Business leaders and the education sector in North Derbyshire are being urged to come together to address employability and skills in the area at a free conference next month.

With more than 14,000 students in North Derbyshire set to gain their GCSE and A Level qualifications over the next five years, the Chesterfield and North Derbyshire Employability and Skills Conference aims to strengthen links between education providers and local businesses to ensure school leavers are work ready.

Returning for a third year, the Chesterfield and North Derbyshire Employability and Skills Conference, will be held at Ringwood Hall Hotel & Spa from 8.00am – 10.30am on Wednesday 13 February 2019.

The conference is organised by Chesterfield Borough Council, Gail Widerman of Placing Futures, D2N2 Enterprise Advisor Network and Destination Chesterfield.

The conference is an opportunity for employers and education providers to develop solutions together that will ensure young people leaving education have both the skills employers in the area require and are also aware of the employment opportunities available to them.

One of the headline speakers at the event includes Brendan Kelly, Managing Director of Heathcotes Group, the industry-leading providers of residential care for adults which is headquartered in Chesterfield.

Brendan Kelly commented: “Bringing on talented and dedicated people through apprenticeships has been vital to Heathcotes’ success in what is currently a very challenging health and social care sector.  Working with our learning partners, Chesterfield College, we have developed a work-based learning programme which has been very successful in developing long-term careers in this region, so we welcomed the opportunity to speak at this conference to advocate the enormous value of apprenticeships for school leavers and businesses alike.”

Mr Kelly will also be joined by representatives from Capgemini, Brookfield School and St Marys Roman Catholic High School, who will be speaking at the event.

Councillor Terry Gilby, Chesterfield Borough Council’s cabinet member for economic growth, explained why the conference is so important to Chesterfield and North Derbyshire. He said: “One of the council’s priorities is to ensure that local people benefit from the economic growth that we are seeing in Chesterfield.

“We have to plan now for future opportunities like HS2 and some of the other large developments so that, when those jobs become available, local people are skilled and able to take advantage of them.

“People in well paid jobs get more life opportunities, which means their health and wellbeing tends to be better and they have more cash in their pocket. This means they can spend more in the local economy. In turn, this supports other jobs.”

Gail Widerman, Director of Placing Futures Ltd – an independent consultancy service based in Chesterfield which links vocational learning to schools and employers, said: “Research has shown if a young person has four or more encounters with people from the world of business from year 7 to 11, they are 86% less likely to leave school and fall into NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) and on average earn 15% more in their working lifetime. The more engagement students have with businesses while in school helps inform their aspirations and choices post education.  It also gives businesses the opportunity to inspire young people to look at careers in our local industries.”

Learning Unlimited’s brand new Apprenticeship Hub in the heart of Chesterfield College is now open.

The information hub – in the heart of the college on Infirmary Road in Chesterfield – will be open daily from 8:30am to 5pm Monday to Thursday and 8:30am to 4:30pm on Fridays, to give individuals the chance to get one to one advice and find out more about apprenticeships.

“We’re here to offer advice and guidance to anyone considering an apprenticeship,” said Learning Unlimited’s Operations Manager, Leah Shortt. “There are so many apprentice opportunities available at the moment and we’re here to make it easier for people to find the right job role for them and help them find the right route to their dream career.”

“Apprenticeships are a great way to get quality training and valuable work experience. Apprentices are employed, earn a wage and get the opportunity to study at the same time. All apprentices – no matter what their age, their role or level – gain real industry experience, benefit from on-the-job and off-the-job training and receive support throughout their apprenticeship.”

The hub is equipped with all the information needed about a wide variety of apprenticeship opportunities from engineering and construction, hairdressing and beauty to catering, business administration, IT and marketing. There’s the opportunity to pick up information about new opportunities and the different training available. The team will be on hand to offer support and guidance through the entire application process.

Leah added: “There’s no need to make an appointment. People are very welcome to just stop by and say hello. We’re a friendly bunch and we look forward to welcoming people to our new space and offering the advice and help that they may need.”

The annual quest to find the region’s most successful and inspirational businesswomen will end soon after Christmas.

The final deadline for nominations for the 2019 East Midlands Chamber (Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire) Enterprising Women Awards is Friday 4 January.

Winners will be announced at a glittering, ‘little black dress’ dinner on 8 March –International Women’s Day.

Eileen Richards, Founder of ER Recruitment, a member of the Chamber’s Board of Directors and one of the Co-Chairs of Enterprising Women, said: “If any enterprising women have time over the Christmas break – between balancing work and family through the holidays – then it would be an ideal time to nominate themselves or someone else for an award.”

“Enterprising Women is all about finding and recognising women who make a serious contribution to the regional economy, often successfully balancing work, keeping home and motherhood but not always being acknowledged for what they achieve.”

There are seven awards to be won this year: Business Woman of the Year, Social Commitment, Apprentice of the Year, Female Employee of the Year, Female Entrepreneur of the Year, Team of the Year and Small Business of the Year.

Co-Chair Jean Mountain, a Past President at East Midlands Chamber, said: “By highlighting their contribution and telling their stories, hopefully we can inspire other women to pursue their business dream, which is why I would urge as many people as possible to send in nominations for the 2019 awards.”

Chamber membership is a requirement for nominees, however anyone can nominate. For more information click here. For an application pack email ew@emc-dnl.co.uk or call the Chamber’s events team on 0333 320 0333 and select ‘option 2’ when prompted.