CBI North West says schools must engage better with business during visit to Oasis Academy MediaCityUK

CBI North West says schools must engage better with business during visit to Oasis Academy MediaCityUK

(Pic: (L-R) Academy Principal Patrick Ottley-O’Connor, Chair of the Academy Council Nick Bent and CBI North West Director Damian Waters)

The CBI’s North West director Damian Waters is calling for greater co-operation between the region’s schools and businesses as part of a fresh 2012 initiative.

Mr Waters made his remarks during a visit to Oasis Academy MediaCityUK in Salford – which is due to relocate to a £24m state of the art new campus at MediaCity in September.

The academy, which specialises in digital media and business enterprise, will become one of the best equipped media schools in the country with industry standard TV, radio and recording studios.

“In 2012 the CBI North West will be focussing its agenda on education as well as issues including infrastructure and exports,” said Mr Waters. “Ultimately we need to break down the barriers and bridge the gap between business and education. That means more meaningful long term strategic partnerships between schools and businesses in Greater Manchester and across the North West.. We will be encouraging our members to get more closely involved with schools across the region to help build a greater understanding of business. By working with businesses schools can gain a far greater insight into what skills industry needs.”

Taking a tour of the new build site at Salford Quays Mr Waters said Oasis Academy MediaCityUK had a powerful vision for the future. He added: “The new academy building will be inspirational to the Salford community. Its facilities will provide a tremendous opportunity for pupils to develop the experience and expertise to get them a job in the region’s thriving creative sector.”

Academy Principal Patrick Ottley-O’Connor welcomed the CBI to the academy and urged local employers to work with the school. 

“We are aiming to raise aspirations and ambitions,” he said. “The new facility which will become operational in September will house some the finest media facilities in the country. We believe the academy can become one of the leading state schools in the North West. There is real opportunity for local business to join us on this journey and help shape the curriculum. Businesses can get involved in many ways from work experience, mentoring individuals or groups of pupils, workplace visits, supporting projects, sponsoring facilities, classroom talks to young people, careers advice and becoming governors. Critically pupils are telling us this is what they want – real experience from real businesses.”

Mr Ottley O’Connor added: “Although financial support is always welcomed the greatest thing any business can give us is time. We have a firm focus as a media and business enterprise academy, however we really do want greater input from industry so we can inspire our pupils to think big.”

Mr Waters said the CBI’s Business in the Classroom initiative was one example of how schools and businesses could work together.

“The core aim of this scheme is to encourage pupils to think positively about their career and start to develop the skills business is looking for,” he said. “This goes beyond literacy and numeracy to embrace key skills such as team working, problem solving, self management, self starting, resilience, oral literacy, application of numeracy and application of IT. By seeing how the workplace operates pupils have a far keener idea and understanding of how what they learn in the classroom is used in industry. This kind of experience is vital to inspiring young people to think ambitiously about their career and developing the right attitude and ‘can do’ mentality.”

CBI background

The CBI is the UK's leading business organisation, speaking for some 240,000 businesses that together employ around a third of the private sector workforce. With offices across the UK as well as representation in Brussels, Washington, Beijing and Delhi, the CBI communicates the British business voice around the world.

Oasis Academy

Oasis Academy MediaCityUK opened in September 2008 replacing Hope High School. 

The Academy transfer to a brand new complex on the edge of Salford Quays, in September 2012.

As well as radio and TV studios, production offices and other facilities that would be expected of a Media Centre, the new complex will feature the best possible provision for Science, Technology, Sport and the Arts, alongside all other subjects in the National Curriculum.

Oasis Academy MediaCityUK is sponsored by Oasis Community Learning, which is a separate charity, but is part of the Oasis Global family. Oasis UK, a Christian organisation, was founded by Rev Steve Chalke M.B.E. in 1985, and began its work in the UK but now delivers educational, healthcare and housing projects throughout the world.