76 | Tees Business
Leading role – Steph Coleman is the
new executive director of business and
partnerships for Northern Skills Group.
LEADING
LIGHT
STEPH RELISHING
TOP NEW ROLE WITH
NORTHERN SKILLS GROUP
Meet Steph Coleman – she’s the new face behind Northern Skills Group (NSG), the
apprenticeship and training arm of Middlesbrough College, which offers training provision
to thousands of businesses across Tees Valley to ensure the right skills are in place to
open up opportunities for the area.
S
teph is the new executive director of
business and partnerships and steps
into the role at the perfect time, with
business and industry in Tees Valley on an
upward trajectory with new projects and
prospects coming thick and fast.
She sees her first task as getting out and
about, chatting to businesses to let them know
that no matter how big or small their training
challenge NSG can help.
Steph moves from a similar role at Burnley
College where her work saw the number of
apprenticeships rise from 300 to 3,000 in
under four years.
“We set up academies focusing on
specialist training and looked at employer
budgets, finding out if funding was available
and if it was, how we could get it. I’ll be
looking to do something similar at NSG,” said
Steph.
“It doesn’t matter if it is a large company
or a one-man band they still need the right
skills. I’ll be finding out how we can assist
them – looking at upskilling unemployed
people and moving existing students up to
the next level. It’s not one size fits all.
“Apprenticeships offer so much both
to the apprentice, the employer and to
the community. It can be challenging but
because we have such a great offer you can
see the end result which is what excites me
about it.