The Careers & Enterprise Company and STEM Learning join forces to inspire more young people into STEM careers

• New partnership will bring together Careers Hubs, employers and STEM Ambassadors to help more young people access STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) careers and workplace experiences.

• Collaboration will target gaps in opportunity linked to disadvantage, gender and geography

• Key aim to boost regional connectivity into local schools and colleges and strengthen access into STEM career pathways 

The Careers & Enterprise Company (CEC) and STEM Learning are joining forces in a new national partnership to help tackle skills shortages and widen access to careers in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM).

STEM skills are critical to the UK’s future workforce and economic growth, but employers continue to face significant shortages. Skills gaps across STEM are estimated to cost the UK economy £1.5 billion a year, while almost half (49%) of engineering and technology businesses report difficulties recruiting because of skills shortages.

At the same time, access to the opportunities that lead to STEM careers remains uneven.

Disadvantaged young people are 44% less likely to progress to Level 3 STEM qualifications after secondary school than their more affluent peers. Women also remain significantly underrepresented in engineering and technology, accounting for just 17% of the workforce.

A cohesive approach 

With Alan Milburn’s Young People and Work interim report outlining fragmentation across the skills system, this partnership brings together two established national networks: CEC’s place-based Careers Hub infrastructure and STEM Learning-led STEM Ambassadors programme. 

Milburn is also pushing for more and better-quality connections for young people in the workplace and CEC and STEM Learning’s partnership will call upon businesses to be part of Government’s new National Mission on Work Experience. 

The national partnership will also utilise its place-based infrastructure to help combat significant regional inequalities in access to STEM skills and opportunities, to ensure that young people from diverse backgrounds can access opportunities to find a career in STEM.

Data driven local impact

The partnership will combine data on STEM engagement, young people’s interests and work readiness to identify where support is most needed. 

By connecting local intelligence with STEM Learning’s network of 26,000-strong STEM Ambassadors and regional partners, employer support can be targeted more effectively at schools and young people. 

Ahead of Government’s proposed new 14-16 technical pathways reform, Careers Hubs and STEM Ambassadors will connect STEM outreach to local skills needs, supporting take-up of vocational and technical pathways in priority sectors. Collaboration will also ensure that diverse employers including SMEs are at the forefront of the national drive to connect pathways into education.

Baroness Nicky Morgan, Chair of The Careers & Enterprise Company, said:

“The Careers & Enterprise Company is delighted to be partnering with the brilliant efforts of STEM Learning.

Britain’s future prosperity depends on young people being able to see where their talents can take them and having genuine opportunities to experience the workplaces and careers shaping our economy. 

By connecting our network of 44 Careers Hubs together with the network of STEM Ambassadors, we can help schools and colleges connect many more young people with employers, role models and high-quality experiences, and help every young person take their best next step.”

Lord Jim Knight, Chair of STEM Learning, said:

“Talent is everywhere, but access to opportunity is not. Too many young people still struggle to see themselves in STEM or understand the different routes into rewarding STEM careers. This partnership gives us an opportunity to change that at scale. By combining local insight with the passion and expertise of STEM Ambassadors, we can target support where it will have the greatest impact and help a much broader and more diverse generation of young people discover that STEM is for them.”