Representatives from almost 20 leading businesses attended Ron Dearing UTC’s first Employer Breakfast event of the academic year to find out more about further opportunities to work in partnership with the UTC over the coming year.

The employer-led school aims to hold the event termly, inviting current Employer Partners to learn more about the UTC while looking back over successes and involving them in shaping plans for the future.  The breakfast also creates an excellent networking opportunity for partner businesses.

Glenn Jensen, Senior Assistant Principal at the school, shared the UTC’s outstanding exam results with attendees, highlighted the excellent student attendance figures, showcased some of the exciting destinations students have moved on to and thanked them for their continued support which plays such an important role in the UTC’s success.

He also spoke about future engagement opportunities for Employer Partners, including mock interviews, the forthcoming open events, the UTC’s Apprenticeship Expo, employer projects and employability skills sessions to develop specialist and employability skills.

 

New opportunities also include “Lunch and Learn” sessions for students involving 30-minute talks by business representatives to learn more about their industries.

Glenn also encouraged the UTC’s alumni, who are already progressing well in apprenticeships and degree apprenticeships with the school’s Employer Partners, to return to share their experiences with students in 2025.

He said: “It was fantastic to have such a great turnout for our latest Employer Breakfast event and we’re so grateful for our Employer Partners’ ongoing support to offer the best possible opportunities to our students.

“We celebrated the achievements over the past year while looking at the various new and exciting opportunities we’re launching to involve them and their expertise even more.

“Our students are preparing for their next steps in life and our Employer Partners play a crucial role in helping them to make the right decisions and equipping them with essential skills to succeed.”

 

During networking, attendees were able to learn more about each other’s businesses and how they engage with Ron Dearing UTC while helping to shape the unique employer-led curriculum and producing young people with the knowledge and skills that their industries need.

James Hardstaff, General Manager of BAE Systems in Brough, was among those who attended the event. The company, a Major Partner of Ron Dearing UTC, has employed three apprentices from the school to date.

James said: “It’s important to be able to recruit and retain locally, and taking on apprentices from Ron Dearing UTC is a perfect way for us to do that.

“The students want to come to the UTC to learn and you see that in the results. The Employer Breakfast event was a great way to network with like-minded businesses and it’s exciting to see how we can engage with the UTC even further.”

Northern Powergrid, a Partner of Ron Dearing UTC, was also among the business represented.

Nick Charlesworth, the company’s Industrial Resource Manager, who started his career as an apprentice craftsman 32 years ago, said: “This is our third year of being a Ron Dearing UTC Partner and we’re definitely seeing the benefits.

“We have four apprentices from Ron Dearing and they’re all progressing really well. They have the right attitude, the right mindset and they’re focused individuals.

“We’re planning to bring our apprentices back to speak to students next year and they’re very keen to be involved.”

The businesses which attended the event were:

Arco

BAE Systems

C4DI

CATCH

Centrica

Humber HR People

IRISNDT

KCOM

KLAAFE Limited

Litmus Mockups

Northern Powergrid

Porsche Centre Hull

Reckitt

Ridings Consulting Engineers

Sewell Group

Spencer Group

Wood Plc

Two Ron Dearing UTC students spent a month in Kenya helping to make a difference in disadvantaged communities, making memories to last a lifetime.

Year 11 students Isabella Sykes, 16, and Ethan Ehlert, 15, took part in the trip organised by overseas school expedition specialists Camps International, with 19 other students from Hessle High School and Sixth Form College and Cottingham High School and Sixth Form College.

They each had to raise £4,500 over two years to cover the cost of the whole trip and equipment needed for the journey, which began with flying to Nairobi, the country’s capital city, via Frankfurt in Germany.

 

Isabella and Ethan stayed at various camps across the country, sleeping in tents, bunk rooms or basic lodges, and sometimes travelling up to nine hours on a bus between destinations.

They helped to plaster homes and huts, lay floors in a school, make bricks, clean paths, plant trees and carry out wildlife conservation work, as well as meeting local children and families and seeing an array of animals in the wild.

Isabella said: “The experience made me realise I don’t need everything I have at home. I can live for a month out of a little bag, in a tiny room, and I don’t need my phone all the time.

“It taught me to go outdoors more and opened my eyes to how other people live. I haven’t stopped talking about it since we came back. It’s a beautiful country and it was worth the two-year fundraising struggle.”

Isabella and Ethan held car boot and bake sales to help raise some of the money required for the trip and they both set up online fundraising pages to gain sponsorship from family and friends. Raffles also helped to add to Ethan’s total.

 

Ethan said: “I wanted to try something new and it took me out of my comfort zone. I made some really good friends and learnt a lot about myself, such as how I am when I’m away from home and living with other people.

“Everyone was so welcoming and I didn’t see one unhappy person. No matter what conditions the local people were living in, they always had smiles on their faces.

“Some adults don’t learn what we’ve learnt, or see what we’ve seen, and I’m so pleased we went. We saw a lot of wildlife, including monkeys, elephants, giraffes and lots of insects.”

 

Ron Dearing UTC Principal Sarah Pashley said: “This was an incredible opportunity for Isabella and Ethan and an experience they will remember forever.

“We’re proud of them for stepping outside their comfort zones and taking on such a challenge, including fundraising, being away from home for four weeks and learning vital life skills.”

A Ron Dearing UTC sixth form student is following his pottery passion after he was inspired by the school’s ever-expanding creative curriculum.

Year 13 student Matthew Bestley, 17, realised his love of pottery when a kiln, a piece of machinery which turns clay into ceramic at high temperature, was installed at STEAM Studios, the school’s creative hub.

Since then, he has experimented with various different techniques, clay, glaze and designs, and even bought his own potter’s wheel for his home, which saw him dedicate hours every day to pottery during the summer holidays.

Matthew, who is studying Fine Art, 3D Design and Graphics at the employer-led school, has now set up his own Instagram page – @bestleyceramics – which he hopes will eventually develop into a business as he strives to become a potter.

He is looking into the possibility of studying pottery at the dedicated Clay College in Stoke-on-Trent when he leaves Ron Dearing next year, while also considering a Level 4 Foundation course in Art.

 

Matthew said: “I’m obsessed with pottery and, since I started using clay, I haven’t stopped. The potter’s wheel sparked my interest and I love that you don’t have full control over what you’re creating.

“You never know how it will come out of the kiln because the glaze looks completely different before and after firing. It could have a crack in it and might not be useable, which makes it more special when it works.

“I’ve made vases, jugs and some teapots but I want to move onto more sculptural work because I’m interested in the art side of it, rather than the functionality. There is always something new to learn.

“I have 128 followers on Instagram and some are other potters from the local area. I love it when they like my work and posts, and I’ve had a few messages from them offering tips and advice.

“I love the creative choices at Ron Dearing and there is so much scope to learn. Everyone is so knowledgeable.”

 

Matthew is inspired by Japanese pottery and his work is now helping to inspire other creative students as they draw his creations for their own projects.

He also shares his skills and expertise with the younger students at the UTC’s Pottery Club as well as helping the Creative Technicians loading and unloading the kiln.

The Pottery Club is part of the school’s extensive Enrichment programme which encourages students to learn new skills and embrace new experiences outside the classroom.

Matthew has also attended dedicated pottery festivals in Wakefield and Penrith, taking inspiration from professional potters and sharing expertise.

Ron Dearing UTC Creative Director Lynn Garland-Collins said: “Matthew has an incredible talent and is very gifted in the art of pottery, as well as his wider creative studies.

“He has made some fantastic pieces and really embraced the opportunities STEAM Studios is able to offer our students.

“A number of staff have bought pieces that Matthew has made. He has a very creative and bright future ahead of him and we can’t wait to see where his talents take him.”

Matthew plans to sell his work at the school’s Christmas Market at STEAM Studios on November 24, from 10am to 2pm. The event is open to members of the public and free to attend.