Loughborough: nurturing talent and opportunity
Jo Maher in the skills and enterprise hub, Loughborough. Image © Loughborough College
“We believe really firmly in civil leadership,“ explains Jo Maher, Town Deal Board member and Principal and Chief Executive of Loughborough College. “We want people to access their education and qualifications, then stay within Charnwood and Leicester, to be economically active and to promote business and the economy locally.”
Jo has shown, through her own experience in the Town, that Loughborough can and does offer opportunities for talented people to access fulfilling careers and professional leadership roles.
“I came to Loughborough as a student at the age of 18 and stayed on, working in the college whilst completing my master's study full-time. That enabled me to access a career straight out of university, then to develop the skills to move into leadership roles across the sector in further education,” explains Jo.
Jo is now focused on making sure the kinds of opportunities she has enjoyed are inclusive and available to people accessing training, education and employment at all levels across the Town. “I became a college principal to support people to fulfil their potential,” she says.
Nurturing local talent and retaining graduates
Using data from across Leicestershire and the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) area Jo recognised where they could have impact. The level of education and academic attainment in Loughborough is lower than the national average and some wards in the Town are experiencing higher levels of deprivation than the regional average. It was also clear that despite having a high number of students coming into the Town, they were struggling to retain graduates, and meet the needs of people at career crossroads later in life.
With capital investment from the Town Deal Accelerated Funding, Jo and her team opened a Careers & Enterprise Hub in May 2021. The partnership is about, “retaining talent, and improving and supporting the changing lives of people that need access to those higher-level qualifications,” explains Jo. The Hub is already facilitating Jo and others on the Town Deal Board to deliver on their strategic intent to capture graduate talent in Loughborough and to progress it within the local community.
Investing in the heart of the community
Jo and her team converted a disused butcher shop on the high street into a multi-functional Skills and Enterprise Hub. It’s now a one-stop-shop for anyone seeking support with skills and employment. It’s also perfectly placed to welcome passers-by and people in the community interested by seeing change taking shape.
“We've got a whole suite of funded qualifications in digital skills, where anybody can walk in and be trained,” described Jo. “It's about making sure the advice and guidance is tailored to the individual.”
Located right in the centre of town, employment experts from Loughborough College offer residents guidance and support at the Hub to boost their careers or get into work. In addition, experts from Loughborough University provide guidance, training and mentoring to entrepreneurs looking to start their own business.
“It doesn't look like a college, and it doesn't feel like a college. The Town Deal has created this investment opportunity and has been a springboard to place this initiative bang in the heart of the community,” explained Jo. The Hub hosts careers advice and runs courses on site. The programme also supports employers to bring apprentices into their business, with access to interview spaces to run recruitment activities.
New collaborations
Delivering the Hub through the Town Deal has provided an opportunity for the college to strengthen collaborative relationships with the university - with the aim of providing a more seamless service for Loughborough Town residents seeking skills and enterprise support.
Reflecting on new, more collaborative ways of working, galvanised by the Loughborough Town Deal Jo explains, “It wasn't about making money, it was about doing the right thing and getting the right people around the table.”
Loughborough College, Loughborough University and Charnwood Borough Council’s shared philosophy of promoting social mobility, building aspiration and ambition has been crucial, says Professor Chris D Rielly, Dean of the School of Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering at the University.
“As universities we have lots of responsibilities and one of those is bringing benefit to the local community. That's not just with local businesses or research, it's also about working with local people, getting them into jobs and developing their business ideas.”
Jo and her team are now also looking at how they can work with Jobcentre Plus so people on Universal Credit can get support and address the gaps in their qualifications with careers advisors.
“It's about providing an end-to-end service from unemployment, right the way through to added skills and getting employed,” says Jo. “It's about those relationships, doing that hand in hand and making sure you're not creating barriers for people.”
A vision for the future
As part of the shared vision for these new partnerships, the future will see local communities heavily involved in the evolution of the project. “Working with businesses we want to continue to create volunteering opportunities and social value, so we can understand their needs and match our students and staff members to support those needs,” concluded Jo.
This story was written from conversations with Jo Maher, Town Deal Board member and Principal and Chief Executive of Loughborough College, and Professor Chris D Rielly, Dean of the School of Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering at the University.
Loughborough is one of 101 places invited by the Government to develop Town Deal proposals to deliver long-term economic recovery, clean growth, jobs and prosperity as part of the £3.6 billion Towns Fund. Loughborough has submitted a successful Town Investment Plan and secured a Town Deal of up to £16.9 million. Loughborough is currently developing business cases to take forward their Town Deal proposals.