Delivered in collaboration with The Careers & Enterprise Company, teachers from secondary schools in the local area spent a day at Leonardo’s Yeovil site, the Home of British Helicopters. Their visit included learning about Leonardo and its helicopters division, and shadowing apprentices across a range of apprenticeship programmes spanning Transmissions Repair and Overhaul, Composites, Machining Mechanical and Electrical Engineering.
They also learned about Leonardo’s work in the local community, explored our early careers pathways and application processes, and gained an insight into future jobs requirements across a range of sectors in the UK and the skills needed for success. The day culminated in collaborative breakout sessions to discuss how learning could be applied in the classroom.
Leonardo’s Head of STEM in the UK, Michelle Strange, said: “Teacher engagement was one of our top STEM priorities for this year. Guided by the Careers & Enterprise Company’s Teacher Encounter Outcome Framework, we implemented this pilot programme to support teachers in understanding different career paths and in seeing how their subjects are applied in the world of work. The idea is that this builds teachers’ confidence in bringing the curriculum to life and advising students and parents on future career and education pathways to help inspire the next generation of engineers.”
Jenny Salmon from the Somerset Careers Hub said: “We received excellent feedback from everyone involved, with participants praising the openness of the Leonardo team, the quality of the experience and the opportunity to engage directly with apprentices and industry professionals. A huge thank you to Leonardo for hosting such an engaging and informative event.”
Rosie Storey from Strode College added: “I feel much better able to advise students about the opportunities available to them, and I had a very interesting day myself! I definitely wasn't expecting to fly a helicopter over the Isle of Arran and it was lovely to see the apprentices thriving and able to articulate their roles so well.”