Jobless youngsters from the Sheffield City Region will get the chance to be an advanced manufacturing apprentice thanks to the winners of a property award.
Harworth Estates and Sheffield Business Park – developers of the Advanced Manufacturing Park – have won the Lambert Smith Hampton Enterprise Award with an entry submitted on behalf of the embryoinc Sheffield City Region Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District (AMID) partnership.
The award was given for innovative thinking in how the property industry can make the most of the Government’s devolution programme.
The winning entry from Harworth and Sheffield Business Park explained how devolution would be used to support the growth of advanced manufacturing in the region and how others from across the UK could apply similar principles to grow other high-value industries elsewhere.
The £15,000 prize has been matched by the Enterprise Award winners to create a £30,000 fund for local young people that aren’t in education, employment or training, to get apprenticeships with local manufacturers and a place at the AMRC Training Centre.
Iain Thomson, partnerships manager at Harworth Estates, commented: “Using the prize money for this purpose made complete sense. Developing future talent is the only way we’ll achieve sustainable economic growth for the region and the AMRC is a world-leading institution in making this happen.”
Graham Sadler, managing director at Sheffield Business Park that is being delivered in joint venture with Peel Land & Property, added: “It is incredibly important that we have sufficient people from this region with the right skills to take jobs in growing sectors.
“The AMRC Training Centre has built up an enviable record for enabling young people to gain those skills, so it was the natural choice to make the best out of our award success.”
AMRC executive dean, Professor Keith Ridgway CBE, described the announcement as “a fantastic gesture” on behalf of the award winners.
“Their decision to use the prize money and then match it with their own contribution to help young people to get jobs and learn advanced manufacturing skills recognises how important creating a new generation of talented youngsters is to the success of the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District and the contribution it can make to the economy of the region and the UK.”
He also praised the award-winning entry’s calls for greater collaboration between property specialists and universities to develop sites that boost UK competitiveness by encouraging knowledge transfer.
“That is exactly what is already happening on the Advanced Manufacturing Park and Sheffield Business Park and will be one of the foundations of success of the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District,” said Prof Ridgway.
AMRC Training Centre head of operations, Kerry Featherstone, described the prize winners’ support for apprentices and the AMRC Training Centre’s work as “tremendous news”.
“We are already training 20 apprentices working for SMEs whose salaries are supported by Close Brothers, the merchant bank, as part of a programme to fuel SME expansion by recruiting the best young talent.
“We have also worked with the Prince’s Trust and Boeing on a programme aimed at young people aged 16 to 25 who are not in education, training or employment and designed to give them a flavour of what it takes to be an apprentice and embark on a rewarding career in manufacturing.
“We will use the same principles to make the most of this generous gift resulting from the award-winning success Haworth Estates and Sheffield Business Park secured on behalf of the AMID.”
