The North East STEM Foundation (NESF) has raised more than £60,000 to support the region’s young people into STEM education.
A fundraising dinner was held at South Durham University Technical College, bringing together supporters to recognise the foundation’s mission to remove financial barriers preventing young people from pursuing education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Around 160 people from businesses including Plastic Furniture Company, Teescraft Engineering Group, Dyer Engineering Ltd, North Tees Ltd, Steel Benders 海角视频 Ltd, and Business Durham attended.
The NESF will use the money to to inspire young people to pursue careers in STEM through a number of outreach programmes. A third of the amount raised will be used to fund travel expenses for students to attend South Durham UTC.
READ MORE: {}
Tania Cooper, chair of the NESF, said: “We are absolutely delighted that the dinner proved to be a success with an incredible turnout. Not only did we raise awareness of our Foundation and STEM possibilities, but we have also ensured that we can continue to enable young people across our region to access STEM education by removing the barriers that often stand in the way.
“It was also a great opportunity to bring together businesses to hear directly from young people who are benefiting from STEM and UTC education, while being able to support our ambitions to create opportunities in education, not only for our young people, but also their prospective employers.”
Emmersons Solicitors, a law firm with offices in Newcastle and Sunderland, is celebrating an award win at the British Wills and Probate Awards. The company took home the prize for Probate Provider of the Year for the North and Midlands region.
Judges at the event, hosted by broadcaster Jennie Bond at the Kimpton Clocktower Hotel in Manchester, commented on the quality of Emmersons’ services, noting the business is “a compassionate and well-run firm which not only goes the extra mile, but proactively works for their clients to ensure the best outcome and with a good demonstration of cost savings for clients.”
Jacqueline Emmerson, who set up the firm in 1998, said: “We work hard to ensure all of our probate clients and their loved ones are treated with dignity, respect and professionalism, and it is a real honour for these qualities to be recognised. As an SME firm with our bases firmly in the North East, it was great for us to be up against large national firms, and our win really highlights the value of smaller, dedicated teams.”
Most Read
Solicitor Tracey Hammond of the private client team, said: “It is a real pleasure for myself and the rest of the team to receive this award. We establish real connections with our clients and their families, sometimes working with them over a number of years, and it is fantastic to be recognised for this. Death is never a pleasant conversation, but we ensure that the probate process is as streamlined and stress-free for the families as possible, allowing them to focus on other things.”
Pacifica, the County Durham domestic appliance repair specialist, has been honoured with the Silver Award for outstanding health and safety performance by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA).
The RoSPA Health and Safety Awards, now in its 67th year, represents the top occupational health and safety recognition program in the 海角视频. Pacifa runs initiatives including health and safety newsletters, ‘Tool Box Talk’ updates, online training, and health and safety visits and it achieved a 100% compliance rate in its latest audit.
Richard Melvin, Pacifica’s Group safety, health, environment, quality and training manager, said: “Receiving a RoSPA Award really demonstrates our commitment to putting the health and safety of our colleagues and customers, first. It gives us an excellent foundation to implement continued improvements and to ‘go for gold’ next year. “Safety is of the utmost importance at Pacifica and a core value that we strive to live by on a daily basis. Organisations such RoSPA provide an invaluable source of knowledge and experience that will not only benefit me in my role, but the Company as a whole, and help establish positive messages around the culture of safety we continue to nurture and grow here at Pacifica.”
Pupils at the Hermitage Academy, in Chester-le-Street, will benefit from a £1,000 donation towards STEM engagement programmes, awarded by immersive technology specialist, Fuzzy Logic Studio. The firm took home the top prize in the Innovation and Technology SME category at the North East Automotive Alliance (NEAA) Awards 2023.
Sponsored by Newcastle University, the category recognised organisations developing cutting-edge innovation or technology solutions to meet current sector demands. The award included a £1,000 donation to a school of its choice in the North East.
The Hermitage Academy, a mixed secondary school and sixth form, is due to set up an extra-curricular club in STEM and the money will go towards getting the initiative off the ground.
Don’t miss
Peter Routledge, head of learning design at Fuzzy Logic Studio, who was in the teaching profession for many years, said: “We are delighted to play a part in supporting STEM activities at Hermitage Academy and would like to thank the team at the NEAA for making this possible. STEM education encourages students to think critically, analyse data and explore and develop solutions to complex problems.
“These skills are not only valuable in STEM fields, but also in many other areas of life. Building a future talent pipeline with diverse skills is going to be vital for the 海角视频 economy, particularly as we seek to achieve our net zero targets and become a driving force in areas such as automotive electrification.”
Richard Hutchinson, deputy head at The Hermitage Academy, said: “It is really important for students to know the full range of opportunities available to them when they leave education. Whatever we do as educators, it is always enhanced by real world experiences and having local businesses talk about actual opportunities, makes students listen and often rethink their potential pathways.”
North East charity Healthworks is working with schools to help people of all ages to live longer, healthier and happier lives as part of drive by the New Tyne West Development Company (NTWDC) – a joint venture partnership between Newcastle City Council and Keepmoat. Healthworks is visiting four schools, delivering sessions exploring healthy eating, exercise and play and mental health, with a visit to Bridgewater Primary School including smoothie bikes, which blend drinks while you exercise.
Cookery sessions will explore the use of low-cost devices, such as microwaves, air fryers, slow cookers and soup kettles, and at the end of the course, participants can choose one device to take home, in a bid to support people during the cost of living crisis. The bikes, courses and cooking equipment has been funded by New Tyne West Development Company, the partnership behind the creation of new homes on The Rise, in Scotswood.
For the past six years, NTWDC has donated more than £50,000 to support charity activities in the North East. Lisa Conroy, from the health promotion team at Healthworks, said: “We are so thankful to NTWDC for their continued support and helping us to highlight the benefit of exercise and good eating – that doesn’t have to break the bank.”
Lee McGray, North East commercial director at Keepmoat Homes, said: “It is fantastic for NTWDC to again be supporting Healthworks and their vision to promote happier and healthy lives in our region. The work they have been doing to help people combat the increase in energy costs through alternative cooking means has been wonderful and NTWDC is delighted to have played a part in making initiatives like this possible. I enjoyed giving the smoothie bike a go and I’m sure they will excite and inspire people in our community to think about healthy lifestyle choices.”