The Aviation Minister met with young female
students at Stansted Airport College ahead of International
Women’s Day to see some of the work London Stansted Airport does
to encourage girls into aviation careers.
The Minister, who is calling on the aviation sector to address
the shortage of women in aviation-related careers, was welcomed
by college students as well as visiting girls from Thaxted
Primary School. Also in attendance were female apprentices and
women on the MAG graduate scheme.
She spoke about career ideas with the younger children and met
female students who are all studying aviation-specific courses at
the newly-opened college on-site at London Stansted.
easyJet pilot Sarah Smartt was also on hand to talk to the
students about her career as a pilot and to answer their
wide-range of questions.
Aviation Minister said: “Aviation employs more
than 230,000 people across the UK, but it’s vital that the sector
makes the best use of talent in this country.
“There are already some great initiatives underway to attract
more women into the industry, but we need to do more. Last
week I had the pleasure of seeing first-hand the work London
Stansted does through its range of education programmes, which
have helped inspire thousands of women and young girls over the
last three years.
“Ahead of this year’s International Women’s Day, we are calling
on the aviation industry to pledge action to address this gap.”
Liz Austin, HR Director at London Stansted Airport, said:
“Encouraging more girls into aviation-related careers is
something London Stansted fully supports, and we welcome the
government’s drive to increase the number of women in these
roles.
“Stansted Airport College was created to build pipeline of future
talent and works hard to promote the many exciting opportunities
open to girls in aviation, from engineering to cabin crew. Along
with our Aerozone education centre for younger children, we’re
proud of the part London Stansted is playing in inspiring the
next generation of the aviation workforce and look forward to
seeing an increase in the representation of women in all
sectors.”
Karen Spencer, Principal of Stansted Airport College, said:
“We had an amazing day leading up to International Women’s Day at
Stansted Airport College. Our trainees and apprentices were
joined by Year 3 girls from Thaxted Primary School, female
aviation graduates, easyJet pilot Sarah Smartt and the Aviation Minister,
to celebrate the exciting opportunities offered by the industry.
“With around only 8% of engineers and pilots being females it’s
really important to work with girls from an early age to inspire
them to think about aviation and STEM. All our young visitors
left the building buzzing with questions and a desire to learn
more.”
