AROUND 140 young people were given a hands on experience of the potential careers that could await them in the engineering sector.

Pupils from seven Darlington secondary schools attended Foundation for Jobs Low Carbon Engineering Event last week (Thurs 9th).

The third annual event, hosted by Eco friendly business park Lingfield Point, aimed to inspire young people on the cusp of choosing their GCSE options, to consider the importance of STEM subjects to potential careers.

It also aimed to challenge their perception of what engineering was and what engineers do, inspiring interest in a sector that is vital to the North East economy but is facing impending skills gaps with thousands of workers due to retire.

The event was supported by Cummins Engines, which ran a Computer Aided Design Task for the pupils to participate in while engineering firm AMEC ran a task where the pupils became design engineers and plotted a pipeline.

Gateshead College, which runs the Skills Academy for Sustainable Manufacturing and Innovation (SASMI) responsible for training Nissan staff working on the Leaf electric vehicle, introduced the young people to the technology of electric vehicles, supported by Tees Valley Mitsubishi , which provided a car for the event.

With the Engineering Development Trust the pupils were able to run a Mission to Mars, including building a solar powered Mars rover, while Darlington College, which is home to the C-State subsea training centre, ran a deep sea robotics task.

With South West Durham Training (SWDT) pupils assembled motorised windicator kits, which mimic the principals of wind turbines, while Whessoe Engineering ran a task producing power from vinegar. RTC North which runs the STEM Ambassador programme in the North-East, produced Engineering in a Box, containing a number of tasks introducing pupils to engineering.

It is hoped the event on October 9 will help guide the young people involved in their GCSE options, highlight the importance and practical uses of STEM subjects and also

Foundation for Jobs chairman Councillor Chris McEwan said: “This has been another fantastic event, which has shown what can be achieved for our young people with the support of companies and organisations based in Darlington and the wider North-East.

“The fabulous range of activities on offer shows that these firms and organisations put real thought into what will capture the young people’s imagination and given how busy we know they are it is to their immense credit they feel it important enough to take the time to do that.

“We know that involving young people in practical activity is so much better at hammering home the message on how great careers in this sector are rather than simply telling them.

“The structured sessions this event provides has helped to inspire nigh on 400 of our school pupils during the three years it has been held and I would like to personally thank all the companies involved in activities and the team at Lingfield Point for again hosting this event for us.”

As a major part of the region’s economy engineering is a key area for Foundation for Jobs in its aim to match young people’s aspirations with the North-East employment market.

Now a national award-winning project, Foundation for Jobs is a joint initiative to tackle youth unemployment involving The Northern Echo, Darlington Borough Council and the Darlington Partnership of private firms and public sector organisations, which has also enjoyed support from businesses and industrialists across the whole North-East region.

It has worked with more than 3,300 young people since it was launched in January 2012.

For further details contact owen.mcateer@darlington.gov.uk or go to www.foundationforjobs.co.uk