First Sea Lord leads on UTC Plymouth affiliation to Royal Navy

UTC Plymouth has been asked to join an exclusive group of Colleges being affiliated to the Royal Navy, which will provide students attending the College with a very clear pathway into the Senior Service.

Admiral Sir George Zambellas KCB DSC ADC DL, First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff, stated: “Plymouth is strategically important to our maritime nation, whether as home to the largest naval base in Western Europe or as a city with the ambition to become the world leader in marine technology.

“I am therefore delighted that today’s technology-fuelled Royal Navy is affiliated to UTC Plymouth. The talented students produced by this College will benefit the entire nation, as they help to build a world-class maritime centre of excellence here in the West Country.”

Discussing the affiliation, Mary Cox, Principal of UTC Plymouth, added: “This is a real coup for us, and will benefit our young people in a number of exciting ways.”

Lt Cdr Steve Ripley, who has operational responsibility for the affiliation process for the Royal Navy, said: “The intention for Royal Navy involvement in UTC sponsorship is to support the development of young engineers in the UK; as you will be aware there are significant areas of the UK engineering industry that help to supply and support the engineering that makes the Royal Navy a global force for good.”

Students will benefit from projects designed by Royal Navy engineers, visits to naval facilities and careers advice from a wide range of naval professionals, hearing first-hand what a career in the Royal Navy can be like.

Students will also be invited to attend a week of engineering challenges in Portsmouth, where they will find out more about the breadth of opportunities available to them. They will also be able to participate in a new qualification, ‘The Young Engineers RN UTC Engineering Challenge’, a task which involves designing and building a small remote controlled vessel capable of recovering and removing floating and submerged items, which would be used in war zones or in humanitarian situations.

Bruce Robinson, UTC STEM Coordinator and Kerry Eldershaw, Director of Engineering, will be working with Royal Navy personnel to embed this link into the curriculum, and to identify as many ways as possible to inspire young men and women throughout the local area to consider an engineering career within the Royal Navy.

The UTC opened in September to provide a technical education to 14-19 year old students with an interest in engineering and manufacturing. The first year has led to great success for students already securing apprenticeships with BAE Systems, Babcock Marine, Rittal CSM, Plymouth Precision Engineering and MGB.

To find out more, prospective students and their parents are invited to attend the next Open Day taking place at the College on Thursday 16th October at 5:30pm. There will be an opportunity to tour the College’s state-of-the-art engineering facilities, meet the team and talk with the UTC’s employer partners.

To register to attend the Open Day, call 01752 284250 or visit www.utcplymouth.org