The festival, now into its third year, will be held at Newcastle Racecourse on 8 to 12 July and will take social and environmental challenges and apply problem solving techniques over the five days.
The construction and building services firm is sponsoring this year’s Skills for Success sessions and Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics (STEAM) activities.
Throughout the week, the Skills for Success fayre will hold fun and interactive sessions which will focus on resilience, relationships, decision making, curiosity and emotional intelligence, allowing young people the chance to take away hints about how to keep developing these skills. Last year, over 1,000 children took part in the festival’s STEM activities, with the number expected to grow this year.
On Wednesday evening, Esh is also sponsoring the Mother’s and Daughter’s Perception of STEM session, which will help encourage engagement of females in the digital, advanced manufacturing, energy, utilities and construction industry. Currently, only 23% of people working in STEM occupations in the UK are female and this event will give attendees a taste of the careers available using these skills.
Throughout the festival, companies will take part in workshops, design sprints and data hacks that will help them incorporate new techniques into the everyday running of their business.
Darush Dodds, Esh Group’s Head of Corporate Affairs added: “The festival is a great way to enable businesses to come together and accelerate great ideas through collaboration, pooling resource and harnessing the festival atmosphere.”
“We chose to sponsor the alternative careers fayre and STEAM activities as the development of core employability skills and STEAM awareness directly align with our own Social Value programme. We also hope to better understand female perceptions of our industry through the Mother’s and Daughter’s session on Wednesday evening.”
Head of Innovation at Northumbrian Water, Dr Angela MacOscar, added: “As a female scientist, changing the perception of the careers available for women in STEM is something that is close to my heart. With more than 1,500 young people on site with us during the Innovation Festival, we have a key opportunity to change perceptions and positively impact the uptake of STEM. This is only the start of the conversation and we are committed to continue”.
More than 3,000 people from 650 businesses and organisations, including industry experts, engineers, students and customers, are expected at the festival, where they will search for solutions to major societal and environmental challenges.
To sign up or find out more about the festival and other exciting sprints taking place, visit www.innovationfestival.org.
We are absolutely delighted to have Esh Group with us at our Innovation Festival where we will be working together to increase visibility on STEM careers and boost inclusivity."
