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Is The Teaching Profession so Black & White?
Business Politics & Education
"The old problem of young people not understanding what engineering is all about has not gone away and we have to open people's minds up. But the Department for Education is doing just the opposite. Their view is that you've got to learn maths, sciences and humanities and they're just not interested in anything technical."
Mr Bell said JCB is looking to recruit about 60 engineers at any one time, but it can spend up to six months searching for the right skills to fill those jobs - a shocking admission when there are more than 2.5m people unemployed in the UK.
The only way to tackle the issue long term was to "fix" the education system and better link it to what industry needed, he said.
The latest research from Semta, the engineering skills council, shows that over the next four years, the UK will need 96,300 new engineers and scientists just to replace those who are retiring.
But one in seven graduates who study science, engineering and technology go to work in retail, official figures show. Of the 57,645 science, engineering and technology graduates in 2009-10, only 3,195 went into manufacturing.
JCB hires about 50 apprentices each year, with each scheme lasting two and a half years. The manufacturer already runs its own academy to help develop students for a career in engineering, which Mr Bell helped set up. However, he is frustrated that the apprenticeship "brand" in the UK has been "damaged", which puts young people off doing the on-the-job training scheme.
"Mickey Mouse apprenticeships lasting 12 weeks have damaged the apprenticeship brand. The Government is still boasting that the biggest intake in apprenticeships is in customer service. That's not an apprenticeship, that's a training course," he said.
The Department for Business is reviewing all apprenticeships to improve their quality and make sure they last at least one year, but Mr Bell said even those that have made the cut are still no match for apprenticeships abroad.
"It's not complicated. We keep looking at Germany saying why is their engineering higher there, where do people value it? It's because from 10 and 11 years old, school kids are orientated towards vocational and technical, where it is valued properly."
Britain must put engineering back into schools or risk Britain falling behind, he said.
Mr Bell said JCB is looking to recruit about 60 engineers at any one time, but it can spend up to six months searching for the right skills to fill those jobs - a shocking admission when there are more than 2.5m people unemployed in the UK.
The only way to tackle the issue long term was to "fix" the education system and better link it to what industry needed, he said.
The latest research from Semta, the engineering skills council, shows that over the next four years, the UK will need 96,300 new engineers and scientists just to replace those who are retiring.
But one in seven graduates who study science, engineering and technology go to work in retail, official figures show. Of the 57,645 science, engineering and technology graduates in 2009-10, only 3,195 went into manufacturing.
JCB hires about 50 apprentices each year, with each scheme lasting two and a half years. The manufacturer already runs its own academy to help develop students for a career in engineering, which Mr Bell helped set up. However, he is frustrated that the apprenticeship "brand" in the UK has been "damaged", which puts young people off doing the on-the-job training scheme.
"Mickey Mouse apprenticeships lasting 12 weeks have damaged the apprenticeship brand. The Government is still boasting that the biggest intake in apprenticeships is in customer service. That's not an apprenticeship, that's a training course," he said.
The Department for Business is reviewing all apprenticeships to improve their quality and make sure they last at least one year, but Mr Bell said even those that have made the cut are still no match for apprenticeships abroad.
"It's not complicated. We keep looking at Germany saying why is their engineering higher there, where do people value it? It's because from 10 and 11 years old, school kids are orientated towards vocational and technical, where it is valued properly."
Britain must put engineering back into schools or risk Britain falling behind, he said.
JCB hires about 50 apprentices each year
JCB [2-2]
JCB - 1
Teacher Development - 1
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