NEWS
FUTURE INSPIRATION
POW-erful message –
Young students on their visit to Intelect where they were hosted by ( from left ) PoW ’ s Sophie McKenna and Intelect ’ s
Lily Brothwood and Maddie Williams .
Intelect ’ s engineering open day proves a smash hit with student ambassadors
WORDS : PHILIP TALLENTIRE PICTURE : TOM BANKS
When it comes to recruiting the next generation of engineering apprentices , it ’ s a case of capturing hearts and minds sooner rather than later .
And that ’ s why Intelect , an innovative company that provides electrical and mechanical engineering solutions to a wide range of clients nationwide , invited year five and seven pupils to an interactive open day in partnership with PoW ( Power of Women ) as part of National Apprenticeship week .
The intention was to provide an insight into engineering for young students who may have not considered the sector as a potential career option .
As Intelect ’ s business operations manager Lily Brothwood points out , time is of the essence when it comes to sharing the message about a career in engineering .
“ It ’ s all about opening eyes and minds to the industry from a young age ,” she begins .
“ For us , it ’ s part of a wider strategy to inspire the next generation and break stereotypes . We need to plant the seed as early as we can and let young people know that they can have a career in this industry if they are passionate about it .
“ We want to try and remove the barriers and the preconceptions that people have about those careers .”
Ambassador pupils from five schools in the Tees Valley – St Gabriel ’ s Primary , St Bede ’ s Primary , Thorntree Primary , North
Shore Academy and Longfield Academy – enjoyed a rewarding trip to Intelect ’ s stateof-the-art engineering facility on Riverside Park in Middlesbrough .
Their day out included an ‘ ask the apprentice ’ question-and-answer session with health and safety apprentice Maddie Williams and a site tour .
“ We wanted to ensure that they were not confined to a classroom ,” explains Lily .
“ We did a health and safety briefing but we made it fun – and they all got a hi-vis jacket , safety glasses and earplugs !
“ We try and make it as interactive as possible so we let them have a go at using our 3D scanner on objects , and demonstrate how we can use the scan on the screen for our design process .
“ Even something like pressing a button on a control panel that lights up is an activity that sparks questions and interest .”
The aim of the day was to show the pupils the variety of careers on offer and the different avenues that they could potentially take to access the engineering sector , one of which is through apprenticeships .
“ Apprenticeships are a huge part of our business , as they ensure that we have a constant talent pipeline for the future ,” continues Lily .
“ I think if you look at the engineering sector there has been an increasing shift and focus when it comes to using them as a route into a career , especially with the likes of degree apprenticeships coming into play .
“ We are passionate about improving diversity and inclusion within the engineering industry and we hope to kickstart it with events like this in association with PoW and Spark Tees Valley .”
PoW ’ s head of operations Claire Preston , who attended the open day with colleague Sophie McKenna , said : “ Inspirational days like this visit to Intelect are absolutely key to the success of the work of PoW .
“ Our ambassadors were excited by their visit , learning not only about engineering , but apprenticeships generally . This experience will be shared by the ambassadors with large numbers of their peers back in schools .
“ I ’ m already aware of one female student who is keen to explore engineering further as a result and hope this will sow seeds of interest in many more . Partnerships like this , as intended by PoW , are what will make a difference to our next generation .”
With those admirable thoughts in mind , it seems appropriate that the final word should go to a pupil who , after attending the engineering open day , wrote : “ This visit has inspired me and I ’ m excited about the possibilities of work experience in the future .”
Visit intelectuk . com
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