West Suffolk College and West Suffolk Council collaborate to create careers event in Bury St Edmunds for primary schools
Hundreds of children from 12 educational establishments took part in one of the only careers events for primary schools in the country.
The Skills Escalator Days, timed to coincide with the West Suffolk Business Festival, of which the Bury Free Press is a partner, saw a variety of industries create interactive sessions that gave an insight into a range of different job opportunities.
The event, which took place over two days at West Suffolk College in Bury St Edmunds on Monday and Tuesday, saw 350 youngsters aged between four and eight get a window into the world of employment - from augmented reality to emergency services.
It was organised by the college in partnership with West Suffolk Council and was supported by a range of organisations that included BT, Morgan Sindall Construction, the RAF, Suffolk Constabulary, Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service, Urban XR and others.
In addition to this, sessions took place at Edmunds, the college restaurant, as part of a campaign called Choose Hospitality, which aims to inspire more young people to consider careers in pubs, hotels and restaurants.
The event encompassed BUILDtastic - a West Suffolk College collaboration with the New Anglia LEP (Local Enterprise Partnership) Building Growth Fund - to shine a light on careers in construction.
Debbie Coomes, assistant principal at West Suffolk College, said: “BUILDtastic was delighted to join forces with the Skills Escalator Days by networking and linking with our fabulous partners and sponsors in the construction industry.
"This two-day event opened the youngsters' eyes and gave them a taste of what they might like to do as their chosen pathway.”
Skills Escalator Days are the brainchild of Victoria Fiebelkorn, Skills Escalator lead from West Suffolk College.
She said: “The Skills Escalator is all about creating a highly-capable and prepared future workforce to support our local economy – this event provides practical career-related learning; the effect of this on the decisions, aspirations and attitudes of primary-aged children has been widely documented.
“To the best of my knowledge Skills Escalator Days are the only event based around careers for this age group in the country.”
Councillor Susan Glossop, cabinet member for growth at West Suffolk Council, said: “After seeing how well the children responded to the first Skills Escalator Days earlier this year in Haverhill, I am delighted to see the event come to Bury St Edmunds so more children can reap the benefit.
"Access to skills is a priority for the council and by working together with partners to deliver these events enables us to engage young children with local employers and get them thinking about their future.”
Zoe Tolliday, a teaching assistant from Exning Primary School, near Newmarket, who participated in the event, said: “It’s been lovely and the children were able to explore career options in a fun and interactive way.
"It’s given them lots of ideas and they have asked lots of questions. It’s not making them choose - it gives them more insight in to what each job entails.”
Six-year-old Genevieve, from Exning Primary, said: “My favourite session was about virtual reality. It was so cool. I loved it. I want to be a singer when I get older. If I don’t become a singer I want to be a master chef.”
Six-year-old Ethan, also from Exning Primary, said: “Meeting the police was my favourite thing. You got to do your own fingerprints and sit in the back of a car. I want to be a police officer when I get older. My aunty is a police officer. If I don’t do that, I’ll be a helicopter pilot. It’s been amazing.”
West Suffolk College students also supported each group at this event to give them additional work experiences.
Hattie Meikle, 16, from Cavendish, studies health and social care. Hattie said: “Our teacher mentioned it to us and I have an interest in working with children in the future. I’ve found it enjoyable. It’s an interesting concept for the younger children to learn about different careers.”
The Skills Escalator Days will be moving on to other parts of the region throughout the 2022/23 academic year with future sessions planned in Haverhill, Ipswich and Sudbury.
