“I do think there could be more training for our children.”
“The current situation as an opportunity for a complete overhaul of how companies hire and develop staff.”
“Almost one-third of the UK’s major environmental research organisations are based in the South West”
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One of the main demands from young people, when asked what they’d like the Sid Valley Neighbourhood Plan to include, was ‘interesting jobs’:
What interesting jobs are needed to keep young people in the Sid Valley?
Initial responses indicate that young people are seeking ‘interesting jobs’ to keep them in the Sid Valley and the Neighbourhood Plan steering group is now asking ‘what would make an interesting job?’…
What interesting jobs are needed to keep young people in the Sid Valley? | Sidmouth Herald
Neighbourhood Plans being produced in East Devon – Sidmouth (made) – East Devon
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So, what are the options?
To look at just a couple…
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HOSPITALITY:
Certainly the last year has made us rethink about the tourist industry:
Looking to a new kind of tourism after the corornavirus – Vision Group for Sidmouth
And one of those rethinks has been that the industry isn’t actually that attractive to go into:
Recruitment crisis in the hospitality industry – Vision Group for Sidmouth
Which means that the industry is going to have to make themselves more of an ‘interesting’ career option:
Employers Need To Take Long View Of The Current Skills Shortages
One aspect — which many employers may have failed to anticipate — is that the coronavirus has caused people to reappraise their lives. As Kelly puts it, “employees want more opportunity, more security. They are making demands.” She sees the current situation as an opportunity for a complete overhaul of how companies hire and develop staff. “It’s not good enough to have ad hoc training and development,” she says. “We need professional standards. Skills have got to be recognised and valued.” Better employers will realize that and will treat workers with greater consideration and enjoy the rewards, she says. But others, less enlightened, may not do so well. There is a generation of employees — perhaps emboldened by Uber drivers gaining greater rights — kicking back against what many see as the exploitation of zero-hours contracts and other aspects of the “gig economy.”
The pendulum could be swinging. And only the most short-sighted employers should think that paying their workers a little bit more or giving them the odd perk will halt its progress.
Employers Need To Take Long View Of The Current Skills Shortages
Recruitment crisis ratchets up – Vision Group for Sidmouth
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MEDICINE:
Exeter has a relatively new medical school:
College of Medicine and Health | College of Medicine and Health | University of Exeter
What’s it Really Like To Study Medicine at Exeter Medical School? – Life of a Medic
But we need more places for doctors and nurses to train – as pointed out by Patrick Cockburn in the weekend i-newspaper:
Britain is a parasite on poor countries by poaching their doctors and nurses | The Independent
And one of the demands before the Brexit vote was for more such training in the UK – rather than having to rely on migrant medics.
As one interviewee said to David Aaronvitch, immediately after the vote, “I do think there could be more training for our children.” (at 2mins 10):
BBC Radio 4 – The Briefing Room, Why Did People Vote Leave?
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RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT:
As the University of Exeter notes, “Almost one-third of the UK’s major environmental research organisations are based in the South West”:
Green Futures: Exeter @ G7 in Cornwall – Vision Group for Sidmouth
Plymouth is part of that pioneering research:
And Exeter has the Met Office – with several contacts here in the Sid Valley:
Climate Change: So, What Do We Do? – Vision Group for Sidmouth
Climate change and biodiversity in the South West – Vision Group for Sidmouth
Specifically, though, the government has been urged to do its bit, as reported over the weekend:
Report says South West needs ‘levelling up’ as much as ‘red wall’ north
Pennon, the South West’s biggest employer and parent company of South West Water, has written a document on behalf of the Great South West economic task force calling for the region not to be overlooked in the Government’s plans. The report demands a “green jobs boom” to stop the brain drain of talented young people leaving the region.
The report, Levelling Up the Great South West: A G7 Legacy, analyses every parliamentary constituency in Devon and Cornwall and says they deserve as much political attention as those in the electoral battleground of the so-called “red wall” in the North of England and Midlands…
The new figures point to some of the biggest economic challenges facing England’s two most south-westerly counties. Yet the report says that with the right investment and support the Great South West has huge potential too.
The combination of the natural environment and environmental science specialisms in the region means Devon, Cornwall and the wider South West could set its sights on becoming Britain’s greenest regional economy, turning global concerns over sustainability into locally-led economic growth.
Report says South West needs ‘levelling up’ as much as ‘red wall’ north – Business Live
Mining lithium in Cornwall – Vision Group for Sidmouth
And business is also doing its bit, as these news stories from the last couple of days show:
NHS genetics team is latest new arrival at growing Plymouth Science Park – Business Live
Global semiconductor firm sets up UK R&D base in Plymouth – Business Live
South West shrugs off impact of Covid-19 to attract more overseas investment | SWINDON BUSINESS NEWS
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WORKING FROM HOME:
Finally, there is the promise of being able to do something ‘interesting’ here in Devon without having to emigrate elsewhere – as covered extensively on these pages:
The working from home revolution – Vision Group for Sidmouth
Working from home: reviving town life – Vision Group for Sidmouth
Working from home: a Sidmouth perspective – Vision Group for Sidmouth
And today’s papers are saying this will become a permanent feature:
Working from home to stay in plan for ‘living with Covid’ – Liverpool Echo
With ‘work hubs’ popping up everywhere to help:
New work hubs for Great Torrington, Newton Abbot, and Teignmouth – Devon Live
Sidmouth has its own: Covid made this hub unviable and it, sadly, closed in 2022
The Lighthouse Sidmouth – Sidmouth’s Co-Working Space
The Lighthouse Sidmouth CIC – Devon Work Hubs
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logo: Sidmouth Science Festival: ‘clean growth’