Published in the New Statesman 11th Nov 2016

1. 12 | Spotlight | Skills
T
he skills shortage in engineering
is not a new problem. It has been
long recognised, quantified and
well documented. At the Royal
Academy of Engineering, we regularly
hear from our partners in industry
about the impact it is having, or may
soon have, on their businesses. I have
sat in countless meetings brainstorming
different ways to address the challenge.
I was already working with colleagues
in the engineering community on a new
plan of attack when, in June, the UK
voted to leave the European Union.
Why this happened is of little matter
now: Brexit means Brexit and the
country must prepare for whatever
challenges or opportunities it brings.
But what Brexit throws into greater
relief is how pivotal the skills issue is to
a successful future for the UK outside
the EU – an adequate supply of the
skilled engineers and technicians is the
lifeblood of our profession. As
engineering accounts for at least 20 per
cent of the country’s economy – some
£280bn GVA per annum – it is crucially
important to our future as a nation
that we address this skills crisis once
and for all.
The scale of the challenge is vast:
research byEngineeringUKhasestimated
that we are in need of approximately
69,000 more skilled engineers and
technicians every year, well above our
current supply. The causes of the crisis
are many and varied, from the
profession’s failure to improve diversity
totheabsenceofagenuineunderstanding
among young people of the breadth of
opportunities offered by a 21st century
engineering career.
What can we do? There are many
well-established and well-intentioned
initiatives to encourage more young
people to take up engineering, but this
piecemeal approach has simply not had
the impact we need. That is why seven
The decision to leave the European
Union underscores the urgency to address
Britain’s engineering skills gap, according
to Philip Greenish, chief executive of the
Royal Academy of Engineering
In search of a
new solution for
an old problem
IN ASSOCIATION WITH
SHUTTERSTOCK/IRINAMAVRITSINA

2. major engineering businesses asked the
Royal Academy of Engineering to
develop and lead the Engineering Talent
Project, a sector-wide drive to close the
engineering skills gap. Together, we are
inviting the whole profession to unite in
a bid to push back the barriers and invite
a new generation to be part of the future
of engineering .
The first and perhaps most significant
barrier is an outdated perception of
engineering. Modernising this, and
Courses must
be reflexive
to industry
demands
increasing awareness of the creativity,
variety and satisfaction that a career in
engineering can deliver will be central
to our efforts. Engineers turn great ideas
into solutions to society’s needs in
every area of life – from energy and data
to transport and healthcare. Engineering
delivered the internet, the smart phone
and the digital platforms that are relied
on by billions of people. Engineers
really are changing the world – and
that’s a message that appeals to young
people. Alongside our industry
partners, we will be launching a
communications and marketing
campaign to make this message heard
and excite young people with the
possibilities open to them.
As part of this we must also ensure
that engineering appeals to a wider
demographic. All too often it is
perceived as a preserve of the white,
male, middle class, but UK engineering
should be reflective of modern society,
and should harness the creativity of
engineers from diverse backgrounds.
There is a clear business case for doing
so: research tells us that businesses with
a more diverse workforce perform
better and are more likely to derive
higher financial returns.
However, a marketing and
communications campaign alone will
not close the skills gap. Evidence shows
that the way subjects are taught, that the
curriculum is structured, that subject
choices are made, and that information
about careers is delivered, in schools and
in other educational institutions,
reduces the likelihood for many of
pursuing engineering.
In much of the UK, the education
curriculum narrows subject choices too
early, so it is no wonder that school
leavers’ attitudes towards their career
pathways are also narrow. Alongside
our industry partners, we believe that a
broader curriculum up to the age of 18 is
required – something more akin to a
Baccalaureate in its framework that
would remove the early arts-science
divide that is standard in the English
system. Such reform has been proposed
before, notably in Sir Mike Tomlinson’s
2004 review of 14-19 education polciy,
but never properly implemented on
a national scale.
We also need to ensure that the
higher education system can cope with
the necessary increase in engineering
student numbers, and has the resources
to ensure that students emerge with
skills that industry wants. That is why
we are calling for government to
incentivise universities to invest both in
staff and in cutting-edge facilities.
Involvement from industry itself will be
crucial to any progress. Courses should
be taught and tailored to the needs of
industry and should be informed by
the input of employers.
There are, of course, more structural
changes that would make a difference
than there is space here to describe. But
thefactremainsthatchildren arenatural
engineers and the opportunity to
nurture these skills is there for the
taking. There are plenty of young people
who achieve the qualifications needed
to pursue engineering without realising
what a rewarding and satisfying career
they might find in it. There are still too
many who simply never consider doing
engineering because they don’t know
what it is; because of perceived barriers
of gender, race or socio-economic
background; or because of deep-rooted
negative attitudes towards science
and maths.
It is crucially important that we
maintain our reputation as a global
leader in engineering research and
innovation, technology and industry,
and to achieve this we must show young
people that engineering can be for them,
and give them the support and
opportunities to find a route in. Like all
good engineering, this requires team
work. The engineering profession and
government must work together to help
to sustain and grow economic and social
progress. The UK’s impending
departure from the EU gives us a greater
imperative than ever before to do so.
To find out more about the Engineering
Talent Project, please contact:
ETP@raeng.org.uk
Skills | Spotlight | 13