In This Section:
Schools & Colleges
Employers
Students & Parents
For all the news on Diploma Development as it happens…
Plus remember if you sign up for the Manufacturing Diploma newsletter you can receive all the latest news and events direct to your inbox. Click here to register for the newsletter.
Businesses in Norfolk to lead delivery of pioneering new qualification
posted on 20th Mar 2008
School pupils in Norfolk hoping to make a career in manufacturing will be among the first in the country to be offered a pioneering new qualification – which local companies are being urged to get involved with.
A consortium of local schools and colleges has teamed up to win the right to begin delivering the Diploma in Manufacturing and Product Design from September 2009. The partnership is one of 27 across England given the go-ahead to start teaching the diploma.
The Diploma in Manufacturing and Product Design is one of 17 new diplomas for 14-19-year-olds which will be available to all pupils in England by 2013. It is intended to give pupils a solid understanding of how the manufacturing sector works and equip them with the skills they will need to pursue a career in the industry.
Derek Jones, head of the project team charged with developing the manufacturing diploma, said: “This is great news for all manufacturing companies in Norfolk. They now have the chance to get young people excited about their industry, to pass on the key skills they need in the work place, and to directly inspire them in their future career choices.
“The input of local businesses, especially SMEs, will be absolutely vital in bringing the diploma to life. There are plenty of different ways to engage with the diploma, from offering work placements, to devising projects and giving talks to pupils. Employers are also needed to work with teachers and lecturers, and help to keep them up-to-date with industry practices.”
Mr Jones continued: “The consortia of schools and colleges which have been approved to deliver the diploma have had to undergo a rigorous vetting procedure to ensure they are ready to teach what is a very progressive and far-reaching qualification.
“We believe the manufacturing diploma will have a lot of appeal for teachers and pupils, and will become a popular choice. There is room to specialise in creative areas such as marketing and design, and it will help bring science and maths to life in the classroom. Instead of just learning theory from a textbook, pupils will be able to study how, for example, oil gets used to make plastics and other materials, how medicines and pharmaceuticals are made, what goes into our food and how it impacts on health, and how to programme a computer to control engineering processes. At the end of it all, students will have the foundations to pursue a career in any number of vibrant, dynamic and highly lucrative industries.”
As part of the diploma, pupils will be taught core topics of business and enterprise, product design, materials science and process technologies, alongside courses in maths, English and ICT. An extensive range of optional modules in specialised subjects will also be available to provide a deeper knowledge of the different manufacturing sub-sectors.
Pupils taking the diploma will spend the majority of their time in school but will take some classes at college for more specialist areas of study. The diploma is available at three levels – foundation, which is equivalent to five GCSEs; higher, equivalent to seven GCSEs; and advanced, equivalent to three-and-a-half A-Levels. From 2011, there will be the option to undertake an extended diploma at each level, which will offer additional academic modules.
The Diploma in Manufacturing and Product Design is being rolled out as part of the second tranche of diplomas, following the first five which are due to be introduced in September this year. Further consortia of schools, colleges and employers in Norfolk will be invited to deliver the manufacturing diploma from 2010 and beyond, broadening its reach across the county.
Details of the successful consortia can be found at http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/14-19.