Echo unites colleges and partners for NETPark Impact event

The event in the Plexus boardroom at NETPark was held under Chatham House rules to allow colleges and partners in The Northern Echo’s Impact campaign to speak their mind but afterwards many of our guests took the opportunity to reflect on what they had heard and suggest the best route forward.

Colleen Peters of New College Durham told us: “Participating in the event alongside senior colleagues from the FE sector and businesses was a fantastic opportunity to share experiences and explore the challenges and complexities that face FE colleges today. The conversations reinforced the importance of collaboration between education and industry in addressing skills gaps and ensuring students are equipped for the evolving job market.

“Hearing insights from both educators and business leaders highlighted the need for strong partnerships that align skills development with workforce demands, particularly in preparing a skilled workforce for the emerging industries coming into the region.

To find out more about the Impact campaign, drop a line to ryan.fenwick@localiq.co.uk

“By working in close collaboration with businesses, we need to ensure that our students are not only gaining the technical skills required but also developing the employability skills and experiences needed to thrive in the workplace. Industry placements, apprenticeships, and employer-led projects play a crucial role in bridging the gap between education and employment, helping learners to transition into their careers.

“It is essential that we continue to collaborate to create industry relevant learning opportunities that equip students with the confidence and skills to succeed in an ever changing and rapidly evolving job market. New College Durham remains fully committed to strengthening partnerships across the sector, engaging with businesses and stakeholders to enhance student success and support regional economic growth.”

Iain Nixon of EPNE said: “It was a thought-provoking discussion on a critical issue for the region and the nation. Developing a shared understanding of the skills challenges facing the region and how different stakeholders – employers and employer representative bodies, education, and local/combined authorities – all play a part in the solution is an important step.

“A whole system approach is required – the ‘skills system’ needs to be even more joined up and integrated ways of working are required to address the skills challenge.

“A deeper understanding of the skills challenge is required – by place, by sector, etc. – as part of an evidence based and differentiated approach. The skills challenge manifests itself in different ways – skills mismatches, skills shortages, and skills gaps – and the solution will differ depending on which aspect partners are trying to address.

“Collaboration around a common purpose is critical. The purpose being to ensure everyone – young people and adults – can progress into and through work, and to ensure employers have the right skills in their workforce at the right time. By working together, we can have a greater impact on productivity and growth in the economy, while also ensuring progress in the FE sector. “

Hartlepool College’s Darren Hankey said the event was “Superb – well planned and executed with some excellent contributions.

The full list of people around the table was:

• Grant Glendinning, Chief Executive and Group Principal at Etc
• Zoe Lewis CBE DL, Principal / Chief Executive Officer at Middlesbrough College Group
• Darren Hankey, Principal at Hartlepool College
• Jon Ridley, Principal at Newcastle College
• Colleen Peters, Vice Principal Business Development, Productivity & Apprenticeships at New College Durham
• Iain Nixon, Vice Principal Partnerships and Business Solutions for Education Partnership North East
• Mike Parker, Director of Marketing & Admissions at Barnard Castle School
• Shaun Hope, Principal at Bishop Auckland College
• Wayne Spooner, EBU Technical Director – Europe for Cummins
• Rachel Anderson, Assistant Director – Policy for the North East Chamber of Commerce
• Helen Radcliffe, Strategic Manager for Progression and Learning at Durham County Council
• Kerry Rowell, Culture Manager for believe housing
• Pete Norman, Learning and Development Manager at razorblue
• Graham Wood, Economic Development Manager for Durham County Council
• Business Editor Mike Hughes
• Echo Editor Gavin Foster
• Ryan Fenwick, Sales Director for LocaliQ

“Among the key points is the importance of FE for the government delivering its missions, housebuilding aspirations and industrial strategy.

“Where policymakers, I think, get things wrong is a focus on supply-side issues (structures, qualifications and targets) and not focusing on increasing the demand for, utilisation of and investment in skills, leading to a woeful state of investment in skills over the last decade and a half.

“Collaboration in the FE sector is essential and there’s lots of good practice already in place.”

From our business partners in the Impact campaign, Wayne Spooner from Cummins said: “I found it incredibly interesting and eye opening to some of the challenges our colleagues in education face, and there are two key points I would like to highlight, some of which we got chance to discuss at the event.

“On provision of emerging/growing technical areas in the region, the region lacks degree apprenticeships in emerging technical areas such as Data Analytics, Electronics & Controls and AI. These fields are difficult to find in the region when looking at part-time study options.

“We also struggle to attract these highly sought after/highly skilled types of individuals to the region (for various regions) and with many of our full-time students leaving the area to pursue their careers, the North East will suffer. To maintain the region as a leading industrial and commercial area, it is crucial to have individuals who can learn and develop in these advanced technical areas locally.

“And on communication, presentation and confidence development, it feels like we are lagging other countries, particularly our US colleagues. Communication is key to succeeding in any industry, and also in academia. It would be great to see something introduced in our schools that would help prepare the next generation to be able to ask the questions that are on their mind, articulate their ideas and generally promote themselves effectively. With more children spending time online or behind a screens, developing positive face-to-face communication skills is essential to realising their potential.

“The Impact session was very insightful, and it appears to be one of the few opportunities for education and business to come together, share concerns, ideas, and strategies to drive education forward in the region.”

Mike Parker, who offered a different view as the Director of Marketing & Admissions at Barnard Castle School, said he took away three key points.

Mike Parker, left, speaks at the event

“The future for all children in the North East cannot be solely the responsibility of our FE colleges and schools,” he said.

“The issues run far deeper and cannot be resolved in one political cycle. A significant amount of damage is done to children’s learning before they even reach school – like a lack of access to words, the point about children overtaking their parents’ own literacy by the time they are nine and the lack of social capital because families cannot afford to travel.

“Also, Character and Human Skills are not taught or rewarded in the current National Curriculum. It’s not only the knowledge we need to get into our children in the North East, it’s their ability and confidence to enter a workplace and be able to operate.

“They aren’t taught how to speak, how to shake hands, how to hold eye-contact, how to dress etc etc. Even if they get a foot in the door, do they have the perseverance to keep it there and then walk through the door?

“Collaborations across all facets of education is essential. It’s actually unhelpful to pigeon hole areas of education as it leads to negative comparison. Higher education is not ‘better’ than further education, it’s a different route.

“Each child has their own pathway to success, our role should be illuminating those paths and clearing any roadblocks along the way. If a child is more practically focused, the vocational route will suit them better. It doesn’t mean they are any less capable.

“At Barney, we focus on unlocking the talent inherent in each child, and we guide and upskill them to be best prepared to make the most of the opportunities in front of them. This should be the case for every child. If the entire education system worked more collaboratively, children would see the whole picture and be supported to find their best outcomes. We are too small a region to isolate ourselves, we need to pull together to punch above our weight.”

Shaun Hope of Bishop Auckland College added: “It was great to share the table with so many amazing minds in business, education and news to discuss the real impact we can make when industry and education work together. There were so many takeaways from the discussions and a real sense of collaboration to provide the best for the people of our region.”

Zoe Lewis at Middlesbrough College said: “It was fantastic to see such a great turnout of education and business leaders coming together at NetPark. It was interesting hearing views about the curriculum at all education levels, the barriers and incentives required to increase employer investment in skills and apprenticeships, and the high value placed by employers on candidates who have experience and strong human skills such as communication and confidence.

Zoe Lewis makes her point

“There was clearly a great deal of knowledge around the room with detailed knowledge on display relating to the national and local economy, local economic factors, the regional growth and investment opportunities, the apprenticeship and training trends and the demographic factors affecting our economy. I am extremely excited to be part of this new collaboration and grateful to BUSINESSiQ for their commitment to continue the discussion and to invite local education and skills policy leads to effect a positive change.”

Grant Glendinning, Education Training Collective group principal and chief executive officer, said the the NETPark event was an opportunity to come together as colleges and businesses to really drill into the ways that we are working to identify skills needs and train local people to meet them.

He said: “The conversation offered the chance to highlight some of the issues and challenges that we face but also some of the wins, and from that point of view, it was a really positive open and frank discussion which everyone will have taken something from.

“It was great to have such a wide range of businesses and employers in the room, and to have a forum of representatives from the Tees Valley and the wider North East, to share their thoughts.

Grant Glendinning

“There’s a lot of work to do at a younger age. Children in schools in the North East need to have a greater understanding of what the current and future opportunities are in the region and the exciting developments and huge potential in this part of the country.

“There can be many reasons for this, such as disadvantage, cultural capital, or levels of expertise when it comes to careers advice and knowledge available.

“We want young people to be excited by the future options ahead.

“Also, in the North East we see a paucity of apprenticeships available to young people and school leavers. Working together across agencies, businesses and educators, we need to create and curate great training and employment opportunities for young people and one of the ways you can do that is by creating bespoke employer focused programmes.

“By working together, we can add “more bang for your buck”, as it were, when it comes to the likes of maximising on shared resources and specific areas of expertise. People often presume, as neighbouring organisations, that colleges and training providers don’t work together, when in fact, in the Tees Valley and the North East we regularly work as strategic partners for the greater good of our region. Events such as this are a great platform to build further on that.”

Pete Norman, Learning and Development Manager at tech business razorblue said: “The NETPark event provided a valuable platform for FE and businesses to engage in open discussions about the shared challenges we face. I found it really insightful exploring the multi-faceted complexities of closing the skills gap, a critical issue for razorblue, educational institutions, and businesses across the region.

“It’s encouraging having a forum where businesses are not only willing to share their experiences but also actively contribute to solutions. This reinforces the importance of collaboration in driving progress and ensuring that efforts to bridge the skills gap have a real and lasting impact.”