London Stansted hosts Josh Dean MP for national apprenticeship week

Josh Dean, MP for Hertford and Stortford, visited London Stansted during national apprenticeship week to meet apprentices who work at the airport as well as visiting others developing their skills at Stansted Airport College.

During his visit, Mr Dean met with London Stansted’s Asset Maintenance Director, James Baker, and apprentices working as part of the airport’s engineering team who help to keep the airport’s infrastructure running smoothly 24 hours a day.

This followed a tour of the airport’s unique on-site college, run in partnership with Harlow College and the UK’s only further education facility based on an airport campus, which provides young people with opportunities to learn and gain qualifications across a host of aviation related courses to prepare them for a rewarding career in the sector.

The airport has 41 apprentices working across engineering, the airport fire service and customer service teams.

The airport college currently supports over 500 young people each year, and as the airport grows towards 51 million passengers a year over the next two decades, the ambition is for the college to double in size to help provide a pipeline of talent as the number of on-site jobs increases by more than 4,000 to 16,000 in total.

Josh Dean MP said:

"It was great to visit London Stansted Airport and the Stansted Airport College during National Apprenticeship Week, to see the positive impact they’re having on young people’s futures.

“Meeting apprentices from Hertford and Stortford and hearing about their journeys was so encouraging and I was impressed by the skills they’re gaining and the enthusiasm they have for learning. It’s fantastic to see these kinds of opportunities growing in our community, giving young people the confidence, skills and experience they need as they begin their working lives."

James Baker, London Stansted’s Asset Maintenance Director, said:

“It was great to welcome Josh Dean MP to the airport during a week that really helps shine a positive light on the valuable role apprenticeships play in the day-to-day operation of the airport, as well as how young people can ‘learn and earn’ while developing their skills on the job.

“Through our various apprenticeship schemes, we aim to showcase the fantastic opportunities that exist at the airport and help create career paths that will not only shape the future of the young people involved but also develop the skills and talent necessary for the long-term growth and success of the aviation industry.”