Nurturing next generation of tech professionals

Students from Hartlepool Sixth Form College and others from across Tees Valley attended the Powering Potential event at The BIS in Whitby Street.

Organised by education charity The Talent Foundry and funded by Dell Technologies, the event at the Hartlepool Borough Council-run building was a chance for the students to gain a unique insight into the tech industry and receive tailored mentoring from professionals.

Cate Smith, Head of Programmes and Partnerships at The Talent Foundry said: “Powering Potential has been hosted at The BIS for three years now, and it is a fantastic venue. It’s always inspiring to see young people engage so enthusiastically with the tech industry and gain valuable insights and skills. Powering Potential is about giving students the confidence to explore career paths they might not have considered and showing them the doors that opportunities like this can open.”

Over the course of the day-long Powering Potential event, the students took part in a series of workshops and masterclasses covering different areas of the tech sector, and they were supported by volunteers from a range of local and national tech companies. The Hartlepool event will be followed by three more in different parts of the region.

Students from Hartlepool Sixth Form College who are taking part in the Powering Potential programme.

Councillor Pamela Hargreaves, Chair of Hartlepool Borough Council’s Economic Growth and Regeneration Committee, said: “As an authority, we have an on-going commitment to provide the borough’s young people with the skills and knowledge they need to forge successful careers.

“Events such as this are absolutely invaluable in terms of providing them with an insight into what the future could hold for them, and I am delighted it has taken place in Hartlepool.

“I think it is also important to recognise that with some of the key developments currently taking place in Hartlepool, such as the creation of a Screen Industries Production Village, there will be lots of fantastic opportunities for our young people and we want them to be in a position to be able to take full advantage of them.”

Adam Pace, Lecturer and Programme Leader for Games at Hartlepool Sixth Form College, accompanied a group of students from the college to the event, and said: “It was a chance for them to learn more about working in the tech sector and to meet students from other colleges with different experiences and outlooks.

“It’s a big thing for their own personal growth and participation in Powering Potential can only benefit them in the long run.”