As schools, colleges and universities across the country prepare for an academic year like no other they have ever faced, The Northern Echo, together with its sister titles and online platforms, is launching a new campaign that aims to promote education in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) to develop the skilled workforce of the future.
THE North has long punched well above its weight when it comes to technological, scientific and engineering innovations, many of which have transformed the way we live, work and play.
From being the birthplace of railways in the 19th Century, to today playing host to cutting edge tech firms that would give any Silicon Valley entrepreneurs a run for their money, the North has always led from the front when it comes to changing the world through our ingenious real-world application of scientific and technological breakthroughs.
Today’s complex, constantly changing world is reliant on the same sky scraping levels of ingenuity and research as displayed by our ancestors’ rich heritage of achievement – never more so than now as we look to kickstart the post-Covid economic recovery.
Our new campaign will shine a light upon the achievements of scientists, engineers and academics – while also encouraging the pioneers of the future to take up essential STEM subjects in school and further education.
We aim to support the development of a skilled and adaptable workforce that can take advantage of the growing number and evolving range of STEM jobs.
It is a big challenge – new STEM roles are expected to double in the next ten years but the UK already has a shortfall of about 173,000 skilled STEM workers. Eighty-nine per cent of companies had difficulty hiring STEM-skilled staff within the previous 12 months, and there is also a huge gender imbalance at play, with many more boys than girls choosing to study STEM subjects.
As the new academic year approaches, we are looking for partners to help lead the discussion around all aspects of STEM in 2020 and beyond, such as:
- Does STEM have an image problem – and how can we solve it.
- How can the promotion of STEM in our primary schools be improved?
- Identifying the skills gaps for our biggest employers – and what they need to change to plug them.
- How apprenticeships can offer an alternative route into a STEM career.
- Are our teachers equipped with training and resources necessary to teach STEM subjects?
- How to improve the STEM gender imbalance.
- Brexit – friend or foe for STEM?
These are just a few of the themes The Northern Echo’s STEM campaign, run in conjunction with digital marketing services business LOCALiQ, owned by Newsquest Media Group, publishers of the Echo, will seek to explore.
By bringing together the power of our audience reach and high quality editorial content, our campaign will seek to be the leading platform for debate around all the key STEM issues, in partnership with leading education institutions, businesses and public bodies.
These discussions will take place across our traditional print titles, niche publications, websites, digital display and social media channels.
- The Northern Echo and LOCALiQ invites you to discuss the potential involvement of your organisation or business in this campaign. Contact sales director Ryan Fenwick at ryan.fenwick@localiq.co.uk
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