Diploma for 14 to 19-year-olds
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2nd Feb 2010
Food industry expert supports new qualification
A senior member of the food and drink industry’s leading trade association has backed a new qualification, which prepares teenagers for the world of work.
Esher-based Angela Coleshill, director of competitiveness of the Food and Drink Federation (FDF), has 
signed up as an employer champion for the Diploma in Manufacturing and Product Design (MPD), which launched in schools and colleges across England last autumn.
signed up as an employer champion for the Diploma in Manufacturing and Product Design (MPD), which launched in schools and colleges across England last autumn. One of the government’s new qualifications for 14 to 19 year olds, the Diploma in MPD has been developed to equip young people with the skills and knowledge needed to pursue a career in industry, and is taught from a curriculum designed in partnership with manufacturing and product design employers.
As an employer champion, Angela is tasked with raising awareness of the qualification and encouraging more companies to become involved in its delivery. This is a job both Angela and the FDF have been happy to tackle since this Diploma was first announced.
“Now the Diploma in MPD has launched we are urging companies to support the course by offering work experience for students, visiting schools to give presentations and setting work-relevant projects.
“Many of our members already have strong links with schools and universities and want to become more proactive in educating future generations about the range of interesting, challenging and rewarding careers available within food and drink. The major benefit to them is that they are helping to nurture a new generation of workers who will understand the industry and the issues it faces.”
The Diploma in MPD sits alongside traditional academic qualifications, and gives students the opportunity to divide their time between classroom, college and the workplace. It is being delivered by consortia, or approved partnerships of local schools, colleges and employers. Employer involvement in delivery can vary from providing work experience or hosting site visits, to keeping teachers up-to-date with sector developments and setting project topics based on real manufacturing scenarios.
The Food and Drink Federation works on behalf of the UK food and drink industry, the largest manufacturing sector in the country – employing 460,000 people and accounting for 15 per cent of the UK’s total manufacturing sector by value. The organisation represents manufacturers of all sizes, as well as trade associations for specific sectors of the industry, in communicating with government, regulators and consumers on issues such as food safety and the environmental impact of food production.
Angela added: “We think it is vitally important that manufacturing is on the map as a career option. Previously young people have overlooked manufacturing and we want them to learn about the innovative and creative careers available. From food scientists who create low-fat versions of our favourite foods to the marketing gurus who help sell their advantages to consumers, food manufacturing involves a massive variety of different jobs.
“Food and drink companies are faced with an aging workforce and as a consequence have identified the need to recruit 137,000 people between 2007 and 2017, with many of them in skilled and technical roles, as well as management positions.
“The only way we can ensure the food and drink industry continues to thrive in the UK is by backing qualifications like the Diploma in MPD, which give us the opportunity to provide young people with first-hand experience of the workplace and the careers available to them.”
For more information, visit the website for the Diploma in Manufacturing and Product Design, at http://www.manufacturingdiploma.co.uk.
Ends
Issued on behalf of the Manufacturing Diploma Development Partnership, by Nexnet PR, Leeds, www.nexnet.co.uk. For further information call Nexnet on 0113 247 0029 or email paul.newham@nexnet.co.uk .
