Member Article

Employment Minister beat manufacturing drum at Britvic

Employment Minister Norman Lamb has visited Norwich based Britvic Soft Drinks, to drum up enthusiasm for manufacturing among young people.

The Minister was at Carrow Works in Norwich where he joined students who were learning more about modern manufacturing as part of the Government’s See Inside Manufacturing programme.

Mr Lamb said: “It’s sometimes easy to forget the advanced manufacturing processes and skills needed to create the many products we use every single day, like soft drinks.

“Behind the scenes there are creative individuals working in modern workplaces, which is what we’re trying to show to people through See Inside Manufacturing.

“Building on last year’s automotive pilot, we have aerospace & defence and food & drink businesses taking part this year.

“Thanks to this we have our biggest ever opportunity to help change perceptions of manufacturing and give people a taste of what the industry is like today.

“I encourage as many people as possible to get involved and come along to one of the many events taking place like today at Britvic.

“The See Inside Manufacturing programme complements the work of our Make it in Great Britain campaign, which is challenging the perception that we don’t make anything in this country anymore.

“It will culminate in an exhibition at the Science Museum during the Olympic and Paralympic Games.”

The programme involves businesses from across the food and drink, aerospace and defence, and automotive sectors.

Over 100 events across June and July will see businesses opening their doors to young people, teachers and careers advisers.

Major names such as Nestle, Mars UK, Mini, Toyota UK, Bombardier and Rolls Royce are set to take part, showcasing some of their latest technologies.

Susan Turner, Head of Corporate Affairs at Britvic, said: “As part of our ongoing community investment, in partnership with the BSDA we host a series of professional development programme (PDP) days for teachers at our factories in Norwich, Beckton and Leeds.

“We also have Britvic Learning Zones at these sites, which is a specifically designed meeting room dedicated to facilitating learning and visits for students, teachers and NEETs.

“With our PDP sessions and Britvic Learning Zone both geared to providing community education and development, it offers the perfect backdrop for us to get involved with the Government’s See Inside Manufacturing programme this year.”

FDF Director General Melanie Leech said: “It’s great that Norman Lamb is seeing at first-hand how UK food and drink businesses are working with young people and teachers to get them interested in our sector.

“We know that to stay world-class and to deliver our shared vision with Government of 20% growth by 2020, we will need to attract the best talent and FDF is tackling this through our Taste Success – A Future in Foodcampaign and involvement in initiatives such as See Inside Manufacturing.

“Britvic’s Learning Zone and its enterprise and work related learning PDP sessions for teachers are great examples of how companies are both supporting schools and engaging the next generation in food and drink manufacturing.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Tom Keighley .