Semta backs the launch of new Environmental Science
Competition
Semta, the sector skills council for science,
engineering and manufacturing technologies is backing a new
environmental science competition, as part of the global
WorldSkills London 2011 event, which is being hosted in the
UK.
The competition is a cross-sector initiative
by Semta, Lantra and Cogent in partnership with the British
Geological Survey, unionlearn and Prospect.
WorldSkills is the biggest global skills
competition and takes place every two years. 51 member countries
take part and compete in 40 different vocational skills, including
beauty therapy, web design, cabinet making, floristry and
engineering.
Within environmental science, energy emerged
as the key focus of the competition. Employers and educational
institutions are being asked to consider the challenging issues
facing the environment, particularly climate change and the impact
this will have on global energy resources.
Competitors will work in small teams planning
an energy strategy for a fictional island from a choice of nine
potential energy sources. The pilot project will have teams
consisting of young people, who may be apprentices or studying at
school, college or in the workplace.
They will be working towards taking part in an
international demonstration competition in London 2011, showcasing
the STEM skills of the UK. The UK team will be competing for gold
and silver and bronze medals against contestants from at least five
other countries.
The launch event for the environmental science
competition was held at Congress House, London. The competition was
launched with keynote speeches from Baroness Delyth Morgan,
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Intellectual Property
and Quality – Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills
(DCFS); Simon Bartley, Chief Executive of UK Skills - the body
responsible for delivering WorldSkills UK 2011 - and Frances
O’Grady, TUC Deputy General Secretary.
Among those also taking part in the launch
were Lynn Tomkins, Director of UK Operations, Semta; Sue
Ferns, Head of Research and Specialist Services at Prospect, the
TUC-affiliated union representing specialist, professional and
managerial staff in the public and private sectors; and Jacqui
Henderson, Board Member of UK Skills.
Lynn Tomkins said:
“Science and STEM (Science, Technology,
Engineering & Mathematics) skills are increasingly important to
the UK economy, if we are to remain innovative and competitive. The
fast pace of modern technology means that we need greater
‘scientific literacy’ as a nation, and the WorldSkills UK event is
an ideal opportunity to promote awareness of career opportunities
in science to young people, and an interest in science generally,
more widely.”
The launch event was also attended by Jo
O’Brien who has recently been appointed as Semta’s Competitions
Co-ordinator, a reflection of how important Semta considers events
such as WorldSkills UK 2011. The improvement of Skills and training
in the UK is now considered an economic priority, after the
findings of the 2006 Leitch Review.
A launch of the competition in Scotland will
also took place in Scotland on 1st September, which was
supported by Maureen Watt, MSP and Grahame Smith, General Secretary
of the Scottish Trade Union Congress (STUC).
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For further information please contact either James Cameron or
Fin Robertson at Consolidated on 020 7781 2381 or 07742 090218 (out
of office hours). Email: jamesc@consol.co.uk
/ findlayr@consol.co.uk
Notes to Editors
Semta: http://www.semta.org.uk/
Semta is the employer-led skills council for
Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies in the
UK. The sectors it represents are: Aerospace,
Automotive, Bioscience, Electrical, Electronics, Maintenance,
Marine, Mathematics, Mechanical, Metals and Engineered Metal
Products and Science. Its role is to the raise skills levels
and competitiveness in the 76,000 companies and 1.9 million-strong
workforce that make up these sectors.
WorldSkills London 2011: http://www.worldskillslondon2011.com/
In May 2006, the UK won the bid to host the 41st WorldSkills
Competition in London between 6th - 9th October, 2011. The bidding
process lasted eight months and finished with a formal presentation
to the WorldSkills General Assembly in Melbourne. The U.K. competed
against Australia, France and Sweden to host the competition. The
WorldSkills London 2011 Competition will take place at
ExCeL
exhibition and conference centre in London in October
2011.
The WorldSkills Competition is the biggest skills competition in
the world and is held every two years in one of its member
countries. Its sets world class standards in over 40 skill
categories ranging from cabinet making to web design. Over four
days of tough competition, young people drawn from 51 member
nations test themselves against tough international standards.
The ultimate prizes are gold, silver and bronze medals.
Medallions of Excellence are also awarded to those young people who
achieve or exceed the World Class score of 500 points out of a
maximum of 600 across the four days of competition. The next
WorldSkills Competition takes place from 1-6 September 2009 in
Calgary, Canada.