Over the past six months I have been enthusiastically sharing with you the progress and growth of the Enterprise Adviser Network in the Coast to Capital area. We have seen 20 schools and colleges join the EA Network and over 25 senior business leaders volunteer to become the first Enterprise Advisers working with headteachers and principals in these schools and colleges.
I have recruited four Enterprise Coordinators to effectively up-scale the EAN from 20 schools to 100 schools by August 2017.
Beki Tonks supports the coastal West Sussex area which incorporates Shoreham across to Chichester and up to Midhurst. She is currently working with 12 centres in the area and has excellent support from The Body Shop International, GSK, URT Ltd, B & W Group Ltd, Southern Water, SAGA, WSP and Parafix Ltd.
Over the rest of the year, Beki will be meeting education leaders in the other schools and colleges in the area and bringing them into the Enterprise Adviser Network. New Enterprise Advisers will be recruited from local businesses to work strategically with the heads and principals of these centres. Their role will be to help embed careers and enterprise into the curriculum, and support the school in increasing the number of engagements that each young person has with business.
“This is a really exciting time to be involved in this programme” says Beki. “Not only do we have some excellent business support, but we also work collaboratively with great stakeholders to create innovative projects like our CPD twilight training sessions for teachers, regional careers fairs and Coastal STEMfest. I will be actively recruiting senior business people from the local community who are keen to use their business knowledge and strategic skills to support our schools and colleges.”
Brighton and Hove was part of the original roll-out of the EAN across the Coast to Capital area alongside Coastal West Sussex. There are already some fantastic activities happening which are being supported by our Enterprise Advisers from RiiG Ltd, Go Crimson, Work & Learning Opportunities, RARE Business, Inspiring Futures and John Young Media.
Faye Russell, Enterprise Coordinator for Brighton and Hove said: “I’m really looking forward to engaging with the schools in Brighton and Hove and working to connect them with the local business communities through the Enterprise Adviser Network. It’s a very exciting programme to be working on and I’m looking forward to working collaboratively with our fantastic partners and stakeholders.”
We are excited that 2017 will see the extension of our EAN into Croydon. Having worked in South London and Sussex, Pru Rowntree, Enterprise Coordinator for Croydon, is familiar with the range of opportunities and business contexts across the region. We will be working closely with our colleagues at Team London to ensure the embedding of the EAN in the borough’s schools and post-16 provision.
Pru has recently been working on completing a Labour Market Information resource for teachers and careers advisers in our schools and colleges, which can be used to connect the world of work directly to the subject lessons being taught in our classrooms, using local and regional employment data and industry sector profiles.
The most recent addition to this dynamic team of Enterprise Coordinators is Ali Golds. Ali knows what it takes to start your own business - she’s started and built companies in a variety of industries from bespoke furniture, through to media recruitment, marketing and enterprise education consultancy. She’s spent the last six years working with those who want to work for themselves, predominantly young people and women; coaching and mentoring them to achieve their goals.
A highly experienced business coach, specialising in business development as well as a passionate start-up advocate, Ali is often sought out for speaking and opinion piece writing opportunities. She has featured in The Big Issue, Vonage Home Business 100 report, and commented on topics on Channel 5 News. She’s worked with hundreds of startups, a wide range of educational institutions, organisations and enterprise societies, including City and Guilds, NACUE and AOSEC.
Ali was lead adviser to Lord Young on the ‘Enterprise for All’ review in June 2014, which recommended, amongst other things, the implementation of the Enterprise Advisers Network, which she is delighted to be working on, supporting schools and businesses in the Gatwick Diamond region, which include Crawley borough, Horsham and Mid Sussex Districts.
Ali is also author of the books ‘How To Be Your Own Boss As A Single Mum’ and ‘88 Ways To Make More Money In Your Business – Starting Today!’; and her new book ‘Mindset Matters’ will be published this year.
In addition, Ali is a mentor and Global Adviser for the Womenpreneur Initiative, which helps female founders in the MENA region, and is a newly appointed contributor to Empowered Magazine.
I’m thrilled to have been able to build a team of such high calibre to support the growth of this fantastic initiative. From February, I shall be taking up a new role at the Careers & Enterprise Company as the Regional Lead for the South East and supporting the EAN teams in Essex, Kent, Sussex, Surrey and South Hampshire to further expand the EA Network. I know I’m leaving the Coast to Capital EA Network in the most capable of hands! So my final call to action is: Businesses sometimes comment that they feel that local schools and colleges do not fully understand their workforce needs - joining the EAN is a perfect opportunity to get in front of young people who will be considering, and planning for, their careers, as well as working more closely with educators.
Join today and be at the forefront of careers and enterprise education for your future workforce!
