Scheme offers career help for young people in care

Anthony Lewis, local democracy reporter

A programme for children in care or care leavers which aims to explore future career opportunities in a fun way has taken them to a local heritage railway and a construction firm based at a local hospital.

A STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics) trip took place in October to Brecon Mountain Railway and Tilbury Douglas based at Prince Charles Hospital for young people from Merthyr Tydfil aged 11-16.

Programme

This came on the back of Merthyr Tydfil Council’s Pathway To Work Team (P2W)’s “Ewch Amdani! Go for it!” summer school for children looked after and care leavers which was a one week programme during the holidays, where fun activities around education, future goals, dreams and what is accessible to all in south Wales took place.

On this STEM trip in October, they visited local companies in a bid to inspire the young people involved and give them an insight into the different jobs required for businesses to run smoothly.

At Brecon Mountain Railway, they began their visit with a full line turn on the steam train observation carriages travelling from Pant to Torpantau.

During lunch at the Pontsticill Reservoir Cafe, the young people got speaking with pupils visiting from France which allowed them to practice their basic French language skills.

The young people got to ask staff questions and stand on outside viewing platforms during the journey.

After the journey the met the site manager who discussed the different jobs available at Brecon Mountain Railway and what he looks for as part of the recruitment process.

He discussed all the STEM related jobs there and told the young people about future apprenticeship opportunities.

Some of the feedback from the young people included: “I liked Stuart the manager at BMR because he told me I can start an engineering apprenticeship when I’m 16.”

Another said: “I liked visiting the Brecon Mountain Railway, I have never been on a steam train before.”

And another young person said: “One day I would like to work here, I would like to be an engineer at Brecon Mountain Railway.”

Construction

They then visited Tilbury Douglas at Prince Charles Hospital and were greeted by the social values manager and safety manager.

They entered the construction cabins where they were given a presentation about the history of Tilbury Douglas and the work that has been completed and is due to be completed at the hospital.

They found out about each job role on site, how to secure each job and what education and qualifications would be needed to access the STEM related apprenticeships.

They were also given the chance to tour the construction site to see the work being done first hand, with everyone receiving safety clothing and information on the rules and regulations that needed to be adhered to.

The feedback from the young people included: “We went to Prince Charles Hospital, I really want to be an apprentice at Tilbury Douglas.”

Another said: “I would like to do multi-trade skills at college” while another young person added: “I would like to become a bricklayer.”

The Pathway To Work team sits within the council’s employability team and is co-managed by the employability project coordinator, Jared Green and children looked after education team manager, Jess Jones.

The project was launched in January 2024 when P2W took 14 children aged 11-16 from Pen Y Dre High School to BBC Wales in Cardiff.

It offered young people the opportunity for a tour and to gain knowledge of the exciting career opportunities on offer via the BBC and the director of BBC Wales Rhuanedd Richards also spoke to the children on the day.