• Contact
  • About
  • Authors
DONATE
NEWSLETTER SIGN UP
  • Login
East Anglia Bylines
  • HOME
  • News
    • All
    • Brexit
    • Education
    • Health
    • Welfare
    • World
    Cycling.

    Thirty for 30 – how to reduce your carbon footprint

    Oven ready social care plan

    AgeUK and ‘People at the heart of care’

    The UK Youth Parliament

    Should sixteen- and seventeen-year-olds be given the vote?

    Shopping for bargains.

    Savvy tips for cutting your food bill

    Templefields House

    ‘Big Bits of Ash Falling from the Sky’: What happens when your home is on an industrial estate and a warehouse fire breaks out?

    Urkrainian refugees at Warsaw Station

    The Homes for Ukraine scheme: really not “world-beating”

    Pirogov-emergency-team

    Norfolk help for the casualties of war

    A group of international students

    After Brexit: another lost opportunity for young people

    Dentist at work

    Emergency! Dental treatment in lockdown

    • Brexit
    • Health
    • Education
    • World
  • Opinion
  • Politics
    • Local government
    • Justice
    • Activism
  • Climate
    • Environment
  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Community
    • Culture
    • History
    • Humour
    Waiting on the phone.

    The scourge of automated telephone systems

    Pylons at Aldringham, Suffolk

    Shock as National Grid proposes 180km of new pylons across East Anglia

    Houses of Parliament

    Democracy and lack of accountability

    Cambridge Europe Day Fete

    Europe Day fête in Cambridge on 14 May

    Three Steampunks

    Imagining other worlds: steampunk in East Anglia

    Smiling Baby

    Twenty years: a staggering difference in life chances

    Shopping for bargains.

    Savvy tips for cutting your food bill

    Templefields House

    ‘Big Bits of Ash Falling from the Sky’: What happens when your home is on an industrial estate and a warehouse fire breaks out?

    Urkrainian refugees at Warsaw Station

    The Homes for Ukraine scheme: really not “world-beating”

    • Community
    • Culture
    • History
    • Humour
    • Property
  • Business
    • All
    • Economics
    • Finance
    • Transport
    Waiting on the phone.

    The scourge of automated telephone systems

    Hillman Ave. Jaywick

    40-year inflation high brings misery across the region

    Sugar beet

    As farmers suffer, is government’s sugar sell-out just to keep Tory donors sweet?

    Preston bus station

    Community wealth building

    Stansted Airport

    Are plans for Stansted Airport signs of a changing world?

    Snape

    The Ore and the Alde: smugglers, a merman and the home of seaside chic

    The Studio, Elstree

    Was dirty Russian money washed in a Herts public lavatory?

    Ukraine border boxes

    Freedom Boxes and Freedom Buses

    Sunak's wife claims to be non-domiciled

    Is the Chancellor’s wife really a non-dom?

    • Economics
    • Finance
    • Transport
    • Farming
  • ANGLIA
    • All
    • Anglia
    • Bedfordshire
    • Cambridgeshire
    • Essex
    • Hertfordshire
    • Norfolk
    • Suffolk
    Strumpshaw Fen Norfolk

    Is East Anglia’s ‘Blue Wall’ turning Green?

    Hillman Ave. Jaywick

    40-year inflation high brings misery across the region

    Duncan Baker

    Council leader appeals to MP to clean up politics for good after claimed death threats

    Norfolk County Hall

    EXCLUSIVE: shocking coup by Norfolk’s Tories

    Pylons at Aldringham, Suffolk

    Shock as National Grid proposes 180km of new pylons across East Anglia

    Mr Pecksniff (Social Media)

    Pecksniff’s Diary

    Cambridge Europe Day Fete

    Europe Day fête in Cambridge on 14 May

    Three Steampunks

    Imagining other worlds: steampunk in East Anglia

    Local election results in the East: good news for progressives?

    • East Anglia
    • Bedfordshire
    • Cambridgeshire
    • Essex
    • Hertfordshire
    • Norfolk
    • Suffolk
No Result
View All Result
  • HOME
  • News
    • All
    • Brexit
    • Education
    • Health
    • Welfare
    • World
    Cycling.

    Thirty for 30 – how to reduce your carbon footprint

    Oven ready social care plan

    AgeUK and ‘People at the heart of care’

    The UK Youth Parliament

    Should sixteen- and seventeen-year-olds be given the vote?

    Shopping for bargains.

    Savvy tips for cutting your food bill

    Templefields House

    ‘Big Bits of Ash Falling from the Sky’: What happens when your home is on an industrial estate and a warehouse fire breaks out?

    Urkrainian refugees at Warsaw Station

    The Homes for Ukraine scheme: really not “world-beating”

    Pirogov-emergency-team

    Norfolk help for the casualties of war

    A group of international students

    After Brexit: another lost opportunity for young people

    Dentist at work

    Emergency! Dental treatment in lockdown

    • Brexit
    • Health
    • Education
    • World
  • Opinion
  • Politics
    • Local government
    • Justice
    • Activism
  • Climate
    • Environment
  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Community
    • Culture
    • History
    • Humour
    Waiting on the phone.

    The scourge of automated telephone systems

    Pylons at Aldringham, Suffolk

    Shock as National Grid proposes 180km of new pylons across East Anglia

    Houses of Parliament

    Democracy and lack of accountability

    Cambridge Europe Day Fete

    Europe Day fête in Cambridge on 14 May

    Three Steampunks

    Imagining other worlds: steampunk in East Anglia

    Smiling Baby

    Twenty years: a staggering difference in life chances

    Shopping for bargains.

    Savvy tips for cutting your food bill

    Templefields House

    ‘Big Bits of Ash Falling from the Sky’: What happens when your home is on an industrial estate and a warehouse fire breaks out?

    Urkrainian refugees at Warsaw Station

    The Homes for Ukraine scheme: really not “world-beating”

    • Community
    • Culture
    • History
    • Humour
    • Property
  • Business
    • All
    • Economics
    • Finance
    • Transport
    Waiting on the phone.

    The scourge of automated telephone systems

    Hillman Ave. Jaywick

    40-year inflation high brings misery across the region

    Sugar beet

    As farmers suffer, is government’s sugar sell-out just to keep Tory donors sweet?

    Preston bus station

    Community wealth building

    Stansted Airport

    Are plans for Stansted Airport signs of a changing world?

    Snape

    The Ore and the Alde: smugglers, a merman and the home of seaside chic

    The Studio, Elstree

    Was dirty Russian money washed in a Herts public lavatory?

    Ukraine border boxes

    Freedom Boxes and Freedom Buses

    Sunak's wife claims to be non-domiciled

    Is the Chancellor’s wife really a non-dom?

    • Economics
    • Finance
    • Transport
    • Farming
  • ANGLIA
    • All
    • Anglia
    • Bedfordshire
    • Cambridgeshire
    • Essex
    • Hertfordshire
    • Norfolk
    • Suffolk
    Strumpshaw Fen Norfolk

    Is East Anglia’s ‘Blue Wall’ turning Green?

    Hillman Ave. Jaywick

    40-year inflation high brings misery across the region

    Duncan Baker

    Council leader appeals to MP to clean up politics for good after claimed death threats

    Norfolk County Hall

    EXCLUSIVE: shocking coup by Norfolk’s Tories

    Pylons at Aldringham, Suffolk

    Shock as National Grid proposes 180km of new pylons across East Anglia

    Mr Pecksniff (Social Media)

    Pecksniff’s Diary

    Cambridge Europe Day Fete

    Europe Day fête in Cambridge on 14 May

    Three Steampunks

    Imagining other worlds: steampunk in East Anglia

    Local election results in the East: good news for progressives?

    • East Anglia
    • Bedfordshire
    • Cambridgeshire
    • Essex
    • Hertfordshire
    • Norfolk
    • Suffolk
No Result
View All Result
East Anglia Bylines
No Result
View All Result

Kickstarting a green career

The government's Kickstart programme is helping young people into jobs. The scheme could help the green energy sector flourish.

Stephen McNairbyStephen McNair
August 18, 2021
in Environment, Norfolk, UK
Kickstarting a green career - Liam with a heat-pump. Photo by Stephen McNair

Kickstarting a green career - Liam with a heat-pump. Photo by Stephen McNair

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

We all make mistakes, especially when we are young. Brain science now tells us that many people don’t fully complete their brain development until the mid-20s. Yet, some of the mistakes young people make during that time will limit their chances for the rest of their lives. And it can be very difficult to get back on the straight and narrow.

So it is really encouraging to see someone take the decision to climb back on the ladder. That’s what Liam is doing. I met him when he came to help install my heat pump on his first day in a new job. He was articulate, and polite, with a nice sense of humour. And he was evidently keen to learn and enthusiastic about the work.

Looking for the lightbulb

He wasn’t always like this. At sixteen, Liam had a passion for music and drama. His acting was good, but writing essays pulled him back, and he left school with unremarkable GCSEs. He went to Norwich’s Access Creative College, where he got a Level 2 qualification in vocal music. He got into a talent show, but failed to turn up.

There was no great crisis; he just lost his way, moved out of the family home into the YMCA and hostels, and drifted into low skilled work. As he now says: “I didn’t have my head screwed on, I couldn’t find the lightbulb”.

Then, one day, the bulb lit. He can’t explain what pressed the switch, but he decided he had had enough of the life he was living and decided to get back into education, get a qualification and a proper career.

Enter Kickstart

And he found the government’s Kickstart scheme. Kickstart provides six months of funding for employers to create new jobs for 16 to 24 year olds who are on Universal Credit, and at risk of long term unemployment. Liam registered on the programme, and went looking for an employer.

The firm he found was Inspired Renewables in Acle, Norfolk. The firm was trying to expand, but struggling to find enough workers to cope with growing demand for green energy installations. Liam was one of three young people they took on under Kickstart, to join their existing 12 employees. They took him on, he got his driving licence, Kickstart funded him to get a proper set of tools, and his grandfather helped him to buy a motor bike so he could get to work anywhere. On his first day, he was out with one of the Inspired engineers helping to install an air source heat pump, watching and learning.

The green revolution

Green energy is a rapidly expanding business. The Guardian has just reported that the UK’s low carbon economy is already four times larger than manufacturing. Andy Glanville, Director of Inspired Renewables, said: “We have clearly got work, and I can’t find people to do it. So I have to find good young people, and train them up. Kickstart is one of the best programmes the government have come up with. It gives me a chance to have a proper look at potential recruits from people who we might never have considered, and get them onto proper apprenticeships. I am hopeful that all three of my Kickstarters will be able to develop a real career in a growing field. It’s good for them, for my business, and for the world.”

A good choice

Liam has now applied to Norwich City College to bring his key skills up to scratch so that he can start on a proper apprenticeship within the year. Inspired are helping him to sort out funding for courses. Although he still cares about drama and music, he says “that’s going to be more of a hobby”. He is now really focused on becoming a fully qualified plumber. We all know that the world needs more people with skills in green technologies. Liam has made a good career choice. We could do with a lot more like him.

Previous Post

A grounded industry: Covid hits Norwich Airport

Next Post

Archaeology in the Pandemic

Stephen McNair

Stephen McNair

Stephen McNair is retired and lives in Norfolk, where he is active in progressive politics. He spent most of his career working on education policy, especially adult education, at national and international level. He founded the Centre for Research into the Older Workforce, and chaired a European Scientific Research Committee on Demographic Change. Stephen is a member of the EAB editorial team.

Related Posts

Strumpshaw Fen Norfolk
Anglia

Is East Anglia’s ‘Blue Wall’ turning Green?

byJenny Rhodes
May 19, 2022
Waiting on the phone.
Business

The scourge of automated telephone systems

byMadge McClary
May 18, 2022
Hillman Ave. Jaywick
Anglia

40-year inflation high brings misery across the region

byStuart Burrell
May 18, 2022
Duncan Baker
Local government

Council leader appeals to MP to clean up politics for good after claimed death threats

byPeter Thurlow
May 17, 2022
Norfolk County Hall
Democracy

EXCLUSIVE: shocking coup by Norfolk’s Tories

byPeter Thurlow
May 17, 2022
Next Post
Ham Hill, Somerset. Photo by David Webb, reproduced with permission.

Archaeology in the Pandemic

Want to support us?

Can you help East Anglia Bylines to grow and become more sustainable with a regular donation, no matter how small?  

DONATE

Sign up to our newsletter

If you would like to receive the East Anglia Bylines regular newsletter, straight talking direct to your inbox, click the button below.

NEWSLETTER

LATEST

Strumpshaw Fen Norfolk

Is East Anglia’s ‘Blue Wall’ turning Green?

May 19, 2022
Waiting on the phone.

The scourge of automated telephone systems

May 18, 2022
Hillman Ave. Jaywick

40-year inflation high brings misery across the region

May 18, 2022
Duncan Baker

Council leader appeals to MP to clean up politics for good after claimed death threats

May 17, 2022

MOST READ

Norfolk County Hall

EXCLUSIVE: shocking coup by Norfolk’s Tories

May 17, 2022
Pylons at Aldringham, Suffolk

Shock as National Grid proposes 180km of new pylons across East Anglia

May 15, 2022
Duncan Baker

Council leader appeals to MP to clean up politics for good after claimed death threats

May 17, 2022
Hillman Ave. Jaywick

40-year inflation high brings misery across the region

May 18, 2022

Tags

Activism Brexit Business Cambridgeshire Climate Community Culture Democracy Development Devolution Economics Education Employment Environment Essex Farming Finance Health Humour Hymns International Women's Day Justice Letters Local elections 2022 Local government NHS Norfolk Opinion Pandemic Partygate Party politics Pecksniff Poetry Politics Poverty Property Rivers of East Anglia Science Sewage Sizewell Social care Suffolk Ukraine VAWG Welfare
East Anglia Bylines

East Anglia Bylines is a regional online newspaper that supports citizen journalism. Our aim is to publish well-written, fact-based articles and opinion pieces on subjects that are of interest to people in East Anglia and beyond.

Learn more about us

No Result
View All Result
  • About us
    • Contact us
    • Bylines Network
    • Complaints
    • Newsletter
    • Privacy Policy
    • Donate
    • Pecksniff’s Diary
  • UK
  • Anglia
  • About us
  • UK
  • Anglia

© 2022 East Anglia Bylines. Citizen Journalism | Local & Internationalist

No Result
View All Result
  • HOME
  • News
    • Brexit
    • Health
    • Education
    • World
  • Opinion
  • Politics
    • Local government
    • Justice
    • Activism
  • Climate
    • Environment
  • Lifestyle
    • Community
    • Culture
    • History
    • Humour
    • Property
  • Business
    • Economics
    • Finance
    • Transport
    • Farming
  • ANGLIA
    • East Anglia
    • Bedfordshire
    • Cambridgeshire
    • Essex
    • Hertfordshire
    • Norfolk
    • Suffolk

© 2022 East Anglia Bylines. Citizen Journalism | Local & Internationalist

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In