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Closing the North East’s digital skills gap: Campus North, STEM and schools

Newcastle-based tech hub Campus North is widening its efforts to plug the region’s digital skills gap, expanding its Tech For Life programme to include a STEM focus.

The hub has brought education and digital experts together of late to kick start a programme of events and training to benefit teachers, pupils, businesses and the regional economy.

The STEM Teach Meet looks at how experts and educators can work together to make sure the next generation of young people have the right skills and knowledge to be able to take up future opportunities.

At a recent even,t Alison Shaw from the North East UTC spoke about the importance of giving young people the skills to take up the estimated 60,000 jobs there will be in science and tech over the next 10 years.

Christine Kemp Hall and Craig Nicholson from North Ormesby Primary Academy described how by incorporating digital skills throughout the curriculum they’ve taken their school from being rated by OFSTED as ‘requiring improvement’ to ‘outstanding’ in just two years.

Lyndsey Britton explained how Tech for Life is not just supporting young people with skills and events but has also launched training for teachers.

“Teachers from St Oswald’s C of E Primary School piloted our first courses in coding, computers and electronic skills. The courses are unique in being developed and delivered by industry experts.

“We’re now holding them every term and keeping the cost low to support as many teachers as we can across the North East.”

Tech for Life will also now facilitate regular STEM Teach Meets across the region, the next one is at North Ormesby Primary Academy on 13th March at 4.30pm

Lyndsey said: “We wanted to hold a STEM Teach Meet so that educators and industry could get together and discuss how we can help close the digital skills gap in the region.

“The event was really positive so we’re aiming to build a community of likeminded people with one simple aim: working together to ensure young people from all over the region and all backgrounds will be able to access jobs and careers in the future.”

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