Stroud MP Neil Carmichael's weekly column: University Technical Colleges

AS manufacturing and engineering continues to perform extremely well – growing at the rate of 1.3 per cent per quarter – it is obviously right to focus on the employment opportunities it brings.

In the Stroud Valleys and Vale, 25 per cent of all jobs are in the sector and many of the new employment positions have been in this sector.

As Stroud Job Centre Plus has noted: “Stroud is a huge success story, especially for youth employment”, and it has celebrated the work experience programmes run by local businesses and local colleges. Manufacturing is particularly important in this respect, not least because wages are creeping up thus helping to tackle the effects of inflation.

In fact, manufacturing is so promising in terms of growth, there is an increasing shortage of many skills, especially in virtually all engineering disciplines. This is one reason why the Festival of Manufacturing and Engineering – “Festomane” – is so important.

It takes place during week beginning Monday November 24 with an exhibition in Stroud Leisure Centre. A key aim of Festomane is to link schools, colleges and businesses in order to bring engineering as a career to the attention of young people.

Next, we need a University Technical College (UTC) for 14 to 18 year olds to study engineering alongside the traditional schools subjects. A superb example of a UTC can be found in Sheffield where almost 600 pupils study for GCSEs and engineering qualifications. Pupils are obviously interested, motivated and stimulated by the lessons and first class teaching.

The striking thing about this and other UTCs is their popularity not only with pupils but also businesses. With business leaders actually in the college, giving advice on the curriculum to ensure it is relevant and up to date and providing equipment likely to be found in design centres and factories, there is a perfect interface between learning and job opportunities.

With excellent facilities becoming available in Berkeley with a centre already planned for energy and engineering training, a new UTC, specialising in advanced manufacturing, would have perfect synergy with our aspirations to further develop manufacturing in the Stroud Valleys and Vale. Let’s do it.