Visiting Egger to see how the apprentice training programme is going

It was great to revisit Egger several years on from when Michael Egger and I opened the apprentice academy. It is clearly going really well and providing priceless training to the local engineers and various other specialists that are needed to keep Hexham's key employer up and running. There is no doubt that all the local apprentices I met were really enthusiastic about working there. A really uplifting visit. By way of flashback here is the announcement and opening many years ago:
http://guyopperman.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/egger-engineering-academy-another-step.html

Engineering in the North East - we need to be smarter and more competitive than everyone else

Two weeks I went to Global Manufacturing Supplies, an engineering firm based in Prudhoe.

http://www.gms-uk.com/

It was a fascinating visit and I learnt a lot.

As an MP I visit a lot of businesses, both locally here in Tynedale but also across the wider North East and the country as a whole. I meet everything from one man [or woman] bands to huge employers like Egger, OGN, SCA and Nissan. The really interesting businesses, however, are the ones in the middle: these are the ones that we need to thrive and survive. These are the SMEs that really drive our economy, and none more so than in the North East.  

In addition, on a regular basis I meet with the North East Chamber of Commerce, the Local Enterprise Partnership and other support organisations to find out what they want from the Chancellor, and how I as a local MP can help. I hold skills fairs, and jobs fairs like the one last week to do my bit and get young and old further and better employment: http://guyopperman.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/jobs-fair-today-10-4pm-at-beaumont-in.html

I come from an engineering background. My family were engineers and gear manufacturers who started in a single room London basement: http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Opperman_Gears  

Albeit, I accept that I am no engineer, the business of engineering and manufacturing - and the challenges of doing this in the global age - fascinate me. More importantly in the North East these types of businesses create and sustain a key part of our economy.

I can talk the talk that

- UK employment numbers are the best in Europe,

- that our unemployment is half that of France and our Euro competitors,

- that youth unemployment is down

- that apprenticeships locally have doubled

- and that FE providers like Kirkley Hall have seen their numbers go from 300 to 900  

But to misquote Jane Austen it is a truth universally acknowledged by some manufacturers that cheap imports are making it tough to compete in the global market. So how can we survive in a global world? To an extent this is right - if a core commodity is cheaper to produce elsewhere the customer tends to buy from the cheaper producer. Twas ever thus. But where we in the UK, and in Tynedale, are getting clever is our approach to competitiveness, and innovation.  The defining characteristic of GMS is their ability to provide competitive solutions to established manufacturing companies. This is a classic example of British innovation tackling a traditional industry and producing a company that is innovative and radical. It also employs over 25people in Prudhoe, supports a lot of good local causes as part of its commitment to the local area, and makes a profit. I am pictured with Owen and Andrew outside the premises. An interesting morning.

 

Egger Apprentice Open Day this Thursday 3.30-6.30: go along if you want to become an engineer

https://bdaily.co.uk/industrials/19-03-2015/mp-backs-apprenticeship-drive

Great to get behind Egger's drive for more women in business

http://www.thejournal.co.uk/business/business-news/north-east-firm-egger-launches-8005491

The return of real Apprenticeships - up in every part of the NE

I am pleased there has been a substantial rise in the numbers of apprenticeships being offered to young people in the North East.

I am passionate about apprenticeships and vocational education. They are important to help our young people find the jobs they deserve and for improving the skills of our Nation’s workforce. As such, I like many other small businesses, employ an apprentice, Jade, who has been with us in our Hexham office since 2011 and is an important and valued member of our team.

In Hexham we have seen a huge rise in the numbers of apprenticeships which is great news for young people starting out in the working world and businesses alike. Specifically there has been a 62.8% rise in the number of apprenticeship starts in Hexham from 2009/10 to 2012/13 [the last full year for stats].
This is not a pattern exclusive to Hexham, however:
- throughout the North East this pattern of success is repeated with increases in apprenticeship starts ranging all the way up to 143.1%. Overall the North East is the country's second biggest percentage increase in apprenticeship starts; at the national level we have already delivered 1.8 million new apprenticeships since 2010.
The full chart is here:
Parliamentary Constituency and % increase on apprenticeship starts from 2009/10 (Labour) to 2012/13 (Last full year under Coalition)

Berwick upon Tweed 98.0
Bishop Auckland 143.1
Blaydon 89.8
Blyth Valley 107.6
City of Durham 120.0
Darlington 132.3
Easington 111.1
Gateshead 73.5
Hartlepool 85.1
Hexham 62.8
Houghton and Sunderland South 63.4
Jarrow 73.0
Middlesbrough 95.6
Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland 90.6
Newcastle upon Tyne Central 80.8
Newcastle upon Tyne East 82.4
Newcastle upon Tyne North 67.7
North Durham 104.6
North Tyneside 83.1
North West Durham 121.0
Redcar 121.2
Sedgefield 115.8
South Shields 86.4
Stockton North 109.0
Stockton South 120.0
Sunderland Central 60.0
Tynemouth 86.4
Wansbeck 111.1
Washington and Sunderland West 71.6

I congratulate all who were involved in this increase and encourage those employers who have yet to hire one of our fabulous young people to do so. You won’t regret it!

Egger Engineering Academy - another step in the skills revolution

There is so much that is happening on skills, apprenticeships and training in the North East at the moment. Ten days ago I helped Michael Egger open his new Academy in Hexham. It is incredible and full of locals people learning key skills in their home town. I add this on to the great work of Northumberland College, the doubling in apprentice numbers locally, and the many chances being created by local businesses and I see local jobs being created in niche engineering and specialist skills that will provide the growth we need. I met several of the lads who are in their early stages of the apprenticeships and they were all loving it.
Full story here: http://www.hexhamcourant.co.uk/news/egger-unveils-4m-investment-at-hexham-site-1.1092925