JANUARY 2019 SKILLS
Willacy, community and STEM
ambassador at Air Products,
and winner of the Skills &
Community award at the 2018
Manufacturing Champions
Awards (see p32). The project’s
aim was to get young people
interested in a career in STEM –
no mean feat in a country where
most youngsters want to be
sports stars.
Willacy says: “Inspiring
young people by sharing
knowledge and experience and
allowing young people to have
access to positive role models
should be a priority for all
businesses. This is why, at Air
Products, we believe that the
earlier you engage with students,
the more likely you will be to
influence them positively to
pursue a career in STEM.
“We chose to engage
with 11-13-year-olds because
we wanted to create a fun,
memorable experience, bringing
together industry experts to
November 2018, showcasing its 60 apprentices
who are studying towards their mechatronics,
machining, tool making, welding and production
operative apprenticeships.
MCMT staff, apprentices and instructors from
Black Country Atelier (BCA) supported 15 young
people aged between nine and 13-years-old at the
kids’ club, to explore and learn from some of the
technology installed at the MCMT’s 36,000ft2
facility on the Stanmore Industrial Estate.
“The skills gap has been well documented, and
a lot of time has been spent in engaging secondary
school pupils who are considering what to do next
after their GCSEs,” explains Matthew Snelson,
managing director of the MCMT.
“However, what we have been missing is
talking to the grassroots level, with children aged
between nine and 13. This a really key time before
pupils make their subject choices, so we wanted
to put on an exciting and challenging week that
introduced them to STEM and the world of
engineering and manufacturing.”
Throughout the week, children worked on
several practical, hands-on projects, giving
them an immersive experience of design and
engineering. This included programming e-pets
and designing rocket cars. They made their own
projects using a full range of traditional and
work with the students and
share their enthusiasm.”
The children actually camped
during the time they were there,
and at the end of the week sent
high-altitude balloons to the
very edge of the atmosphere.
The feedback received from
the students and teachers who
attended Space Camp was
reportedly ‘overwhelmingly
positive’. All the teachers said
they would attend it again and
gave an average score of 9.3 out
of 10 when asked to rate the
experience. When asked how
likely they were to recommend
Space Camp to their friends, the
students gave an average score
of 9.1 out of 10 and gave the
overall experience an average
score of 9 out of 10.
In August, a similar club
was introduced by the Marches
Centre of Manufacturing and
Technology (MCMT), based
in Bridgnorth. The centre
celebrated its first birthday in
Lynn Willacy,
MM's Skills &
Community
Champion 2018
www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk 27
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