Southern Regional College is delighted to announce its success in securing a new European Partnership Project which will see the college and students broaden their vocational training links with Europe.
Training Bridge, which is funded by the British Council, will facilitate six apprentices from the Agricultural/Plant Machinery Engineering curriculum areas in spending three weeks in October working with land-based engineering companies in the Lower Saxony Region of Germany. This exchange will be hosted by the Chamber of Skilled Crafts in Lüneburg. In return, Southern Regional College will host six German apprentices in local companies in the towns of Craigavon, Lisburn, Poyntzpass, Armagh and Portadown during November.
Dr Audrey McKeown, Head of Development, Southern Regional College said: “We are delighted to secure the first Training Bridge Project in Northern Ireland. It offers tremendous potential for apprentices and staff in both Northern Ireland and Germany. It will give the apprentices the experience of working in Europe, bringing their expertise to the workplace and sharing good practice. It also offers our staff opportunities to improve their professional practices and work collaboratively with their counterparts in developing apprenticeship schemes across Europe.”
In addition to this, Lantra Sector Skills Council is sponsoring a key event as part of the exchange. David Seffen, Lantra’s Northern Ireland Partnership Manager said, “Lantra commends Southern Regional College in developing this innovative project, which will provide apprentices from both Northern Ireland and Germany the opportunity to gain a wider perspective of the work of industry through the eyes of another country and also to improve their skills.”
Mr Norbert Bünten, General Manager of the Chamber of Skilled Crafts in Lüneburg, commented: “Through a stay abroad, apprentices learn additional professional, social and language competences and thus improve their chances in the labour market. At the same time the exchange of apprentices increases the attractiveness of vocational education within the skilled crafts sector. This is the key reason why the Lüneburg-Stade Chamber of Skilled Crafts welcomes the “Training Bridge” project, in conjunction with the Southern Regional College, the British Council and Lantra Sector Skills Council. We would like to take this opportunity to wish our German bound staff and apprentices ‘Gute Reise’.”
Craigavon council welcomes German apprentices
Six German apprentices from the Chamber of Skilled Crafts in Luneburg have arrived in Portadown as part of a training exchange programme for land based engineering. One of the first invitations extended to the German apprentices was the opportunity to meet the Mayor of Craigavon, Councillor Robert Smith, who welcomed the apprentices to Northern Ireland. Councillor Robert Smith said: “I am delighted that the Southern Regional College (SRC) and local businesses are able to host these young apprentices from the Lower Saxony region of Germany. I hope that they enjoy their stay in Craigavon, and that both the apprentices and businesses they are placed with benefit from shared work practices."
During the three weeks that the apprentices will spend in Northern Ireland they will have the opportunity to gain ‘hands on’ experience within land-based companies, including Troughtons (Poyntzpass), Burkes (Portadown), Pat O’Donnells (Portadown) and Johnston Gilpin (Lisburn).
This training exchange, which was organised by the Southern Regional College in partnership with the British Council, Inwent (Germany), and supported by Lantra, Sector Skills Council is the first of its kind in Northern Ireland. David Seffen, Lantra’s Northern Ireland Partnership Manager said: “Lantra is delighted to support this project, and welcomes the German apprentices to Northern Ireland. I have no doubt that all parties will benefit from the cultural and skills development exchange.”
Wilbert McKee, Acting Director of SRC stated: “This is a unique opportunity for our two countries to work closely together in up-skilling our apprentices. The partnership with employers, tutors, parents, funding bodies and Lantra has made this possible and, no doubt, will a great foundation for the apprentices’ futures.”
