Maritime UK has today launched its new sector-wide industry ambassador programme “Inspiring the Future Maritime” and is calling for colleagues from across the sector to sign up as an ambassador to support careers and outreach activity in schools and colleges.

The initiative aims to recruit people from all corners of the sector as volunteers to support young people who will learn by interacting with employees from within the sector as part of their education.

The programme has been designed to support schools are colleges in meeting the Gatsby Benchmarks. Benchmark 5 sets out the expectation that all young people must have meaningful encounters with employers as part of their careers programme.

Development of an ambassadors network is one of the key priorities in the Maritime UK Careers and Outreach Strategy and is in direct response to the UK government’s flagship Maritime 2050 strategy, where its People ‘Route Map’ called for industry to better coordinate its promotional activity for careers in the sector.

The Maritime UK programme is led by Lorna Wagner, who is herself a careers professional having joined the sector from Eastleigh College, where she achieved the Level 6 Diploma in Careers Guidance and Development.

Maritime UK has partnered with Inspiring the Future to deliver the programme. The organisation provides a vital bridge between young people, educational providers and employers. With over 1000 schools and colleges in the UK already using the platform, today’s news will see a growing number of maritime ambassadors available to those schools in all corners of the country.

All ambassadors will receive training and regular briefings to support them in talking about the breadth of the sector, as well as their own area of experience and specialism.

Nick Chambers, CEO of Education and Employers, said:

‘We are delighted to be working in partnership with Maritime UK and the UK’s maritime industries, where we hope to excite and motivate young people by highlighting the vast range of careers available to them in this sector.

Through our Inspiring the Future’s national online platform, volunteers who work in the maritime industry will be able to connect with primary schools, secondary schools and colleges to chat informally to young people about what inspired them to follow a career in the industry and how the educational route they chose helped them to achieve it.’

Catherine Spencer, Chair of the Maritime UK Careers Taskforce said:

‘The maritime sector offers a wide range of exciting and well-paid careers and we welcome this partnership to inform and inspire, so that more people have access to facts about the exciting world of maritime.’

Ben Murray, Director of Maritime UK, said:  

‘Getting a coordinated ambassador programme in place across the breadth of the maritime sector and in all four corners of the United Kingdom is a big step forward. This was a key recommendation of Maritime 2050, and with the partnership announced today, we are delivering on that recommendation. The partnership means that we can build upon the great industry-specific schemes already in place, grow those, and make sure all parts of the sector have inspiring people to visit our schools and colleges to talk about the fantastic world of maritime. With thousands of schools on the system, we’re now calling on industry colleagues to come forward and sign up!’

Learn more: https://www.inspiringthefuture.org/maritime/