Twenty-five pupils from the John Whitgift Academy in Grimsby visited the construction site for Race Bank offshore wind farm on 5 July to learn more about offshore wind and the variety of jobs available in the industry.
The visit was organised as part of DONG Energy’s three-year partnership with charity Teach First, which aims to address educational inequalities in the Grimsby, Hull and Liverpool, particularly focusing on increasing the number of teachers of STEM subjects placed in these areas.
Race Bank offshore wind farm is under construction by DONG Energy 17.4km off the Lincolnshire Coast and when operational in 2018 will have a capacity of 573MW.
The group of 14 – 16 year olds heard about the growing offshore wind industry and what goes into building an offshore wind farm, before taking a tour of the site to see what the workplace is like.
The pupils also learned about the different jobs that exist in the industry including DONG Energy’s new apprentice scheme, launched earlier this month, which offers apprenticeship places in Grimsby.
They finished with a session delivered by Teach First, with the assistance of DONG Energy volunteers, on transferable skills and CV-writing, with the aim of helping pupils prepare for the workplace.
Last year DONG Energy announced plans to build a GBP multi-million operations hub in Grimsby to serve its existing and future wind farms in the area. The company has committed to investing around GBP 6 billion in the region by 2019.
The relationship with John Whitgift Academy will continue into the summer when two lucky pupils will be given the opportunity to undertake work experience with the offshore wind developer, spending a week at the construction site followed by a week at the Marine and Helicopter Coordination Centre.
The two-week placements will take place in August and give the chosen applicants an insight into possible roles within the industry, and a bit of experience should they choose to progress further.