding director of TeeGene Biotech, is a senior lecturer in Process Engineering and Biotechnology at Teesside University with 20 years of research experience on novel biotechnological approach in bioproduct development, and a recipient of a Society for Applied Technology (SAB) Award of Excellence in Microbial Biotechnology.

He said: “As a relatively young company it’s fantastic that we’re already getting this recognition.”

TeeGene Biotech was formed in December 2014 and is based in the Wilton Centre at Redcar.

The company is also developing links with the National Biologics Manufacturing Centre, which is under development

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adjacent to Teesside University’s campus in Darlington.

Dr Rahman added: “The levels of purity needed for biosurfactants in the industries in which they’re used is extremely high.

“Because of this, they can be very expensive. However, the methods we have of producing them, make it much more economical and cost efficient.”

>> Pamela’s on board A leading North East businesswoman has been appointed to head the Bishop Auckland College Corporate Board.

Pamela Petty, managing director of international manufacturer Ebac, takes over the reins from Professor Alan Townsend.

Bishop Auckland-based Ebac, which manufactures water coolers, dehumidifiers and air conditioning units for industrial, office and domestic use, has grown from a small family run firm to a £25m turnover global business employing 220 staff.

Petty, a former student of the college who studied A Level Accounts there as part of her accountancy training nearly 30 years ago, is also governor of a primary school in Barnard Castle and a non-executive board member of the Entrepreneurs’ Forum.

She joined Ebac, which was launched by her father John Elliott in 1972, in 1986 and headed up the IT department before being promoted to manufacturing director in 1997, then to her current position in 2003.

Natalie Davison, principal and chief executive of Bishop Auckland College, said: “Pamela has very good links with many local and regional firms, as well as being an excellent ambassador and role model for the manufacturing sector.”

In August last year the college announced a new partnership with South West Durham Training, in which the Newton Aycliffe based manufacturing and engineering training provider operates as a subsidiary trading under its own brand as a separate registered charity.

Under the new arrangements Petty and Davison will also sit on the SWDT board while Steve Rose, chairman of the SWDT board, and vice chairman Andy Dunn will sit on the college corporation.

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>> Travel academy opens Sunderland College has joined forces with the UK’s largest independent travel agent to open a training academy for travel and tourism students.

Hays Travel Academy has been created by Hays Travel and Sunderland College to provide training and hands-on experience for people wanting to work in the travel and tourism industry.

John Hays, the founder and managing director of Hays Travel, said: “It’s really great to see so many young people interested in studying and working in the travel industry. The thing I love about travel is that it’s constantly changing and it’s really exciting to work in.

“It’s been 35 years since the first Hays Travel branch opened and although times are very different, it’s encouraging to see the travel industry’s still as vibrant as ever.”

Hays Travel Academy will offer a range of opportunities to Sunderland College travel and tourism students giving them the chance

of work placements at a variety of Hays Travel branches in the Wearside area and those who successfully complete the placements will be invited to interview for an apprenticeship in the company. The programme of learning within the academy will include masterclasses and workshops from industry experts, and the Hays Travel-endorsed curriculum will include relevant practical and skills training to prepare students for a career in a travel agency.

Hays added: “I’m pleased to be launching the Hays Travel Academy at Sunderland College.

It’s vital for the young people of the North East to be given real and relevant employment opportunities. Through this partnership, the students will receive top quality, industry standard training and direct experience of what it’s like to work in the industry.”

College principal Anne Isherwood said: “Hays Travel has a deservedly excellent reputation and it is with great pride that we strengthen our partnership further with this Sunderlandbased company. We are committed to offering

NEWS

exceptional teaching and practical training to our students, and it is through collaborations with organisations such as Hays Travel that we can provide this high level of education.”

Sunderland College and Hays Travel have collaborated on previous projects, including the college’s travel agency, Citysun Travel, which is part of Hays Travel Independence Group. The fully ABTA bonded Citysun Travel was launched in 2008 by Hays, and the college’s travel and tourism students gain work experience in the agency as part of their studies.

Sue Hogarth, curriculum leader for travel and tourism, said: “The relationship between Sunderland College and Hays Travel is longstanding. Our new academy will offer our students a greater range of opportunities as they look to launch their career in this vibrant and dynamic industry.

“The Hays Travel Academy will be located at the college’s Hylton Campus until 2016, when all of our travel and tourism courses will relocate to our £29m flagship City Campus”.

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Training to fill the skills gap is one of the greatest challenges to face the North East, but there are signs that we are rising to that challenge, as Peter Jackson argues SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

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Chuka Umunna, the Shadow Business Secretary, recently said – with more honesty than tact - that French workers do as much in four days as British workers do in a week.

This was greeted with widespread disbelief.

France, after all, is widely regarded as an economic basket case where workers indulge in long holidays and long lunches but not much in the way of work.

But, counter-intuitive though it be, it has long been the case that workers in France, and on the continent generally, are more productive than their UK counterparts.

In large part this has been down to a superior education system which has

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equipped young workers with the necessary skills and adaptability.

Now at last this is being recognised and the problem has been lent an added urgency by a looming skills gap which is rushing down the tracks to meet us like a runaway train.

The scale of the issue was eloquently outlined at the recent launch of the Careers College in South Shields by Lord Baker, a former Education and Science Secretary and a member of Margaret Thatcher’s cabinet, and now chairman of the Edge Foundation, an educational charity.

He pointed out that between 2010 and 2020 the baby boomers are going to be retiring and this will create an enormous number of vacancies – nearly 13 million – in the national workforce.

He rattled off further depressing statistics: that the UK would be short of about a million engineers and technicians over the next six years and 45,000 short in students doing STEM subjects each year for the next six years.

The UK has to be training a new generation to fill these roles, for without training there is inevitably unemployment.

Sunderland, for example, has the second highest youth unemployment figures in the country with 9.45% of under-25s claiming jobseekers’ allowance, compared to 6% nationally. It is no coincidence that in Sunderland 11.3% of adults don’t have any qualifications, which is not only a bad thing of itself, but also suggests a culture in which training and qualifications are neither valued nor encouraged.

There is, argued Lord Baker, undeniably a link between lack of skills and unemployment.

However, he went on to point out, education in itself does not lead to employment.

Indeed, almost a half of young people in the UK now go on to participate in higher education. But the big expansion in university places has gone hand-in-hand with rising graduate unemployment and this, in turn, has been because much of that university expansion has been skewed towards the humanities and social sciences.

Sadly, the humanities and social sciences do not create wealth or – in these hard times - too many jobs and increasingly young people armed with degrees in those

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

Workers on the continent are generally more productive than in this country subjects are discovering that the hard way.

For example, out of all the graduate lawyers who graduated in 2012, something like 35% of them are doing jobs below their qualifications.

“We are producing far too many lawyers,’’ said Lord Baker.

This problem is not limited to lawyers and is getting worse as 37% of graduates got non-graduate jobs in 2001 which has risen to 47% in 2013.

The CBI annual skills report (Learning to grow, 2012) identified 42% of employers in the North East as having difficulties in recruiting STEM-skilled employees.

But it doesn’t have to be like this. Lord Baker also pointed out that the country in Europe with the lowest level of unemployment is Austria, which also has the lowest number of NEETs (a young person not in education, employment or training).

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In Austria young people do the national curriculum until they are 14 and then go to specialist colleges: catering colleges, technical colleges, service colleges, fine arts or accountancy colleges.

Whereas in the UK about 29% participate in vocational courses, in Austria the rate is nearly 80%. Hence the much lower rates of youth unemployment and the higher productivity.

However, there are encouraging signs that the scale of the problem has been appreciated and that steps are being taken to tackle it, not least at the new Careers College, as we report elsewhere in this edition of BQ2.

Career College North East is one of just four career colleges in the UK and the first to specialise in Advanced Manufacturing. It can recruit students from the age of 14 – regarded

by Lord Baker as a key age – and will combine academic and vocational studies.

In another pioneering venture in Newcastle, as we also report, Discovery School has been set up as a free school dedicated to preparing young people aged between 14 and 19 from around the North East for highly-skilled jobs in the engineering, manufacturing and science industries.

Like Career College, it is working with businesses to ensure the curriculum – which, unlike Career College concentrates on the STEM subjects of science, technology, engineering and maths - is relevant to employer needs and to enable students to gain hands-on practical experience in the sector.

In the south of the region Middlesbrough College has its £20m STEM Centre of Excellence, reflecting that education in STEM subjects has been identified by the government and made a priority.

More needs to be done. Over the period 2008-2014 there is expected to be a net requirement within the engineering industry in the North East for about 2,300 people at NVQ Level 2, 2,700 people at NVQ Level 3, 2,700 at NVQ Level 4 and about 650 at NVQ Level 5 or above.

So, there is an enormous challenge facing the North East in training the workforce of tomorrow but there does at least now seem to be a sense of urgency and purpose in meeting that challenge. n

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WE NEED THE RIGHT APPROACH MetroMail’s Alan Purvis cares deeply about apprenticeships but also about attitude and culture, as Peter Jackson discovers

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XXXXXXXX INTERVIEW

Full service mailing house MetroMail is creating at least 10 jobs this year, including at least two apprentices, as the business continues to grow.

The company, owned by over 50s provider Saga, which already employs 200 people at its Seaham site, will create the positions early in 2015 with further recruitment planned throughout the year.

Managing director Alan Purvis says the business is committed to its talent attraction programme, where it seeks to attract young people with real talent into the business, who it can then invest in and train. He also says he is passionate about being able to recruit apprentices – he did, after all, start out as an apprentice himself.

University was never an option in his family.

He recalls: “It was always going to be a trade, learn a trade, it was a generational thing and a cultural thing. University would never have been discussed in our house.’’

He left school in Sunderland in 1985 and started on a YTS scheme.

He says: “I did that for a couple of years but I was always excited by ships, I used to live near the river and an opportunity came to get an apprenticeship with North East Shipbuilders when I was 17.

“It was tremendous, it was one of those periods in life when you look back and it was just amazing. It was an apprenticeship somewhere where you would build huge things. You would start off with a small components and watch them all come >>

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INTERVIEW

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together to create something huge and then something bigger and bigger and the next thing you know is that it has turned into a ship.

“Being an apprentice at college was great as well because we actually had money. Other people at college were catching a bus and we used to turn up in our cars. All in all, it was a really worthwhile thing and I learned a lot.’’

Sadly the Wear’s shipbuilding days were coming to an end. He qualified as an engineer and from there he moved to Grove Cranes where he worked for nine months before the business started its closure plans in 1990, at which point the young Purvis decided heavy engineering was not an area with a healthy future and he went into IT and got a job as a computer programmer with a print company.

He worked there for five years before joining MetroMail as IT manager.

He took over as managing director in 2005 and the following year the company reported its best financial year in its 20-year history with profits up 60% on an increase in turnover of just over 5%.

This was achieved partly by ploughing more than 5,000 hours and £30,000 into productivity training. Significantly, there were leaps in attendance, with 35% of the workforce achieving 100% - a 50% improvement on 2004.

“I pushed the people side of the business,’’ says Purvis. “To make this business successful I needed two things, I needed really good people and really good technology, rather than just having the technology. With my team I always use the analogy of the Batmobile, the most technologically advanced crime-fighting tool available on the planet but it doesn’t catch any criminals. Batmobile’s useless without Batman.

To make the business successful I need two things - really good people and really good technology rather than just having the technology

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“It’s getting the best people, training them well, motivate, lead and then give them some really good technology and they’ll achieve great things.’’

How does that work in practice?

“We try to differentiate how we look after our people. I don’t think there are many factory environments that have a masseur who comes in or a podiatrist to look after people’s feet.

We do free fruit on certain days, free teas and coffees, little things I would expect most places to do but find most places don’t. It’s stuff we don’t need to do but we do do it to make people’s life at work better.

“It’s also a question of recognising and rewarding people when they do good jobs and saying thank you to people.’’

But his background was in traditional heavy engineering. There cannot have been much free fruit or podiatry in the shipyards. So where did he learn such a management style?

“There were a couple of things I learned which have been invaluable lessons. I learned how to spot efficiencies because it was an environment that wasn’t terribly efficient and I also got the feeling that a very hierarchical business wasn’t the way to go forward.

He recalls the distinctions between the various staff levels at the shipyard.

“I wore white overalls and yellow hat, if you were what was classed as shopfloor manual you had blue overalls, yellow hat, if you were a supervisor, it was white overalls, green >>

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COMPANY PROFILE

Education and business – working together to fill the IT skills gap The North East has a dynamic and fast growing Information Technology sector which employs over 32,000 people. The sector continues to offer many new opportunities for skilled employees, in line with the North East Local Enterprise Partnership’s strategic economic plan for the North East – “More and Better Jobs” However this growth trajectory must be supported by ready access to the right skills, and this means increasing the number of young people who want to forge a career in Information Technology.

The North East IT sector needs to join forces to find ways to attract more people into the industry.

Fortunately the sector has never been more connected and collaborative than it is right now, with organisations such as Dynamo, the North East IT Cluster, bringing business and education together to create initiatives that support skills development.

A recent Dynamo survey highlighted that within the region we have over 2,000 vacancies in the IT industry. Dynamo is aiming to help fill this gap by setting a goal to double the number of people working in the North East IT economy. To achieve this, we need to drive forward the IT skills agenda in the region.

In 2014 Dynamo launched the North East IT Skills Strategy, setting out a comprehensive, long-term approach to link business and education together.

The implementation of this strategy will make the region unique in the UK IT industry, and will be the foundation for growing the North East IT sector in years to come.

One of Dynamo’s key goals is to attract more females into the industry, and a number of programmes have been developed to support this.

For example in January Accenture, in conjunction with Stemettes, organised a Technology and Girls event for 300 girls aged 11-13 from 30 North East schools. The girls gathered at The Sage, Gateshead where they spent an action-packed day being immersed in technology. There was a big focus on web development and they learnt how to build their own web pages, as well as gaining

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

Bob Paton, Managing Director, Accenture and Vice Chair, Dynamo

Our aim is to increase the number of people, with the appropriate skills, who want to make Information Technology their career. insight into areas such as 3D printing and forensic science. The day was a huge success and plans are already underway to make the 2016 event bigger and to attract many more schools and girls.

We also need to increase the number of IT apprentices, particularly within small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). An apprenticeship is an excellent route into the IT industry, but setting up an apprenticeship scheme can be a complex path to navigate that few SMEs have the resources to tackle. Therefore, to make it easier for small companies to take on

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an apprentice Dynamo, in conjunction with Baltic Training, has just launched the very first IT sector led Level 2/3 North East IT Apprentice Hub. The Hub, which opened in Sunderland in February, will help SMEs take on apprentices. A second Hub is due to open in Newcastle in April. Other industries such as construction and engineering have successfully set up Apprentice Hubs and the Dynamo Hub will adhere to the best practices established by these industries.

Dynamo is also keen to support the growing number of vocational based initiatives in schools and colleges in the region. These include the pioneering Studio West School, the Discovery School, Newcastle Colleges Digital Skills Academy, and South Tyneside’s Career College.

All of these initiatives need to be successful if we are to achieve our ambitions for the IT sector in the region.

To date, Dynamo has made some significant progress on the skills agenda but we recognize that there is much more to be done. We need to continue to foster collaboration between business and the education sector to ensure we have a pool of young people who are excited about the opportunity of a career in IT and are developing the right skills to support our industry’s growth.

Bob Paton, Managing Director Accenture, Vice Chair Dynamo. bob.paton@accenture.com

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hat and if you were a manager it was white overalls, white hat and all with different canteens.

“To me, that isn’t the way to do it, so, we have a very flat structure here and we are very efficient. You need to be close to your people.’’

Purvis explains that there are only three levels in the business and most people are only two promotions away from his job, with himself and another director, a head of every operation and then the rest of the staff.

“People feel part of something, they understand what the business is trying to do because it’s really easy to communicate your vision and strategy when you haven’t got lots of people in the way,’’ he says.

Training has also been crucial in the development of MetroMail.

“It has to be high on the agenda. We’ve got technology and processes here that a lot of our competitors don’t have. We try to innovate on technology as best we can but if the person isn’t trained and motivated and inspired and led, then the machinery is just useless. Some bits of equipment we have, my competitors will also have and I need to run mine better than they do or I’m going to be the same as them, so can we train our people better? We do manufacturer training, we do in-house training and we constantly improve.’’

MetroMail’s new engineering apprentice has recently started with the company and Purvis is still looking for his admin apprentice.

“I would have liked three because I would also have liked an IT apprentice but it’s about what the business can realistically give back to that person. I didn’t want an apprentice that was going to just go to college and come in here and do menial stuff and my IT department was too stretched, so I wasn’t prepared to allow it to have an apprentice.’’

Speaking of the new engineering apprentice, Purvis says: “We are going to give him the traditional type of apprenticeship that an engineer would have had.’’

He adds that MetroMail pay their apprentices at the full salary and not at any reduced apprenticeship rate.

The last engineering apprentice, Phil Cockroft, was taken on four years ago and is now head of engineering.

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We try to innovate on technology as best we can, but if the person isn’t trained and motivated, inspired and led, the machinery is just useless Does MetroMail feel the effects of a skills gap?

Does it have a problem in recruiting the right people? Purvis says: “We have a culture and it’s that culture that attracts people to want to work for us, it’s a combination of the benefits, the way we look after people and the culture that this business has. We’ve never not found anybody, though you sometimes have to look a little bit harder and a little bit longer.’’

It is, however, clear that he is having to look harder and longer for his admin apprentice.

He explains: “Skills shortage is one thing but attitude shortage is the biggest problem for me, finding people with the right attitude because you can always enhance what skills they’ve got, but the people coming in have to have the right desire, passion and attitude and want to work. The culture of this business is important to us, so we have to have someone who is coming with the drive and a lot of

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the young people we’ve seen for the admin apprenticeship haven’t had that desire.’’

Does he put that down to the schooling?

“I don’t know what it’s down to. I don’t know whether it’s lack of aspiration or schooling but I just find there’s something we are not seeing enough of. When you do see it, it’s brilliant.

The engineering apprentice we took on sat opposite me – and it can’t be an easy thing to have to be interviewed by the md – and I instantly knew he had to be the right one for it because he was hungry, he was passionate and he really wanted to work here. He was a breath of fresh air after some of the others.’’

Having started as an apprentice himself, this is something Purvis feels strongly about.

He says: “I had to fight for my apprenticeship.

I had to do tests, I had to go through various interviews and selection days, it was a tough process to try to get in.’’ n

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COMPANY PROFILE

Developing leaders of the future An innovative boardroom simulation event pioneered by a Newcastle girls’ school has given teenagers a taste of business leadership.

Girls from Newcastle High School practising their leaderships skills with Sheila Stokes White.

This event, tailored especially for schools, was initiated by Headmistress at Newcastle High School for Girls, Hilary French, and designed by Sheila Stokes White, an expert and mentor in organisation development and leadership, based in Morpeth but with clients nationwide.

The aim of the boardroom simulation was to provide an insight into how businesses work, encourage girls to aspire to these leadership roles and emphasise the importance of ethical governance.

Hilary French, said: “Our mission as a girls’ school is to encourage our girls to have high aspirations and help them develop their potential in a truly rounded sense, to help each of them to be the best they can possibly be. This includes preparing for the world of work and developing confidence and leadership qualities. These girls are our board directors of the future, and there is still a major disparity between the representation of men and women in the boardroom and in non-Executive Director positions.”

In 2011, Lord Davies undertook an independent review of women on boards on behalf of the Government and found that nearly half of all FTSE 250 companies do not have a woman in the boardroom, and that “radical changes are needed in the mindset of the business community if we are to implement the scale of change that is needed.”

New government data published earlier this year showed that 6 out of 10 of Britain’s largest companies are still failing to hit the Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) target, set during Lord Davies’ review of women on boards, for 25% of FTSE

100 directors to be female by next year.

The boardroom simulation exercise was designed with this in mind. The girls involved in the pilot scheme at Newcastle High School for Girls were given the task of running a board meeting with some difficult moral decisions to make and worked in groups with each representing a team of board members of a fictitious company with a specific scenario and decisions to make. Each girl was given a particular role to play as a member of the company’s board, such as Chief Executive, Finance Director, Marketing Director, non-Executive Director, together with a specially printed card with their job role, a photo, personal qualities and past experience.

The event started with an introductory session to get the girls to think about their role as board members, and the wide range of skills and qualities required – presentation skills, diplomacy, assertiveness, negotiation, listening as well as the ability to exercise judgement, chair a meeting, and reach a compromise solution. The board meetings then got underway under the leadership of the Chairman. Each group was given a particular business problem to resolve. So for example a group acting as the Board for a pharmaceutical company debated whether or not to continue testing cosmetic products on animals.

15 year old Hannah Rees-Middleton, one of the pupils involved in pilot scheme, said: “This type of exercise is really important to help us understand what happens in business, and in the boardroom.

It’s such an interesting job, you get to share your

Our mission as a girls’ school is to encourage our girls to have high aspirations and help them develop their potential in a truly rounded sense

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opinions with other colleagues and learn how to make decisions and compromises as a group.”

Sheila Stokes White, expressed her delight at how well the first pilot event had worked, and how much the girls had got out of the experience: “It was fascinating to watch the girls working, they divided into different types: some struggled a little to get the hang of the exercise; others found it difficult to act in role and keep to character, but what amazed me most was that some of the Chairmen, leading the board meetings, were absolutely outstanding.

They were complete naturals, going round the table asking views of different members, summing up, directing the group towards a decision – I was staggered and would hire them tomorrow!”

Newcastle High School for Girls plans to hold more of these simulated boardroom events and to share the material with its sister schools in the Girls’ Day School Trust. It is also investigating whether some of the girls involved could attend an actual board meeting, to compare the simulated experience to a ‘real life’ situation, as well as looking at ways to work collaboratively with other schools in Newcastle and the NE on further initiatives like this.

Senior School: Eskdale Terrace, Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne.

Junior School: Chapman House, Sandyford Park, Newcastle upon Tyne.

Enquiries: 0191 2016511 Web: www.newcastlehigh.gdst.net

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TyneMet Apprenticeships Lead the way for Workforce Revolution A North Tyneside College is the driving force behind tailored training programmes offering training solutions that benefit businesses and their employees.

Tyne Metropolitan College is leading the drive to encourage employers to empower their workforce with bespoke training and apprenticeships. TyneMet offers business support through high quality tailored training programmes, apprenticeships, practical advice to identify and fill skills gaps and plan for future workforce requirements.

The College works with hundreds of small and large organisations to deliver cost effective training solutions across Newcastle, the North East and the UK with an extensive range of short and long courses. All of these training courses can be adapted to meet the specific needs of a particular group or department within the business, or to focus upon a specific issue in order to reach operational objectives by linking training directly to the company’s strategy.

Audrey Kingham, Deputy Principal of Curriculum and Business Development, envisions that bespoke training and apprenticeships are key drivers for future economic growth.

“As a college boasting unique resources and broad industry-specific skills sets, we have always played a key role within the business community,” she said. “The resurgence in apprenticeships highlights employer demand for a sustainable, skilled workforce - TyneMet is proud of the special relationship we enjoy with local businesses - a bond which benefits both individuals and their employers.”

TyneMet offer over 40 different types of relevant and high quality apprenticeships including higher level skills programmes at Levels 4 and 5 (equivalent of degree level study) - offering viable opportunities in numerous sectors from engineering to business administration aimed at supporting wider economic growth.

Stephen Hull, Managing Director from TyneMouth Decorators, said: “TyneMet have been fantastic from day one, all of my questions were answered concisely, I was invited to visit the TMC campus

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

TyneMet is leading an apprenticeship revolution aimed at empowering businesses through bespoke staff training

facilities for construction and left very impressed.

The main value is having our apprentices learning in a safe, purpose built environment, with a structured learning timetable that is suitable for all involved. Tynemouth Decorators Ltd is committed to having new apprentices and a facility like this on our door step is great news!”

Stephen Hull also had advice for other businesses: “To any business thinking of taking on an apprentice, the decision is a very easy one to make - when you have great support like this, apprenticeships are a very valuable asset to business.”

The TyneMet Business Development team take a holistic approach to apprenticeships – carefully matching the right candidates to the right positions, which ensures requirements for both apprentice and business are met.

Paul Smissen, Head of Business Development said: “As North Tyneside’s largest vocational provider, we have watched the market place transform over the years – our approach is to work with employers to design suitable bespoke training programmes which offer them an excellent route to nurturing talent, energising staff and shaping a workforce that works for them.”

He added: “Many people think that

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apprenticeships mean you are just starting your career – but this is not always true. Employers are looking for ways to secure their existing and valued workforce, upskilling is an efficient and business friendly way to ensure they are meeting demands within industry with both existing and new talent – we’re working with employers who want to be in control of where their business is heading which in turn empowers employers and employees.”

Andrea Gibson, Learning and Development Consultant at Kier said: “TyneMet College is an excellent training partner to work with and their Business Development team have the right attitude, approach and commitment to succeed with a range of individuals and teams to achieve success. If you are a business thinking about working with TyneMet and developing this type of package for your workforce – my response is simple … stop thinking and start doing!”

To find out more about cost effective training solutions, call 0191 229 5179, email business@tynemet.ac.uk or visit our dedicated employers’ website employers.tynemet.ac.uk

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PLATFORM FOR NEW MANUFACTURING South Tyneside is pioneering a college which will give students a head start in manufacturing careers, as Peter Jackson reports SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

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EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

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Career College North East, CCNE, is one of just four career colleges in the UK and the first to specialise in Advanced Manufacturing.

Formed by a partnership of South Tyneside College and St Wilfrid’s RC School, it is based on the Government’s new national educational policy of allowing Further Education Colleges such as South Tyneside to recruit students at the age of 14.

As a career college, CCNE will combine academic and vocational studies with students following St Wilfrid’s core academic curriculum for four days a week and then undergoing skills education and preparation for the

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

world of work during a fifth day at South Tyneside College.

Career Colleges are supported by Lord Baker, a former Education and Science Secretary in Margaret Thatcher’s government and currently chairman of the Edge Foundation, an educational charity. He is also spearheading the initiative for University Technical Colleges.

The aim is that by teaching vocational skills alongside academic training in maths English and other core subjects, the CCNE students will gain two years on new recruits if they stay in their chosen vocational area.

At the launch of CCNE Lord Baker described

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INSIGHT

the skills gap facing the UK and said: “In dealing with this problem the FE colleges are absolutely critical. They have a very good record in training people and giving them skills but one of the disadvantages they have is that they start at 16.

“It takes 18 months to two years to get to Level 2, so you won’t get there until you’re 18.

Then you’re employable and you’ll get a job somewhere but not many of those go on to do Level 3 and Level 4 where the gaps are.

“If you start at 14 in the sort of college you will have here, at 16 you’ll have got a GCSE equivalent grade and you’ll have Level 2 by >>

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INSIGHT

SPRING 15

16 and then you’ll realise that if you stay on and grade up to Level 3 in A-Level or BTech and then go on to do a Foundation Degree, you’re much more employable and much more needed.’’

The college will open its doors to students in September of this year and the first intake will be made up of 30 14-to-16 year olds and 30 16-to-19 year olds.

It will work closely with the region’s employers which will help frame the curriculum and provide projects for the students to work on.

Lord Baker added: “The nature of teaching is very different, of a conversational nature rather than a hectoring nature. Two days of the week when they are here, they are making and designing things with their hands. You’re bringing together learning by the hand and also learning with the mind.’’

Whereas UTCs teach STEM subjects, career colleges will focus on non-STEM subjects such as catering, logistics, and accountancy.

Lord Baker said one UTC had been approved in Newton Aycliffe in partnership with Hitachi the University of Sunderland and Getsamp Tallent, and another would shortly be approved in Newcastle. He predicted that there would be more career colleges in the region specialising in non-Stem subjects.

Speaking of the UTCs, he said “One of the things we are most proud of, and this will be true of career colleges as well, is when we have leavers - and we’ve had lots of leavers now at 16 to 18 - so far not one student has joined the ranks of the unemployed. Everybody is either in a job or an apprenticeship or staying on at college or gone to university. That is remarkable for any education institution.’’

Launched 18 months ago, there are now – apart from CCNE – three other career colleges: Oldham’s Digital and Creative Career College; Hugh Baird’s Hospitality and Catering College in Liverpool and Bromley’s Food, Enterprise and Hospitality Career College in South East London.

As well as helping to address the skills shortage in engineering and manufacturing, it is hoped CCNE will supply many of the technicians and engineers who will be needed by companies locating to the International Advanced Manufacturing Park on a 150 hectare site north of the Nissan plant. The first phase of

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this development is projected to create 5,000 jobs and attract about £260m in private sector investment.

Ian Fawdon, chairman of the Advanced Manufacturing Forum, speaking at the launch, said: “The North East LEP recognises that manufacturing and engineering are key to growth in the North East and the threat is the skills gaps.’’

He said there was a particular problem with recruiting mechanical engineers, welders,

the business community to ensure that the qualifications and the skills through the career college meet the needs of the labour market.

That is absolutely crucial to make sure that we take that forward.’’

He added: “We want to be an outstanding college that provides world class education and training. With our new partnership with St Wilfred’s RC College, we are going to create that. It’s a new chapter in our strategic vision.’’

Martin Swales, chief executive of South

If we weren’t to change the set of circumstances that we have inherited through many years of industrial change, the long term was never going to improve and people with CNC CAD, quality tools and problem solving skills.

He added: “From the college employers will get genuinely interested young people, people who are interested in having a genuine understanding of what engineering is. They will get young people with skills that they can immediately use and with good attitudes.

Once companies in the forum find out about this they will be clamouring to get involved.’’

Andrew Watts, chairman of governors at South Tyneside College and executive director of Groundwork South Tyneside and Newcastle, said: “The key is our links with employers and business. We will continue working with

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Tyneside Council also speaking at the launch described how, about five years ago, the council developed a vision for the next 20 years called Shaping Our Own Future about increasing prosperity in the borough.

He said: “If we weren’t to change the set of circumstances that we have inherited through many years of industrial change then the long term was never going to improve.

We needed to shape our future and be in control of our own destiny.’’

“Ultimately prosperity is about employment and that is about education. Without that, a place like South Tyneside will never move on.’’ n

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COMPANY PROFILE

Studio West – Learning that connects A bold new approach to learning, including teaching through enterprise projects and real work. All made possible due to the great support of a variety of business partners.

Opened in September 2014, Studio West became one of the North East’s first Studio Schools.

Studio Schools are a new concept in education, which seek to address the growing gap between the skills and knowledge that young people require to succeed, and those that the current education system provides.

Studio West pioneers a bold new approach to learning which includes teaching through enterprise projects and real work. By ensuring students’ learning is grounded in the real world, this approach helps them to develop the life skills they need to reach the top of their chosen field.

The school is sponsored by Kenton Academy Trust and businesses have a direct input into the school’s culture and curriculum, as well as providing regular work experience placements.

Designed for 13-19 year olds of all abilities, Studio West feels more like a workplace than a school and offers a range of academic and vocational qualifications including GCSEs in English, Maths and Science, as well as paid work placements which are linked directly to employment opportunities. The school day runs from 8.30 to 16.30 and we will never have more than 300 students, meaning we can offer a personalised curriculum, designed to meet the goals and aspirations of our students. They gain a broad range of employability and life skills, and have the option to go on to university, further training, and into employment.

A number of the region’s top employers are on board providing unique opportunities to students and importantly making them more employable in their future. In April 2014, Bob Paton, Managing Director at Accenture’s North East Delivery Centre, became chair of governors. Accenture have in turn provided a great opportunity for six

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

Val Wigham, Studio West Principle

We’ve had a wonderful first year and we’re looking for the next set of exceptional students to come and experience their dream school and dream job, all under one roof.

Year 12 students. Having completed a thorough recruitment process, involving writing their CVs, doing an application form and then taking part in an assessment day, they were then given paid roles within Accenture. Here they are currently being trained on computer programming skills and assisting as trainee staff members. Once they complete their studies at Studio West they then have a guaranteed interview for apprenticeship roles.

Connor, Year 12 student comments “It’s great being able to study Art, Computer Science and Product Design whilst going into a real work

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environment every week with Accenture. It feels exciting to think that I already know that I have a real chance of working for Accenture once I finish my A-levels at Studio West. I can’t wait for the future.”

Other businesses supporting Studio West in a similar way include Marriott, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals, Marks and Spencer, John N Dunn, House of Tides, Costa and Newcastle United Foundation.

Val Wigham, Principle, Studio West added: “By teaching students through real-life projects and immersing them in business culture, Studio West is a school for the 21st century that is able to guarantee each and every student a place at university, an apprenticeship, a job or a chance to set up their own business.”

“Here at Studio West it is all about hard work, making progress and developing our student so that they become real contenders in a global world. We’ve had a wonderful first year and we’re looking for the next set of exceptional students to come and experience their dream school and dream job, all under one roof.”

We want to talk to anyone moving into Year 9 or Year 12 in September 2015 to discuss what Studio West offers and how it could be the right choice for your future education.

Contact admin@studiowest.newcastle.sch.uk, 0191 481 3710, www.studiowestnewcastle.com

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INTERVIEW

CAREER WITH A CHALLENGE

Discovery School was set up last September to help address the region’s skills gap. Six months on, Peter Jackson talks to principal Dr Wendy Allen Dr Wendy Allen’s passion for her new project is obvious.

She talks animatedly and enthusiastically about the Discovery School, a place of learning which is new to her and to the North East.

She says: “It has been the biggest challenge of my career. I didn’t only take on the headship of a school, I took on the headship of a school that didn’t exist.’’

Discovery is a free school dedicated to preparing young people aged between 14 and 19 from around the North East for highlyskilled jobs in the engineering, manufacturing and science industries.

It is working with a variety of leading businesses from around the region to ensure the curriculum - which concentrates on the STEM subjects of science, technology, engineering and maths - is relevant to employer needs and to enable students to gain hands-on practical experience in the sector.

It opened in the Discovery quarter in the centre of Newcastle in September in a new £9m purpose-built facility, equipped with state-of-the-art labs and workshops.

It was set up by NCG, one of the UK’s largest providers of training and skills and the group which runs Newcastle College. About four years ago NCG identified – from talking to employers and universities – a need for a

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

STEM focused school in the North East.

Dr Allen explains: “There aren’t schools within the North East which are delivering things like A-Level engineering or A-Level product design in a state-of-the-art building alongside employers using industrial standard kit.’’

The concept was that the curriculum would be developed by a partnership of educationalists and employers and delivered by educationalists, supported by industry.

In its first year Discovery has taken 125 students in total for Year 10, the GCSE year and Year 12, the first A-Level year. It takes from the full ability range from seven local authorities, stipulating only for GCSEs that they have a love of STEM subjects or, for A-Level, that they have the necessary GCSEs. “We could have taken more but the view was that it was a manageable number to allow us to deliver the curriculum we wanted to deliver and bring in the staff we wanted to bring in,’’ says Dr Allen.

The school has the capacity to take 700 but she regards about 500, or about 125 in each year, as being the ideal, allowing her to know every student.

“I don’t want to grow so big that it becomes impersonal.’’

Out of the 125 initial intake, 22 are girls.

Dr Allen says: “I would love more girls. In

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terms of the percentage, 22 represents a higher percentage than you get, for example, in engineering courses in universities and the percentage of females within the industry is quite low. As a percentage, ours is quite healthy, but we are very keen to grow that.’’

So far she is more than happy with the progress the school is making.

“It has been really successful, it feels like the students have been here forever. I don’t feel like I have students from 50 different schools, all of whom are disparate and don’t know each other.’’

She feels the school is already moving in the direction of what she wants it to become and she grows particularly enthusiastic when she talks about the ethos and vision she has for it.

She explains: “It’s defined by its academic standards and by its warmth and its inclusivity.

By academic standards I don’t mean everybody has got be a genius. We challenge students to get the best possible grades they can. It’s about making sure they achieve what they are capable of. Learning is at the heart of what we do and we really push the youngsters on.

“The values in the school are old-fashioned: good manners, punctuality, respect for each other.’’

Where Discovery School is innovative, she says, is the way in which it sets up and delivers >>

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All forms of marketing are incredibly expensive and we don’t have a massive budget.

So we try to get involved in lots of events

its curriculum. “It’s academic but it’s handson as well, so students who love learning and knowledge and are then being given the opportunity to apply it really thrives at Discovery School.’’

The school encourages a spirit of charity and community engagement and, although there are currently only 120 students, they have been raising money for several good causes.

“Our classroom doors are open and our staff have been working together and there’s a real buzz in the school.’’

The students don’t wear uniform but are expected to dress smartly. The school day starts at 8.30am and ends at 4.15pm on three days a week and from 8.30am to 5.15pm on the other two days. On the two longer days, the extra hour is devoted to what the school calls enhancement, enrichment and extension.

Enhancement is when students do what would traditionally be called homework, but is done on site with access to teachers, mentors and equipment. This time can also be used to give extra help to students needing it in certain areas.

Extension is where the students are exposed to other areas linked to their curriculum and

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enrichment is a time for students to pursue hobbies and other activities.

“They work us hard and we work them hard, so there’s a real pace and urgency about what we do,’’ says Dr Allen. “We get to a half term and we are absolutely ready for a holiday but then we come back and our batteries are recharged because it’s such a positive environment to work and learn in.’’

At the Discovery School the students don’t study for vocational qualifications but for GCSEs, AS-Levels and A Levels.

“We deliver traditional academic qualifications but we do it in a hands on and more vocational way,’’ explains Dr Allen.

The GCSE students are not restricted to STEM subjects although the core curriculum is English, maths, science and engineering.

The school offers eight GSCEs or equivalent.

A student’s mix of subjects can include more science or more engineering, depending on their interests. In addition, the students can also choose two out of: electronics; computer science; product design; history; geography; or a foreign language.

Subjects such as history and languages are less popular with Discovery students and

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costly for the school to provide and, while it has a Spanish class and Spanish teacher, in future, it cannot guarantee to teach any foreign language.

The enrichment period also has a serious purpose and has involved students building a green powered car, while for others it might be taking part in various clubs for science, languages, music or sport or attending a cadet force.

“Our students are interesting young people and they do things,’’ says Dr Allen. “They are not students who don’t do things beyond the school gates and I think that’s what brings them together as a group of young people as well as they have similar interests, or where they haven’t got similar interests they are respectful of the interests that other people have.

“You might say that some of our students are quite geeky, but we don’t use that term in a derogatory way, we mean that they are interesting. In a bigger school that might go unnoticed or they may not want to share what they are interested in because it might be seen as a bit different. Here, they are all different and their difference brings them together.’’ >>

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Discovery School is rooted in employer involvement. It is supported by engineering giant Siemens, Pirimal Healthcare, Egger, Ryder Architecture, Cundall, Liebherr, PDL Solutions, Ubisoft Reflections and domnick hunter. It has also been endorsed by the North East Chamber of Commerce and the North East branch of the manufacturers’ organisation EEF. On Wednesday afternoons all students take part in an industrial project. Currently they are working with Ryder Architecture and architectural engineers Cundall on a 10 to 12 week project looking at engineering the built environment. All staff and all students are involved, working in teams. Before Christmas they worked on the F1 in Schools Challenge to design a racing car.

“It wasn’t about turning them into motor vehicle engineers,’’ explains Dr Allen. “It was about understanding how you use physics and maths to understand speed and flow and motion. It was about developing business and entrepreneurial skills and marketing skills and then the softer skills around team work, punctuality, resolving conflict and leadership.’’

The intention is to expose students to a wide range of employers in the sector through projects, expert talks, factory visits and to continue to consult employers on their needs and the school’s curriculum.

Recruitment to Year 12 for A-Levels is presumably reasonably straightforward, but how does the school market itself to 14-yearold students and their parents when they are already enrolled at another secondary school elsewhere in the region?

“We market the school – and that’s challenging,’’ she says. “We are taking from right across the North East and we are taking from lots of different schools. All forms of marketing are incredibly expensive and we don’t have a massive budget for that. So we try to get involved in lots of events in the North East, we go to skills fairs and I do an open evening every single Wednesday and I take every opportunity I can to get the word out there. So it’s just dogged determination and sheer hard work. But, it’s really challenging because I know there are youngsters out there who don’t know anything about us.’’

But has it not been a criticism of free schools

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such as Discovery that they cream students off from existing secondary schools?

Dr Allen says: “I have had some schools who have encouraged students to come to us because it was the right thing to do. Other schools locally do fantastic jobs, I’m just interested in Discovery School and reaching out to students for whom our curriculum is appropriate, so they are going to be fulfilled and will thrive. They may not achieve any better academically than the school they were in, but, for me, it’s about the journey.’’

She also points out that Discovery takes from the full ability range, from seven separate local authorities and from more than 50 schools, so that only a handful are likely to come from any one school.

Is there not a danger that if students come from the four corners of the region they are going to lose touch with friends at home and

find it hard to establish new social networks?

“Our students do get together at the weekends, they are used to travelling into Newcastle and they get together in holiday times,’’ says Dr Allen. “There was a real defining moment just before Christmas when a colleague was walking home past Centre for Life and saw about 30 of our students all ice-skating and these were students from completely different backgrounds and completely different academic abilities and they’d only been together 10 weeks at that point.’’

So, if Discovery School is a success, is it a model that could be replicated elsewhere and could her school be expanded?

“I can’t speak for NCG but I know that if this was successful I personally would want to advocate it being replicated elsewhere. We have learned so much from doing this.’’ n

DISCOVERY SCHOOL’S MISSION IS TO PREPARE YOUNG PEOPLE FOR WORK, SO WHAT DO THE EMPLOYERS THINK OF IT? Simon Dick, Piramal Healthcare artwork team leader He explains that Piramal was involved with Discovery School from the beginning.

He says: “We realised the kind of things the Discovery School was trying to train as well as the educational side was a good opportunity for us to get some links for the future talent coming through and see them develop through their school years.’’

The company also gave guidance on those qualities industry thought were lacking in other school leavers.

Since it has been open, the school has organised a number of visits to Piramal and the company has been explaining to students how what they learn academically could be practically applied to industry.

“I’ve had excellent feedback, the students were coming up with positive and constructive questions,’’ says Dick. “They were engaged and keen to see what was going on. Every time I go to the Discovery School the students seem content and involved.’’

Carl Hopper, operations director at Siemens Power Generation Services He says: “Having the Discovery School on the doorstep is ideal from our point of view. It aligns itself with a lot of the STEM activities that we are currently doing on a nationwide basis as well as in the North East. There’s a great deal of engagement in supporting the STEM activities there.’’

Three Discovery School students will be going into Siemens to work with the engineers on a project and the company supports the school’s open days and two of its apprentices attended the last open day.

“We have to make sure in industry that there is an alignment between what industry needs and the students’ development, which has been absent in previous years.

“If we can start at the front end with the young students and support their development and skills, when they come to 16 and start applying for apprenticeships in the industry they’ll be good candidates.’’

“When you walk round the school, you see the facilities are second to none. It’s a breath of fresh air.’’

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COMPANY PROFILE

Engineering Apprentices and Derwentside College – Greater Together In celebration of National Apprenticeship Week, Derwentside in Consett is holding a “Greater Together” breakfast event to say a big thank you to the engineering companies who are employing College students as Apprentices Derwentside College is renowned for excellence in engineering, and employers have been quick to recognise that fact and take advantage of talented students, who are well trained in the relevant skills and ready to develop their careers with local engineering firms. The College has an impressive success rate with almost 100% of all engineering students being offered full time employment at the end of their apprenticeship. This success can be attributed to Derwentside College’s highly supportive approach to both apprentices and employers. Smaller class sizes, state of the art equipment in the workshops, and experienced lecturers and assessors who have all formerly worked as engineers all mean that the College turns out an exceptional quality of apprentice.

The calibre of Derwentside College students is something that Thomas Swan, an independent chemical manufacturing company, has benefited greatly from. Founded in 1926 in Consett, Thomas Swan today produces over 100 products, and employs 165 people. Apprentices are a vital part of that workforce, helping to ensure that the firm has a constant supply of engineers with the most up to date skills and knowledge, which helps to keep Thomas Swan ahead of their competitors. Commenting on their partnership with Derwentside College, Managing Director Harry Swan said: “We’ve always been delighted with our relationship with the College. They have a really good understanding of our business, and are able to identify those students who are a good match for us – bright sparks who will flourish and thrive in our environment and will become the talented engineers of the future.

This event in National Apprenticeship Week is a great way for us to celebrate the success of our Apprentices, whilst also networking with other engineering companies”.

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

Apprentices from Thomas Swan with their mentors

Over thirty engineering companies will be represented at the breakfast event, on Wednesday March 11th. Following a brief keynote speech from guest of honour, Mike Matthews MBE, Managing Director of Nifco UK Ltd., they will be presented with a commemorative photograph in tribute to their commitment to Apprenticeships with the College before having the opportunity to tour the College’s engineering suite and see students in action. Speaking about the event, Derwentside College’s Engineering and Technology Manager, Stephen Harrison, said: “We want to recognise the contribution that our employers make to the Apprenticeship programme, and thank them for their commitment to the College. We know that employers place great value on both the service that we offer and the first class training that students get from the College, so National Apprenticeship Week is our opportunity to show them how much we value them as partners. In the last 12 months we have placed 75 apprentices in engineering companies, and as the sector comes through the recession and our student numbers continue to rise, this figure is sure to increase substantially in the next year”.

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“We’re delighted to have Mike Matthews MBE as guest of honour at our Greater Together breakfast – as a former apprentice himself, he understands how important apprenticeships are to business.

At Nifco he has embraced the apprenticeship model throughout the organisation, so that in addition to engineering apprentices, they also have apprentices in IT, HR, finance and Sales.

He’s got a great story to tell, and I know our guests are going to find him compelling”.

In addition to Engineering, Derwentside College provides Apprenticeships in: • Accountancy • Beauty Therapy • Business and Administration • Catering and Hospitality • Customer Service • Cleaning and Support Services • Customer Service • Electrical Installation • Hairdressing • Health and social Care • IT • Management • Retail • Warehousing • Storage In September 2015 the college will open a brand new Construction Centre, training apprentices in Joinery, Plastering and Bricklaying.

If you would like to attend the event, or to find out more about how Derwentside College can support your Apprenticeship programme, please call Angela Fleming at Derwentside College on 01207 585944

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FRANK PLUMBS THE HEIGHTS

CRE ATIVE A Greening the economy calls for a whole raft of new skills whichMEDIA APP can be costly to acquire for SMEs but free help is at hand, as Peter NOWAND IS TH CRE ATIVE D Jackson reports CRE ATIVE MEDIA AND DIGITAL APPRENTI CRE ATIVE AND DIGIT MEDIA APPRENTICES CRE ATIVE AND DIGITAL NOW IS THE TIM CRE ATIVE AND DIGITAL MEDIA APPRENTICES NOW IS THE CRE ATIVE AND TIME DIGITAL MEDIA APPRENTICES MEDIA APPRENTICES MEDIA NOW ISAPPRENTICES THE TIM E TIM E NOW IS THE IS THE TIM E NOWNOW IS THE CRE ATIVE ANDTIME DIGITAL CRE ATIVE AND MEDIADIGITAL APPRENTICES 90% 80+% NOW IS THE TIM E MEDIA APPRENTICES With a Government grant of £1,500 per

apprentice available for just a few months Frank Ord had ambitions for his plumbing and heating business, wanting more, and a salary of just over £400 per to diversify the work it did and the clients it operated for. month, that means that employing an apprentice is effectively cost-free for The Sunderland-based family owned company Frank Ord and Sons the first three months. worked on a range of plumbing and heating projects from small Apprenticeships are growing With a Government grant ofreally £1,500 pertime to Now is the employ media sector than in other in domestic maintenance operations to larger scale, commercial work. apprentice available for just a few months are helping businesses to tap Creative and Digital Media apprentices.

Apprenticeships are growing faster in the creative and digital more inclusive workforce and With a Government grant of £1,500 per more, and a salary of just over £400 per Managing director Frank wanted to attract more private commercial media sector than in other industries, and for good reason.the They creative and digital medi apprentice available for just a few months month,are that means thattoemploying helping businesses tap into new waysan of working, creating a more inclusive workforce and bringing fresh, into North is a socially re work, particularly commercial heat pump installation and maintenance more, and a salary of just over £400 per Creative apprentice is effectively cost-free for ambitious talent the creative and digital media sector. apprenticeships; locating, nu growing faster in the creative and digital month, that meansgrant thatof employing With a Government £1,500 peran theApprenticeships first threearemonths. and digitally-talented young projects. However, while his three staff had experience in air source media sector than in other industries, and for good reason. They Creative North is a socially responsible market leader in apprentice for justcost-free a few months apprenticeavailable is effectively for to break into the industry. are helping businesses to tap into new ways of working, creating a apprenticeships; locating, nurturing and promoting motivated more inclusive workforce and bringing fresh, ambitious talent into more, a salary ofgrant just over £400 per per Apprenticeships areotherwise growing in the creative the first months. heat pumps, they did not have a certificate allowing them to install and, Apprenticeships are growing faster inemploy the creative and digital Now really is the time to With aand Government of £1,500 With a three Government grant of £1,500 Apprenticeships growing faster We in faster the digital andper digitally-talented young people whoare would struggle the and digital media sector.

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how we can help your business grow.

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Contact Creative North today, to discuss how we can help your business grow.

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

INSIGHT

SPRING 15

Part of the project is to provide renewable energy training for local businesses. It includes industry standard courses in the installation and maintenance of technologies (photovoltaics, solar thermal, heat pump and biomass), introductions to technologies, and community energy courses. The courses are offered to SMEs and sole traders.

Leader of Sunderland City Council Councillor Paul Watson said: “Across our region there’s a growing awareness of the economic and environmental benefits that are available in the low-carbon economy.

“Now, there is a package of support that can help local SMEs and their employees gain additional skills, knowledge and certification in a range of low carbon and renewable technologies.’’

Renewable energy training is seen as important in playing to the region’s growing strength in the sector. The North East is host to a range of low carbon organisations and facilities, including offshore renewable energy testing facilities, Nissan’s electric vehicle manufacturing facility, and the majority of solar photovoltaic manufacturing in the UK via Solar Capture Technologies and Romag.

The training for the Sunderland and Tees Valley projects is provided by Narec Distributed Energy (Narec DE), a spin out company from the UK National Renewable Energy Centre, with support from a number of other organisations.

Ed Walker, project coordinator at Narec DE, met Frank and Christine Ord at a Sunderland restaurant in December to discuss how the Low Carbon Demonstration Project could benefit them. Following an initial assessment of the company’s requirements, the decision was made to book three staff onto the Logic Level 3 QCF Installation and Maintenance of Heat Pumps course running between January 13 and 16.

During that initial meeting Christine was also interested to learn that additional support was available in the form of MCS (Microgeneration Certification Scheme) coaching. Given the company were interested in pursuing the MCS accreditation, an appointment was made two to three days in early March, during which Nick Davies, principal engineer at Narec DE, would assist the company in achieving

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

MCS accreditation. Frank Ord said: “The lads all found the training really useful and it was a well-managed course with fantastic instructors. To receive both this heat pump course and the MCS assistance for free is fantastic.”

He added: “The heat pumps have been a little bit slow to begin with but we have only had these qualifications for a week or two now.

We’re also not able to fully commit many staff to this just yet as we have another large gas contract to finish but once we can commit resources fully, we’re expecting high demand.

Going forward, we are also really interested in getting someone trained up in installing biomass systems.”

A similar scheme is in operation in Tees Valley, The Tees Valley Workforce Skills project. This is funded by the European Social Fund and the UK Government’s Skills Funding Agency. The fund is administered by Hartlepool Borough Council. This scheme is targeting SMEs and sole traders with premises in the Tees Valley, who work in either the manufacturing, construction or engineering sector.

Sue Hannan, employment and skills manager at the Tees Valley Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “We’re excited that Narec DE are operating as a training provider in the Tees Valley, allowing SMEs and sole traders in the region to access fully funded renewables and low carbon training.”

She added: “This training will help local businesses diversify into renewable energy technologies, growing their client base, growing their businesses, and thus growing the local economy.”

Both projects started last autumn. So far some 26 staff for about 13 Tees Valley firms have been trained and in Sunderland 63 individuals from 34 firms have been trained. Narec DE has

also delivered consultancy services on seven projects as part of the Sunderland scheme.

Narec DE is part of the UK National Renewable Energy Centre group of companies. It carries out a range of work in the renewable and low carbon sector, particularly within the built environment helping its customers reduce carbon, alleviate fuel poverty, improve energy security, stimulate economic growth and educate energy users. From its centre in Blyth, it offers: renewable energy training; testing and monitoring on a range of renewable energy and low carbon systems; strategic consultancy and technical consultancy.

For training, it works on a UK-wide basis and offers a range of courses on subjects ranging from solar thermal hot water system maintenance to biomass technology and fuel awareness. It is the only centre in the UK to offer the Level 2 heat metering course. It has worked on consultancy projects throughout the UK and Europe.

The Tees Valley Workforce Skills projects is ongoing and the Sunderland Low Carbon Energy Demonstration project is due to finish this August.

Walker said: “Renewable energy is a very big growth sector, especially in the North East. We have the highest levels of fuel poverty in the UK and things like renewable heat technology allow people to tackle fuel poverty while generating a bit of income for themselves.

“In terms of the sole traders and companies providing these installations, it’s opening up another income stream for them. Sole traders are especially unwilling to invest in taking a course unless they have a guarantee of an income coming in, but if they are going on a course that’s funded, it’s easier.

“Also, people should take it up to lower their carbon impact in the North East. n

This training will help local businesses diversify into renewable energy technologies, growing their client base, growing their businesses, and thus growing the local economy.

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EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

SPRING 15

COMPANY PROFILE

The UK’s first IT apprentice hub set to tackle the growing demand for IT skills in the North East The North East has a hugely successful IT industry with over 32,000 people employed in the sector. It is rapidly becoming one of the region’s largest employers with a number of large multi-nationals operating in the region such as Accenture, Sage, BT, HP and P&G as well as a growing number of successful SME’s. Dynamo hold a vision to stimulate further growth and create a legacy for the North East economy. A recent Dynamo survey revealed there are currently 2,000 job vacancies in the region.

It is estimated that over 5,000 new entrants will be required to fill IT Professional jobs within the next 5 years and 9 out 10 firms are suffering from skills shortages. In addition to this there are not enough young people leaving school, college and university joining the sector.

Only 4% of 15 year olds in the UK want careers in engineering and computing placing the UK 35th out of 37 countries in an OECD survey.

Working in collaboration with various schools, colleges, universities, councils, business support organisations, & IT businesses Dynamo have created an IT skills strategy for the North East.

One of the key aims of the Dynamo IT Skills Strategy is to deliver a steady stream of skilled

BENEFITS • A fantastic method of harnessing fresh new talent • An effective recruitment strategy • Content is created around employers requirements for skills • A non-for-profit initiative aimed to reduce youth unemployment • Vital to developing skills that support economic growth • Reduction in recruitment time and costs • Increased staff retention and loyalty • A low risk, low cost means to address skills shortages • Enhanced reputation for business from clients and communities

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

L-r: Louise Ball, Operations Director at Baltic Training Services. Jaedon Ross, Chelsea Dryden and Sam Thompson, all successful graduates from the pilot who have gone onto apprenticeships at NCFE

employees into the North East IT sector via apprenticeships. The Government’s investment in Apprenticeships is intended to work for businesses and create long term career opportunities for young adults.

To ensure businesses continue to invest in future skills and provide opportunities for young people in England, the government are fully committed to continuing to fund the training costs for any young person on an apprenticeship programme.

In addition to this, eligible employers are also entitled to receive a subsidy grant of £1500 per apprentice. There are thousands of employers who have successfully grown their business by providing an opportunity to an apprentice, however, this needs to continue to increase.

Setting up an apprentice scheme is not easy and we must therefore make it easier for businesses,

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particularly small enterprises, to take on apprentices. Setting up an apprenticeship programme is a major undertaking that few small businesses have the scale to address. As a result Dynamo has launched the UK’s first IT Apprentice Hub. This is a major new development for the IT sector and will significantly support more young people into careers within the industry.

Working in partnership with Baltic Training Services, the North East based IT training provider, Dynamo has developed the IT Apprentice Hub which removes the challenges SMEs face in taking on apprentices.

In response to market demands for entry level staff with relevant skills, especially for the 16-23 age group and the governments priority to address unemployment rates, Baltic Training Services have constructed a training programme that provides young people with the vital technical training, employability skills and behavioral expectations that will enable them to successfully progress from school or college on to an apprenticeship.

The IT Apprentice hub bridges the gap between education and employment providing a structured approach to attracting, training and recruiting new talent into the IT sector.

Employers in the region can now recruit from a pool of dedicated, driven young individuals with no associated recruitment or training costs.

We are currently looking to work with organisations based in Sunderland and Newcastle who can provide apprenticeship opportunities to a young person.

For more information contact: marketing@baltictraining.com 01325 731050

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

XXXXXXXX INTERVIEW

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

SPRING 15

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EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

SPRING 15

XXXXXXXX INTERVIEW

TRUSTED PARTNER - THAT’S US Iain Nixon fills the new role of Sunderland College’s commercial director.

Nine months into the job, he talks to Peter Jackson Iain Nixon is Sunderland College’s first commercial director, a post created - he tells me - in recognition of the organisation’s need to be more outward looking and engaged with business.

Before he took the job he worked with the college as a consultant to develop its employer engagement strategy.

“Essentially, I’ve now got the challenge of eating my own words,’’ he laughs. “My job is implementing that strategy.’’

He says that Sunderland College has been engaging with employers over a number of years but in a low profile way and without directing significant resources to that activity.

The first element of the strategy is to reposition the college.

“To ensure that we are aligned to local and regional economic development and skills priorities,’’ he explains. “The bottom line is that we are meeting the needs of the growing industry sectors in the North East and all those

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

sectors which provide significant employment but aren’t necessarily growing. Within that, first and foremost our priority is to meet the skills needs of the City of Sunderland but we are also a regional college and we reach well beyond the city’s boundaries.

The college also aims to build its reputation and that of the work it does.

Nixon says: “Ultimately, what we want to be seen as is as a trusted partner of employers.’’

He adds: “The college was engaging with employers but it didn’t have a view on who it was engaging with or how many employers it was engaging with in which sectors. It had never been pulled together in any coherent fashion.’’

He is clear that the college cannot be seen as “all things to all people’’ but must develop a well-targeted offer and so it plans to focus on a number of key sectors such as advanced manufacturing, including subsectors such as automotive; digital and media; construction;

39

health and social care; and professional business services. These areas coincide with the City Council’s economic master plan and the LEP’s strategic plan.

Advanced Manufacturing is expected to grow in the Sunderland area, particularly with the development of the International Advanced Manufacturing Park.

Digital and media embraces not just IT but also the creative side of media and the interaction between the two and is an important sector with the growth of Sunderland Software City.

Investment in construction has declined in the downturn but is now starting to pick up. There is a new focus on sustainable construction which the college aims to train for.

“It might be traditional trades but it’s now about looking at how technology is being applied to the construction industry, including renewable energy,’’ says Nixon. “The college was the first in the North East region to establish a centre for renewable energy to >>

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

INTERVIEW

SPRING 15

provide skills training in that area, so we’ve got a track record there, we just need to make more of it.’’

Health and social care extends beyond the public sector and Nixon argues that, with the ageing population, it is a growing sector and it is seeing increasing numbers of apprenticeships.

Professional business services includes contact centres, which have been a specialism of Sunderland College for several years and which provides significant and growing employment in the North East.

“We need to ensure that our offer now, but also into the future, is aligned with those key sectors,’’ says Nixon. “That’s not to say we won’t work with other sectors but it’s where we are going to direct our efforts and develop our specialisms.

“Out of those three things – meeting local and regional economic development and skills priorities; raising the profile and reputation of the college; developing and delivering a welltargeted employer facing offer – what we’ll hopefully see out of that is increased revenue for the college which will enable us to

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

diversify our income streams, which is critical for the college.’’

The college offers qualifications ranging from NVQ Level 1 provision through to Level 4 and 5, equivalent to a foundation degree. It offers an academic education through its sixth form and A-Level provision and some 14-to-16 teaching. Currently, it is also training just over 1,000 apprentices – young people and adults across a range of different occupational areas.

In advanced manufacturing, for example, in 2013/14, the college had 398 16-to-18 year old learners, 493 adults doing vocational courses, 192 apprentices and 131 higher education learners doing HNCs and HNDs. “So, there are a significant number of 16-to-18 year olds who are making a conscious decision

to take a vocational route on a full time basis, and their route into work afterwards may well be through an apprenticeship but they may secure a job in an organisation without it being an apprenticeship,’’ says Nixon.

“Our apprenticeship provision is growing and this year, to date, we have seen a 30% increase in the number of new starts.’’

A “significant proportion’’ of the college’s vocational learners have work placements.

“We are looking at trying to find somewhere in the order of about 1,500, if not 2,000 work experience opportunities just for this academic year,’’ he says.

The college’s catchment area is Sunderland and its surrounding areas. Would it consider, like South Tyneside College with its famous >>

A significent number of 16 - to -18s are consciously taking a vocational route on a full-time basis and may secure a job without an apprenticeship

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EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

SPRING 15

XXXXXXXX

WE’RE BIG ON APPRENTICESHIPS! Delivering a staggering 1000 Apprenticeship programmes in the last year alone, more and more North East businesses are choosing to work with us to strengthen and support their staffing.

We’ll work closely with you, supporting both you and the apprentice through every step of the Apprenticeship, delivering maximum benefits to your business.

Call 0191 511 6484 or email apprenticeships@sunderlandcollege.ac.uk

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

41

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

INTERVIEW

SPRING 15

South Shields Marine School, looking at developing specialisms appealing to a wider catchment area?

“One of the things we are looking at moving forward is: what are we famous for? That’s why we have this focus on key sectors so that we become well known for meeting the skills needs of businesses within those sectors and become known as that trusted partner.

It also gives us an opportunity to develop a real niche.’’

He cites advanced manufacturing as an example. The college is in the process of building its new £29m city centre campus, which will take the provision currently provided by its Hylton Campus and which will have state-of-the-art engineering facilities.

“We are doing horizon-scanning to look at what the needs are likely to be in the future, particularly with the International Advanced Manufacturing Park coming along,’’ says Nixon.

This also reflects the college’s new emphasis on the needs of employers.

He says: “Part of the way in which we are turning things on their head – and this is a gross generalisation about further education – for a long time it has been learner led, so an individual might have in interest in horticulture so they go and study horticulture but there may not be, at the end of the day, many jobs in horticulture, so we might be over-supplying that particular sector with learners.

“We need to get that balance right, so our engagement with employers is to ensure we understand what their needs are and that we come forward with solutions that meet those needs. This isn’t about selling an apprentice or selling a course that we just happen to offer. What we want to do is understand that business, where it’s going to, and what its challenges are particularly with respect to its workforce.’’

Sunderland College has also developed a STEM strategy which has helped it to identify a number of cluster areas in which it could develop a niche focused on meeting other industry needs by offering other services.

Nixon explains: “My argument is that we have staff and students who have expertise and we have leading edge facilities.’’

These can be used not only for teaching young

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

people but also for continued professional development of people who are already in work, the college could also provide accreditation for businesses’ in-house training and help with recruitment.

“We are never going to be doing blue sky research, we are never going to be at the far end of the innovation spectrum but we can provide other innovation related services to business such as near market research, we

could be providing access to some of our facilities such as 3D printing or CAD software,’’ says Nixon.

Some of the college’s students, for example, are working with the Durham Marriott hotel on developing an app that waiters can use to give customers more information about items on the menu.

Nixon says: “That’s providing great experience and also meeting a business need. n

Sunderland College fact file • Sunderland College has about 17,490 students. They are made up of 4,700 16-to-18 year olds; 9,900 19+ adults; 1,130 apprentices; 750 higher education students; and 1,010 community learners • It has an annual turnover of more than £40m • It employs around 700 people on five campuses around the city • According to an analysis of economic impact, every £1 that learners pay for their education at Sunderland College yields £4.90 in higher future wages – an annual 16.9% return on investment • Society receives £5.10 in return for every £1 invested in Sunderland College • The accumulated contribution of former Sunderland College learners who are currently employed in the regional workforce amounts to £401m in added income in the North East’s economy each year • The economic contribution of Sunderland College to the local business community in the North East is calculated at £444.5m each year • The total added income created by Sunderland College and its learners is approximately equal to 0.8% of the total economic output of the North East in 2012 and represents about 15,700 average wage jobs

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EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

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COMPANY PROFILE

Growing North East businesses with graduate talent Newcastle University celebrates the success of its Graduate Apprentices Scheme and looks to continue its partnerships with local businesses in the future Newcastle University has made a considerable impact on local businesses over the last few years through the success of its ERDF funded Graduate Apprentices Scheme, which has been running since June 2012.

The initiative is currently in its final stages and at its close will have seen the placement of 220 graduates into small-to-medium businesses in the North East, supporting local enterprises in their growth and development and also playing a key role in retaining graduate talent in the region.

By providing businesses with free recruitment support plus a subsidy towards the graduate’s first 3 months of work, the scheme has enabled many companies to explore graduate recruitment where they may have otherwise been unable to.

For companies such as Karol Marketing Ltd this service has proven invaluable: ‘The Graduate Apprentice Scheme helped us when we needed it most. We needed an Account Director but without the grant, we would never have been able to do it.’ Kelly-Jo Huntley, Finance Director at Karol Marketing Ltd. Not only has the scheme helped to mitigate risk and facilitate the recruitment process in many local businesses, it has also demonstrated the positive impact that fresh graduate talent can have. ‘Working with young graduates brings a fresh approach to the company’s activities, allowing ourselves to be experimental and test out new ideas. This has supported the company’s growth as well as providing a vast amount of experience for the student to further their career.’ Christine Grimwood, Executive Producer at balletLORENT. While the current project is almost at a close, Newcastle University is eagerly anticipating the upcoming bid for further funding from the ERDF to continue its valuable work within the business community. The University will also be continuing to demonstrate its commitment to the employability of its students through its ongoing Newcastle Work Experience Programme, a scheme which facilitates work placements for students

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

Celebrating the schemes at a networking event in February 2015

Newcastle University’s Graduate Apprentices Scheme has successfully placed over 210 graduates in local companies so far, supporting the growth and development of businesses in the region whilst working to retain graduate talent in the North East in local businesses through the provision of recruitment services and bursaries. This scheme again maintains a strong partnership between the University and the businesses within its region, equipping students with essential work experience while also providing companies with an affordable resource for busy periods or project work, plus the opportunity to engage with students early on to pave the way for graduate recruitment in the future.

The Santander Internship Scheme, run in conjunction with Santander Universities, will also remain on offer as part of the University’s portfolio of projects supporting business engagement. This scheme, much like the Graduate Apprentices project, provides a subsidy towards the employment of recent Newcastle University graduates, and has again been a recognised success both from the perspective of local employers and of recent graduates struggling to

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get their foot in the door after university. With the success of both schemes evident and over 80% of graduates placed retained in further employment, Newcastle University looks forward to continuing its offering this year to the benefit of both its graduates and the wider business community in the North East.

To find out more about the services Newcastle University can provide to local businesses please contact the Business Engagement Unit on 0191 208 8096

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

COMPANY PROFILE

SPRING 15

Developing higher level skills to boost regional economic growth Newcastle College secures HEFCE funding to help businesses access higher education and develop regional workforce skills Around one and a half million pounds from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) Transition Fund was awarded to higher education providers in the north east, who were looking to develop the way they worked with employers to address regional skills gaps.

Newcastle College was awarded half a million pounds to fund a range of initiatives to proactively work with employers across a range of sectors to research and understand their skills needs, to support new partnerships, and to enable businesses to access higher education via new products and new degrees.

The College has a strong track record of working in collaboration with businesses to identify where skills gaps exist and what higher level skills they need. Skills shortages and lack of investment in key industries, such as digital skills, engineering and science will have a knock on effect on the growth of the north east economy and the region’s ability to attract and retain talent. As a result, engaging with employers is key to ensuring the College is offering the type of qualifications industry require to help them grow and advance their business..

The College also has the unique ability to be able to develop and validate its own Foundation Degrees something that only a few colleges nationwide are able to do. This allows the College to be completely responsive to the needs of employers, and where there is high level skills need identified the College can work with businesses to translate this requirement into new curriculum.

TAKING THE INITIATIVE Consequently through the HEFC funding employers have been able to play an integral part in the development of higher education courses, build new partnerships for knowledge sharing and

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

support regional collaborations between key stakeholders and education institutions.

When developing the Foundation Degree in Cyber Security, staff from the College’s Digital Skills Academy were seconded to Newcastle City Council’s Network Security Team. The expertise of the team was extremely helpful in supporting the review and development of a degree programme that would respond to the Government’s commitment to invest in cyber security and make sure that the technology industry had access to the higher level skills it needed make the region truly cyber secure.

On the back of the development of the new Foundation Degree, the College went on to successfully bid for a further £35,000 of government funding for a project to develop the skills of graduates, address the shortage of cyber security skills and future proof the IT sector, making it more resilient to possible cyber attacks.

The project culminated in the launch of a new cyber security lab; The Turing Lab, named after computer pioneer Alan Turing. The lab features 34 high spec PCs that will give students from

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the College’s Digital Skills Academy first-hand knowledge of penetration testing, ethical hacking and behavioural analytics on test servers and an isolated network. The lab will also be used to host workshops for local schools, businesses and the wider community to enhance the profile and importance of cyber security.

At the opening of the Turing Lab the launch of the North East Cyber Security Cluster was also announced, a Government and industry- led partnership which will look at how the region can develop the skills and infrastructure to combat cyber security threats that the College is also supporting.

Brian Fenwick of SRM Solutions, the company responsible for forming the North East Cyber Security Cluster, said: “Since the first cluster launched in 2011, the UK has experienced a huge increase in demand for innovative cyber security products and now exports to over 60 countries.

There are now over 70 small cyber company members benefiting from local clusters, with new clusters springing up throughout the country. The collaboration of promotion and ideas within these

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

SPRING 15

COMPANY PROFILE ‘This Foundation Degree is the only NALP endorsed degree in the UK and will open up opportunities for the trained Paralegals to work within many sectors, including Financial Services, Banking, the Retail Sector, Export and the Media. Changing market conditions means there is also an increase in demand for fully qualified Paralegals within debt recovery and personal injury’’.

Brian Fenwick, David Flatman, Sarah Hopkins, Jonathan Eaton, Prof David Wall, Kane Cutler

clusters helps small companies to thrive, and the demand for British products from across the globe pays testament to the credibility and innovation of the British cyber industry.”

The College is also working in partnership with technology specialists Verrimus. Sarah Hopkins, Managing Director of Verrimus, added: “Newcastle College continues to demonstrate that they are proactive and innovative by involving businesses to enhance the student experience and better equip their graduates with useable skills. Verrimus is passionate about promoting the North East as a centre for excellence with regards to all aspects of Information Security. Our dedicated Privacy Protection Training Facility, is the only one in Europe, and we are eager to involve the students from Newcastle College in attaining vocational experiences in real, live scenarios.”

Feedback from technology industry specialists also helped the College to review the number of short courses and qualifications it currently offers. Having a clear overview of the demands of the market led to the College increasing its offer to include Cisco Routing, CompTIA Linux+ as well as a range of Microsoft qualifications. This collaboration meant that the College was able to create an offer that is exactly what employers need to develop their staff and the College’s own teaching staff were able to benefit from sharing knowledge and best practice.

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

LAYING DOWN THE LAW Another example of successful use of the HEFC funding was the College successfully launching the country’s first Paralegal Foundation Degree to be endorsed by the National Association of Licenced Paralegals (NALP). In developing the qualification, the College needed to understand the formal career pathway for a paralegal. This involved working with NALP, the Law Society and Bar Council and a number of local law firms, such as DWF, Winn Solicitors and Browell, Smith and Co. Paralegals are important fee-earning members of a legal team, playing key roles in the legal process.

Whilst not a qualified solicitor or barrister, a Paralegal is qualified to perform substantive legal work and their duties will take them from office to courtroom, from clients to conferences, from the law library to the negotiating table.

Employers from a variety of industry sectors across the UK now have the opportunity to train their staff or hire employees that are fully trained in this specialist and highly sought after area, safe in the knowledge that the qualification has been endorsed by NALP. Amanda Hamilton, CEO of NALP, said ‘’Many organisations, not only law firms, within commerce and industry need and benefit from employees who have a broad knowledge of law and procedure, together with an expertise applicable to their particular sector.

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GET THE RECOGNITION YOU DESERVE The College has developed a system called Recognise Me, to enable those with prior learning to reduce the class time and cost of their degree programme. By claiming Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning (APEL) for those with significant workplace experience, students are able to gain recognition for their achievements outside the College.

The unique online service looks at previous work experience and skills and analyses whether you could be exempt from certain modules of a Foundation Degree. This ability to track prior achievements can significantly reduce the cost of tuition fees in the first year of study, with the added benefit of being able to complete a degree in a shorter time period.

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT SEMINAR SERIES The College will be running a series of free seminars in the coming months. These seminars will showcase the innovative ways that the College partners with industry to develop mutually beneficial programmes. It will also provide the opportunity for employers and industry experts to explore how they can work together.

To register for the event or to sign up for the mailing list, forward your contact details to laura.gower@ncl-coll.ac.uk.

For further information on how Newcastle College can help your business with higher level skills training, Apprenticeships or sector specific training please visit www.newcastlecollege.co.uk/employers or email employers@ncl-coll.ac.uk

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

INSIGHT

SPRING 15

Business people are being sought to give their help and advice on how to close the North East skills gap, as Peter Jackson reports

WANTED: A MAGNIFICENT SIX TO LEAD A search is underway for the cream of North East business talent to help raise worker skills levels, creating more and better jobs as part of a programme of economic growth worth around ÂŁ500m.

Up to six people are being sought by the

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

North East LEP to represent local employers at the heart of a new employment and skills board.

Those chosen will advise the full North East LEP Board where to best target funding to nurture a new generation of skilled workers

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to fill more specialist posts at a time when employers are demanding more qualified employees to fill jobs in fast growth sectors such as digital and tech industries, marine offshore and advanced manufacturing.

Andrew Hodgson, North East LEP vice

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

SPRING 15

We’re seeking ambitious representatives who will offer commitment, energy, vision and business insight in their respective sectors

chairman and skills lead, said: “Employers are still crying out for skills and it happens right across the piece. The problem is that, as we grow those industries we are trying to hit a moving target.’’

The new North East Employment and Skills

EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

Board is due to go live in March to drive new thinking around employability and skills.

The new board will bring together up to six business, voluntary and community sector representatives working alongside LEP board members and other key partners in the employability and skills arena.

Employability and skills are two of the six priorities outlined in the North East Strategic Economic Plan ‘More and Better Jobs’.

The skills and employability programmes provide the framework for an investment of about £500m over the next six years into the local economy, through the North East LEP from Government and European Union funding.

A substantial part of this cash will be aimed at driving up skills achievements across all levels, from those who have been traditionally hard to reach, through to ensuring graduates are equipped with appropriate skills for working in growing companies.

North East LEP board member and Sunderland College principal Anne Isherwood said: “We are seeking up to six ambitious representatives from the North East business, voluntary and community sectors who will offer energy, commitment, vision and business insight in their respective sectors.

“They must have strong experience in developing business operations and ambitions for growth in their businesses through understanding skills requirements and needs within industry sectors.”

The non-executive posts will demand about nine days’ time per year with appointments made for up to three years. The posts are unpaid. Initially the employment and skills board will meet bi-monthly.

Hodgson said: “Specifically, we are aiming to ensure that North East businesses have access to appropriately skilled people who will participate and thrive in a competitive economy.

“We wish to appoint up to six leaders to represent employers - both private and voluntary sector - in the North East LEP area, who are able to champion and articulate the skills needs of businesses in the context of the North East Local Enterprise Partnership.

“It’s important that we get a spread of people from a very diverse business community.’’

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INSIGHT

He explained that he already received representations on policy from bodies such as the NECC, FSB and CBI. He added: “We want to recruit people who know what it’s like on the ground.

I need a good spread through from small business to large business, I need a spread of private enterprise and social enterprise.

I also need people who have good networks and can represent the voice of more than just themselves, who are familiar with what works and doesn’t work in the skills environment.’’

Hodgson said that a “broad spectrum’’ of business people had already shown interest in the positions.

“We have a lot of passionate people wanting to deal with these issues in the North East and this is a further way to spread that capability.’’

He pointed out that the LEP has a number of areas around skills in which it is seeking to deliver programmes, including £113m of ESF funding.

“We have the skills pilot with the colleges which is about quality of output and making sure the right measures are in place with the colleges, we have the Education Challenge coming up and making sure we have the right business engagement with schools,’’ said Hodgson. “So we have a massive amount of work to do and having a non-executive board overseeing that and making sure the programmes work is absolutely fundamental.’’

He pointed to a number of advances in the region in tackling the skills gap.

“We said we would double the number of apprentices and we are close to that figure already. We have seen a lot more businesses offering apprenticeships right across the board. I think we are seeing a much stronger recognition within schools and among young people of the opportunities in working in some of the sectors which we see as growth sectors.

“The skills gap is going to be a long term problem to solve if we are going to do it right.

The LEP has a 30-year plan, not a three-year plan. We need to solve it if we are going to have long term sustainable economic growth in the region but I’m seeing some green shoots and a lot of stuff happening.’’ n

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

SUCCESS STORY

SPRING 15

Southdale apprentices Steven Jones and Laura Elder

ON THE ROAD TO A FUTURE Construction and development company Southdale is recruiting heavily for apprentices, as we report >>

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

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EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

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COMPANY PROFILE

Is this the best office in the North East?

Creative North have moved into their new office complete with a Ball Pool Board table, Tree house and Slide. The company that celebrates the Creative and Digital Media sector in the North of England is so relaxed they even let their staff work in their PJ’s! Based in Gateshead, the business has a mission to make the North’s Creative and Digital Media Sector equal to London… if not better. “The Gaffa” Rob Earnshaw said. “ The North East was built on Rail, Coal and Shipping and the perception outside of the region is that this all we still have, which is just not the case. The North’s Digital industry is the fastest growing outside of London however rather than dismissing the spirit of industry that built this great region we want to harness it and inspire the next generation to become more creative!” The

MADE

office certainly captures this. However between all the fun there is a serious cause Creative North is working for. They have a target to place 180 young people into Creative and Digital Jobs this year and they are well on their way with 40 already placed this year. In addition the company promotes and celebrates the talents coming from the region.

They are opening their doors in association with Design Network North to launch the space on the 26th February with a Digital Playground of technologies from the region.

Anyone interested in finding out more can visit the website www.creative-north.co.uk

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21 - 22 October 2015

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SUCCESS STORY

SPRING 15

We can offer apprenticeships to those already in full-time further education.

People don’t have to quit what they’re doing and start again

Southdale, which has offices in the North East, Yorkshire and the North West, took on 25 apprentices last year and plans to double that in 2015. The firm, which has an office in Newton Aycliffe has already taken on apprentices for affordable housing projects in the North East. In collaboration with NCT Skills, it has employed three new apprentice bricklayers for its new-build projects in Jarrow and South Shields.

Laura Elder, from Walker, Steven Jones, from Wallsend, and Osanuyi Igbinusun, from Byker, all aged 17 and who are all studying towards their Level 2 NVQ in brickwork, through NCT, will spend time on active building sites while studying for their qualifications.

Southdale is building a total of 76 homes across three sites in Jarrow and South Shields, for South Tyneside Homes. A communal hall will also be built on one of the sites, West Way, in South Shields.

Craig Knowles, North East operations director for Southdale, based in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, says: “We’re committed to the development of talented young people in the construction industry, and the company is delighted to be expanding the team here in the North East. It’s been a fantastic start to 2015, and we’re aiming to recruit further talented apprentices throughout the year.

“I would like to welcome Laura, Steven and Osanuyi to their roles and wish them all the best with their studies and career development here at Southdale.”

Formed in 1988, Southdale has grown through forging partnerships with more than 60 housing associations and registered social landlords (RSLs) and strategic framework agreements with local authorities and public sector partners.

SPECIAL REPORT | SPRING 15

Ian Wood, managing director at NCT Skills, says: “We’re delighted to be supporting Southdale in training their apprentices and very much look forward to further developing this relationship over the coming years. Our apprentices have been given a great welcome into the construction industry and have thoroughly enjoyed their first few weeks on site.

“We work with a large number of young apprentices every year, in a range of vocations, and it is vital to have support of businesses to give them the opportunity to learn from professionals on the job, especially in the construction industry where the skills gap is especially prevalent. The partnership between Southdale and NCT Skills will continue to address that by attracting more young people into the construction industry.”

Southdale HR director Beverley Robinson emphasises the importance of apprenticeships being made available to as many young people as possible by making them appropriate for a range of personal circumstances.

She explains: “It is important that we make apprenticeships as accessible as possible, to ensure those who want to build their

vocational skills and experience alongside their academic education can do so.

“This means looking flexibly at apprenticeship options. One key way in which we can do this is to offer apprenticeships to those who are already in full-time further education. We do not want people to think they have to quit what they are doing and start again.

“Most people on full-time FE courses may only be in college up to three days a week, which means there are a couple of days in which experience can be gained with an employer, so we want to ensure that this option is available.’’

But, she makes clear that it is not enough merely to provide that flexibility if potential apprentices are not made aware of the options that are available to them.

She adds: “It’s important that both employers and learning providers, such as FE colleges, raise awareness of such options, so that young people know what routes are available.

“We are also keen to explore options with Jobcentres, because there are ways of promoting apprenticeships to those who are out of work, which should not be ignored.

Just like when a school pupil uses work experience to explore a potential career path, forward thinking employers can help to give people who are unemployed an opportunity to get an insight as well.’’

She is clear that getting more people into apprenticeships has to be a collaborative effort. She says: “It is important that everybody involved, young people, employers, colleges, Jobcentres, think creatively and flexibly about apprenticeship routes, to ensure opportunities are open to as many as possible.” n

It’s important that everybody involved, young people, employers, colleges, job centres, think creatively and flexibly about apprenticeship routes

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EDUCATION, APPRENTICESHIPS AND TRAINING

We’re motivated by results

Are you?

We firmly believe that training and development should deliver results – strengthening your business to make it more efficient and more competitive.

So when you’re thinking about your workforce and skills needs, choose a training provider that really understands your requirements, will deliver high quality solutions and provide a clear return on your investment.

Choose Sunderland College We’ve a proven track record of designing and delivering courses and qualifications, tailored to meet your specific needs.

And with over 30 frameworks on offer, we are one of the largest Apprenticeship providers in the North East.

To find out more call 0191 511 6000 or email employers@sunderlandcollege.ac.uk

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