Students, staff, and local employers gathered together in The Yarrow for EKC Broadstairs College’s first Youth Leadership Summit on Tuesday 18 November.
The event, organized by two T Level Business Management and Administration students, along with Industry Liaison Officer, Said Elakil, hosted employers from twelve companies: SACO AEI Polymers UK, Port of Ramsgate, Chartwell House, Ingersoll Rand, Dreamland, Caremark, PSM Recruitment, WWMartin, East Kent Chambers of Commerce, Thanet District Council, Faithmarriott, Dynamix Tech Solutions.
They day began with an hour’s time for students and employers to network and greet each other before diving into a collaborative task, making a collage with the topic: “When students and employers work in partnership.”
“I feel like the benefit of the task was to get a feel about how young people are and how employers are. It gives them a relaxed environment to get to know and talk to each group. Plus, it’s a bit of fun,” said Ash, Level 2 Media student.
“I’m particularly interested in speaking to an employer that started their own business from the ground up. I’m looking forward to starting my own business again, so I’d like to hear what they have to say,” he said.
After presenting their mood board collages, attendees moved to the Michael Wright Auditorium for a talk from Debbie, owner of Faithmarriott.
“It’s great coming to events like this. I sometimes hear companies complaining about young people today; they haven’t got the skills, they’re just playing with mobile phones. If they came to an event like this at EKC Broadstairs College, they’d see exactly the opposite. As I look around at some of the amazing creative ideas, I can see we need to get these young people into our businesses,” said David Foley, Chief Executive at Thanet and East Kent Chambers of Commerce.
Paul Owen, Principal of EKC Broadstairs College, said of the event: “Through engaging with employers and getting that experience, students can develop and learn in ways that we are unable to teach them in the classroom. Today is a fantastic opportunity to showcase the skillsets they have in their different sectors.”
If you are interested in hosting our students for a work placement or apprenticeship, please get in touch with us to learn more.
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