NEWS Celebrating the female engineers of the future
Group’s Birmingham workshop for half a day each week to practical, hands-on skills needed to carve a career in either mechanical or electrical engineering. The two-year course runs alongside the students’ GCSE education, occupying 10% of their curriculum time.
Birmingham-based engineering company, adi Group, has reaffirmed its pledge to help bridge the gender divide in engineering by growing its pre-apprenticeship scheme.
Despite recent figures showing more people are entering apprenticeship schemes than ever before, for every female apprentice working within the UK engineering sector there are 25 male apprentices.
Identifying a need for high-quality vocational training for all genders, the Group launched the UK’s first pre-apprenticeship scheme in September 2016 for 14-16 year olds – 25% of whom are girls.
The scheme involves 12 secondary school students – male and female – attending adi
Pre-apprentice Alicia Southerton, 14, said: “My dad works at Jaguar Land Rover in Solihull, and it’s always sparked an interest of engineering in my mind since I went to his work. “I think it’s quite an inspirational and motivational thing and if girls ever get the opportunity they should go for it, because it’s not just a boy thing to do.”
Alan Lusty, CEO and founder of adi Group, comments: “Our pre-apprenticeship scheme links together industry and education to show school age children the benefits of engineering and present it as a viable career option. “We hope that by taking on a healthy proportion of male and female apprentices each year we can contribute to closing the skills gap, ensuring that well-trained, dedicated professionals continue to enter the profession. “More businesses need to follow our example by engaging with young people and encouraging them to consider engineering as an attractive potential career. We believe our pre-
apprenticeship scheme offers a comprehensive model which other schools and employers will be able to replicate.”
www.adiltd.co.uk
Major award for Reigate Grammar School Changing Lives campaign
Reigate Grammar School’s Changing Lives campaign to give more children the opportunity to share in the exceptional education the school offers has been recognised in a major national award.
The prestigious IDPE (Institute of Development Professionals in Education) award for Fundraising Campaign of the Year was presented to Reigate Grammar School Foundation Director Sean Davey and colleagues by distinguished BBC broadcaster Michael Buerk. The initial goal of raising £1 million by 2016
for the 1675 Bursary Fund was achieved a year early. Some £4 million has already been raised and there are now 29 Scholars at RGS. The aim now is to build the fund to support at least 50 ‘1675 Scholars’ at the school by 2025 to mark its 350th anniversary.
Mr Davey said: ‘The “dice-roll” of birth continues to have a skewed influence on a child’s life chances. However, through our ‘Open Access’ philosophy Reigate is becoming an engine of social mobility.’
He added that ‘although the school has been
changing lives since 1675, there is still much to be done’.
Find out more about the campaign and how to donate at
http://www.rgschanginglives.org
Manchester Grammar School announced as the winner of CityVerve’s Next Generation: School’s Innovation Challenge
Manchester Grammar School has been crowned the winner of the first CityVerve Next Generation: School’s Innovation Challenge. The team from Manchester Grammar School were announced the winners in a presentation which demonstrated their ideas of products or services that could improve people’s lives and benefit the local community by connecting everyday things together with technology.
Hosted at Citylabs, in the heart of Manchester’s innovation district, the winning team from Manchester Grammar School devised a smart transport card idea. Titled ‘Vision’, the idea encourages citizens to swap cars for public transport in exchange for redeemable rewards –
July/August 2017
called Visbits - in a network of local shops. The CityVerve Next Generation: School’s Innovation Challenge aimed to improve both business and life skills as well as immerse pupils in the world of the Internet of Things (IoT), by encouraging students aged 11 to 13 to solve a problem, design and develop a solution. The challenge encouraged teamwork and creativity, providing industry experience and guidance throughout the pupils’ journey. Frederick Baker, Teacher at Manchester Grammar School said: “The pupils have gained experience and skills relating to decision making and problem solving whilst enjoying the experience of presenting and being involved in a
professional environment and outside the school. Pupils have also been encouraged to think about a problem that needed them to find out information relating to multiple disciplines, which is excellent helps them reflect the skills needed beyond school.”
www.cityverve.org.uk
www.education-today.co.uk 9
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