This year’s Engineering Apprenticeships Open Day at SETA Stockport was an enormous success with over 250 visitors, young people and their parents from 29 schools, sixth form and FE colleges in Stockport, Tameside and Manchester.
One of the biggest draws was the possibility to meet employers, who are currently training, employing or recruiting for new apprentices.
The different technical sectors that these employers work in showed to young people how diverse engineering is and how applicable Apprenticeships are to the industry.
Visitors could meet representatives of 7 prestigious companies exhibiting. SETA wants to thank following companies for their time and contribution to the event:
- B.E.P.
- Cartwright Group Limited
- Kratos Analytical
- Nexperia
- Swizzels Matlow
- Whitecroft Lighting Limited
- Wood Group (Formerly AMEC)
Visitors were also offered an informative tour of the SETA Training Centre, met tutors and current apprentices, and saw first hand how different and unique the process and the experience of becoming a skilled, qualified engineer really is. They could compare traditional classroom teaching models with SETA’s unique combination of hands-on experience and training.
Since Apprenticeships are paid vacancies, the opportunity to start earning a good salary while still training and gaining your qualifications was a big draw for young people and parents alike.
We are also pleased to note, that our continuous campaign to attract more female students to this traditionally male-dominated field is paying off and more and more young women are interested in starting their career in engineering with an apprenticeship.
During the day, we also held organised group tours for interested schools with groups of Year 10 pupils and their teachers:
Westhill High School, Stalybridge
Cheadle Hulme High School, Year 10 engineering group.
Manchester Enterprise Academy, Wythenshawe
We also had Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue service exhibiting as they deal with our ‘SAFE DRIVE, STAY ALIVE’ Campaign, which we do as part of our induction week as a part of safeguarding for our Apprentices.
I’d just like to take this opportunity to thank you, your colleagues and the young apprentices for a wonderful day last week at SETA’s open day.
You all gave my son, an eye-opening experience. He has found a meaningful direction for his life. Instead of mum trying to motivate her son, it is now him asking the questions, making the requests and telling me that he wants to join SETA in September.
Initially, he was reluctant to attend the open day, but as soon as you opened the door to the workshop, his whole body language changed; it was nothing like he thought it would be and he became keen and interested.
I met you at the Apprenticeship Show in Manchester Central and your training academy stood out to me as a fantastic practical and applied starting point for my son who has always been into logic, building things, seeing what’s inside, seeing how it works, drawing / designing, making things, fixing things, experimenting.
To me, right from the start, SETA seemed perfect for him and now that he wants to apply to join you in September, I feel very excited that he has realised his own interest.