Birmingham based engineering solutions firm, adi Group, will be supporting Tomorrows Engineers Week by sharing stories from its Apprentice and Pre-Apprentice programmes in a bid to inspire more young people to embrace the opportunities that exist within the world of engineering.
Earlier this year, the Group stepped up its support for Engineering Apprenticeships in Birmingham after joining the 5% Club. Designed to encourage UK businesses to employ the equivalent of five per cent of their workforce through apprenticeships, the 5% Club is supported by the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills, and is part of the governments goal to create three million more apprenticeships by 2020.
Tomorrows Engineers Week (#TEWeek16) takes place from 7-11 November 2016 and aims to change perceptions of engineering among young people, their parents and teachers to inspire future engineers.
Alan Lusty, chief executive officer at adi Group, said: We operate in a sector that has suffered from a serious skills shortage in recent years.
Apprenticeships are a vital way to tackle the skills shortage, but they are in need of a serious image overhaul. In our field, hands-on apprenticeships are the building blocks of a highly rewarding career that can take individuals all the way to the top, and yet young people and their parents remain largely unaware of the benefits such a route into work can bring.
By increasing the number of apprenticeships we offer we hope to tackle that perception, and help the next generation to take full advantage of the fantastic opportunities on offer to them.
Paul Jackson, Chief Executive at EngineeringUK, said: adi Group and others like it around the UK are embracing Mission Inspiration with events and activities to mark Tomorrows Engineers Week. Engineering makes a vital contribution to the UK economic growth and offers a wealth of varied and rewarding careers. To ensure British engineering continues to thrive we need to inspire future engineers.
Engineering companies will have over 2.5 million job openings over this decade, across a diverse range of disciplines. However, we need many more school children, particularly girls, choosing the GCSEs, A levels, apprenticeships, degrees or other vocational pathways that will lead to engineering careers.