HELPING young people to prepare for the working world was at the heart of an event which brought leaders from business and education together.

Up to 120 people, including representatives from AXA Wealth, AWE, Fujitsu, Baker Tilly and LG Motion, as well as some of the borough’s schools, attended the event at The Ark Conference Centre organised by Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council and the Basingstoke Consortium education charity.

Among the speakers were international labour market advisor Professor Mike Campbell and Councillor Peter Edgar, executive member for education at Hampshire County Council.

A panel took part in a debate and answered questions. On the stage were Basingstoke Consortium chairman Mike Rushworth, television presenter Maggie Philbin (who heads up TeenTech, which aims to help young people understand the opportunities available in science, technology, engineering and maths) Charlie Currie, headteacher of Brighton Hill Community School, Paul Riddell, head of strategic communications at AXA Wealth, and Hampshire Chamber president Andrew Finney.

The event was organised as part of ESIMeC – a European project funded under the URBACT programme – providing the opportunity to see what local schools and colleges are already doing to support their students in preparing for work, and what opportunities there are for businesses to get engaged.

It is hoped the event will generate more opportunities for work experience placements, volunteering opportunities, interview skills and mock interviews and employability workshops.

Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council leader Councillor Clive Sanders, who spoke at the event, was pleased with the enthusiasm towards forging a stronger relationship between business and education in the borough.

Cllr Sanders said: “This is an exciting time for Basingstoke and Deane with the multi-million-pound regeneration of Basing View and the attraction of high-profile companies to the borough.

“We have the location, we have the transport links, we have the office space and we have the quality of life – what we now want to ensure is that the borough’s workforce has the right skills and expertise to compete for these jobs.

“We are taking this innovative approach to invest in the future by joining our schools, colleges and local businesses together to help create jobs for local people and help our local businesses thrive.”

Mr Riddell said: “There certainly are some excellent examples of where business and education work together.

“However it was clear that there is still a mis-match in what our schools and colleges provide and what businesses need.

“For me, the most powerful part of the evening was the strong contributions from some of the younger members of the audience about the value they gained from their work experience opportunities.”

Mr Currie said: “It is clear to me that there is a genuine passion amongst educational institutions and businesses to work together creatively with commitment to ensure bright and productive futures for our young learners.”