Local teachers were invited to Grimsby town centre on Wednesday 2nd July for a unique opportunity to explore the ongoing regeneration projects and connect education with real-world career pathways.
Organised as part of the Teacher Encounters initiative, the event was delivered by North East Lincolnshire Council’s Regeneration and Economy team in partnership with the Greater Lincolnshire Careers Hub. The aim was to bridge the gap between education and employment by equipping teachers with up-to-date knowledge of local career opportunities, both within the Council and across the borough.
Teachers from a range of local schools and colleges joined, from the Grimsby Institute, Orchard School, Phoenix Park Academy and Healing Primary Academy.
The day began with a guided tour of Grimsby town centre, where teachers saw first-hand the progress of key regeneration projects, highlighting the Council’s commitment to economic growth, placemaking, and job creation through ongoing investments. To help teachers understand how they could improve students’ employability, teachers also met with various people, including graduates and apprentices working in the Council. These conversations offered valuable insight into the diverse career pathways available, and the skills needed to succeed.
Melanie Nurse, Assistant Principal and Trust Employability Lead at Healing Primary Academy with the Harbour Learning Trust, spoke about her experience: “I really recommend any future teacher encounters – they provide a link between classroom learning and the real world. The day gave me an opportunity to discover more about the regeneration in our local area, through in-depth talks about the projects and visits to sites across the town centre.
“It gave us an insight into the many job roles available for our young people and how we, as educators, could incorporate the regeneration of the area into curriculum subjects, and integrate labour market and careers education into our curriculum.”
Vicky Booth, North East Lincolnshire’s Enterprise Coordinator at the Greater Lincolnshire Careers Hub, added: “The teacher encounter provided a fantastic insight into the vast range of career opportunities within the Council and the local economy. During the tour, it was evident that significant efforts have been made to upgrade the town, and we also learned about exciting future.
“This provided several opportunities where teachers could update their pupils on local labour market information with strong links mapped across a whole array of curriculum topics. There’s a lot to look forward to!
North East Lincolnshire Council continues to support local schools and colleges by offering opportunities to explore the area’s regeneration, rich heritage, and growing skills and training landscape. Through initiatives like Teacher Encounters and site visits – including upcoming sessions at the Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre – the Council is helping empower young people to see a future for themselves in their local community.
Councillor Philip Jackson, Leader and Portfolio Holder for Economy, Regeneration, Devolution and Skills at North East Lincolnshire Council, spoke about the importance of days like this for local people: “Across the wider North East Lincolnshire economy, there are many new, exciting, well-paid jobs being created in the offshore wind and renewables sector, in ports and logistics, the chemical and petrochemical sectors and our very important seafood processing sector, where major innovations are taking place. We need to keep getting the message over to our young people, and by giving teachers a deeper understanding we’re helping to ensure their students are better informed and inspired to build their futures right here in our borough.
“There are many routes into these new jobs, including an increasing number of apprenticeships. There is no need for young people to leave the area to find jobs or go to university; the job and learning opportunities are here in North East Lincolnshire.”
For more information on how local schools or colleges can work with North East Lincolnshire Council, please email [email protected].
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