London Gatwick supports and inspires school leavers during National Careers Week

National Careers Week is an opportunity to support and engage with students at an important stage in the academic year for young people leaving education.

London Gatwick is a key employer in the local region with more than 25,000 people working together across the airport to deliver a great experience for passengers.

Throughout the week (4-9 March) events took place to showcase the breadth of opportunities on offer at Gatwick. A total of 385 students took part in STEM activities from schools across Crawley, Worthing, Burgess Hill and Chessington.

The week started with a technician, joined by an apprentice, who delivered a Speakers for Schools virtual discovery workshop on working in Engineering to 200 students at local schools.

Volunteers from across London Gatwick attended Thomas Bennett school to deliver a mentoring session, as part of the Love Local Jobs Foundation Dare to Dream mentoring scheme. The assembly reached 220 Year 9 students and 15 students are individually mentored. The sessions focused on themes such as self-awareness, mindset, gratitude, resilience, teamwork, and employment. The programme aims to support the development of essential life skills for young people, preparing them for their future careers.  

Adrian Geaves one of London Gatwick’s senior project managers also presented about sustainability and construction at an EVERFI 'Ask a Pro' virtual panel.

Melanie Wrightson, Stakeholder Engagement Manager, London Gatwick said:“At London Gatwick, we are passionate about nurturing talent and encouraging young people to consider a career in the aviation sector.

“A diverse and skilled pipeline of local talent is critical to a healthy labour market and London Gatwick’s future growth. It has been brilliant to welcome so many students to the airport this week and showcase the breadth of careers Gatwick can offer.

“Our vision is to be the airport for everyone, whatever your journey and it is key we invest in the workforce for the future as we continue to grow.”

London Gatwick will continue to offer support to more students in the region, with the aim to reach 1million student engagements by 2030 across various education programmes.  

The recent opening of the airport’s on-site STEM centre plays a key role in delivering this target. The bespoke centre offers a hands-on learning space for school children aged 4-18 to explore STEM disciplines and the various airport-related career opportunities available to them.

London Gatwick is investing in its long-term future and its planning application to bring the airport’s existing Northern Runway into routine use, has now entered the examination phase with the Planning Inspectorate. This low-impact plan will improve resilience, reduce delays, and provide a significant boost to the national and regional economy by supporting trade, tourism, and new jobs.