GE injects £2.5m into UK young engineers academy
The multinational power and energy company is set to expand its Next Engineers programme around the world in the next decade
US energy and engineering conglomerate General Electric (GE) plans to invest £2.5m in a UK branch of its Next Engineers programme, the company announced yesterday.
The investment will go towards launching its Next Engineers educational programme in Staffordshire in the UK with the aim of improving the diversity of people entering the engineering profession and supporting the roll out of clean technologies.
Next Engineers is a programme initiated by the GE Foundation, a charitable organisation funded by GE, that offers young people aged 13-18 an introduction to engineering and grants to pursue engineering at higher level education.
The Foundation announced it is partnering with MyKindaFuture, a UK-based HR tech company helping underrepresented groups get into work, to bring Next Engineers to the UK and aims to help over 3,500 students in Staffordshire, where GE operates three sites that design, develop, and service products for the power and renewable energy industries.
“Our growing global economy will require more engineers to solve society’s most pressing challenges – from clean energy to quality healthcare and more sustainable flight,” said Kevin O’Neill, president and CEO of GE UK. “Next Engineers will provide a platform for Staffordshire’s young people from different backgrounds to bring their unique perspectives to engineering and help address these important issues, enthusing and introducing them to the hands-on learning experiences they will need to pursue engineering careers.”
Next Engineers runs three programmes for different age groups, including one-hour introductory sessions for 13-14 year olds and a week-long engineering camp for 14-15 year olds in the summer holidays. For the oldest group, aged 15-18, Next Engineers offers a three-year out of school training programme to help prepare students for higher-education and will award funding to those who move on to take degrees or apprenticeships in engineering. Students can apply for the Academy via the Next Engineers website.
Commenting on the news, Theo Clarke MP for Stafford, said: “Having an initiative like Next Engineers coming to our community is fantastic for young people locally. We were already fortunate to have a top global employer like GE in the region, but local students now have the opportunity to explore viable engineering careers that they had previously thought were unattainable. It really is an amazing opportunity for our young people.”
The Staffordshire programme is part of a $100m investment to expand Next Engineers across 25 locations over the next decade. Programmes have so far been announced in Johannesburg, South Africa and Cincinnati and Greenville in the US.
