Tag: Jobs

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North East closing employment gap – good progress but work still to be done

Richard Baker, North East LEP Head of Strategy and Policy, today welcomed the latest employment figures which revealed the continuing rise in the number of people in work in the region.
The Office for National Statistics data shows a record high employment rate in the North East standing at 71.1% – continuing to close the gap with the national average rate over the past year by two percentage points – and within 2% of the target set in the Strategic Economic Plan.

While unemployment grew slightly nationally between June and August this year, it fell in the North East by 8,000 people.

“These latest statistics show continued progress towards the target we set in the Strategic Economic Plan of growing the number of jobs in the North East economy and closing the employment rate gap with the national average,” said Richard.

“Other recent evidence suggests that almost 60% of the North East jobs growth is in higher productivity roles. Clearly, there are concerns about making sure that people in less stable employment can progress into more stable jobs and we will be looking at provisional figures in this part of the labour market carefully.

“The overall picture though from today’s statistics is good news for the North East in that there are more employment opportunities for people who are finding work to move out of unemployment and into work.

“Unemployment over the past year has seen a marked and welcome fall – down by 20,000 people which is an 18.8% rate fall compared to a 2.7% decline nationally.”

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Durham University recruiting for three Energy PhD posts

Durham University is currently recruiting for three Energy PhD posts to support its work in Offshore Renewable Energy and Offshore Wind Energy.

Full details, including deadlines dates for applications, are available below. Applications can be made online at: https://www.dur.ac.uk/postgraduate/study/apply/

Vacancy for Collaborative PhD with Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult

A PhD studentship is available for research into offshore investment planning under severe uncertainty, at the School of Engineering & Computing Sciences, and the Department Mathematical Sciences, Durham University. Support and active involvement will come from the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult, which has facilities in Blyth, Glasgow and Fife.

The aim of the project is to investigate investment planning over a wide range of technology options by formulating a set of decision problems taking into account severe uncertainties in both operational and environmental data. The potential candidate will have a good degree (normally first class or equivalent) undergraduate or MSc degree in Engineering, Mathematics, or Statistics. A good background in Statistics is required.

For more information about this opportunity please do not hesitate to contact Dr B Kazemtabrizi ([email protected]), or Dr M Troffaes ([email protected]) as soon as possible and preferably before 23rd September 2016. Proposed start date is 1st October 2016 but there is flexibility.

For further information about this opportunity go to http://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/AON868/phd-studentship-offshore-transmission-systems-asset-management-under-severe-uncertainty/

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Vacancy for 2 PhD studentships in Data Mining Wind Farm Operational and Maintenance data funded through DONG Energy

Off shore wind energy is one of the fastest growing sectors, with major new projects planned within European waters as well as further afield. These new wind farm developments are sited further off shore than ever before (the Round 3 wind farm projects in the North Sea are some 200km off shore).

This presents new challenges in terms of maintenance and repair: the cost of going on site is significantly greater (both financially and time).

These two linked PhD projects will develop novel data mining methods to maximise the information gathered from wind turbines’ sensor arrays. The aim is to be able to identify that a wind turbine is developing a fault well in advance of that fault becoming sufficiently severe that it prevents the wind turbine from operating. Given this advanced warning, a wind farm operator is then able to organise maintenance and identify a good weather window to carry that maintenance out.

These projects will be undertaken with close collaboration with DONG Energy (Danish Oil and Natural Gas, one of the largest wind farm operators globally).

These PhD studentships are available to Home and EU students. Please contact Dr Peter Matthews ([email protected]) for further information preferably before 30th September.

For further information go to https://www.findaphd.com/search/ProjectDetails.aspx?PJID=73802&LID=427

Durham University’s online application link can be found at https://www.dur.ac.uk/postgraduate/study/apply/

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Why a Smart Specialisation strategy is delivering more and better jobs for the North East

If I were to ask a group of undergraduates what career they’d like to go into, chances are they’d start by choosing a job involving the things they’re good at. It’s a very sensible approach; playing to one’s strengths.

In a way we’ve adopted a similar approach here at the North East Local Enterprise Partnership. Our Smart Specialisation strategy for the region is focused on sectors we believe we’re the best at. By focusing on our strengths we will not only provide strong economic growth, but also deliver more and better jobs for the North East – our primary goal.

In December 2013 the North East LEP published its Smart Specialisation report, which identified the four key areas of industry that would make up our smart specialisation areas. They are:

− Passenger Vehicle Manufacturing
− Subsea and Offshore Technology
− Life Sciences and Healthcare
− Creative, Digital, Software and Technology Based Services

Why these particular industries? Because we believe they provide the greatest potential for economic growth in the North East, both now and in the future.

One of the greatest advantages to identifying smart spec areas is the ability to focus investment. Without a strategic vision, funding can be spread too thinly across a range of industries, which ultimately waters down its impact. As we bid for more European and national funding it’s important we can ensure it has a real, measurable impact. Focusing investment into our growth areas is one of the ways we can ensure that.

Another benefit is increased inward investment. If we want to see more businesses locate here and invest in our region its important we showcase the things we’re good at. Our defined smart spec areas make it clear to potential investors that we have a strategic economic plan for the North East, one that will see our economy grow.

We’re currently in the process of segmenting our smart spec areas even more. These subsectors really shine a light on the specific areas we excel at. For example, life sciences cover a whole gamut of specialties. By breaking these down into subsectors we can really focus our efforts on key strength areas.

Ultimately what we want to achieve is more and better jobs for the North East. Here at the North East LEP we believe our Smart Specialisation strategy can help us do that. It has the support of the business community; it gives our region a clear proposition and its building confidence in our economy.

By Hans Möller, Innovation Director at the North East Local Enterprise Partnership

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North East LEP seeking Government assurances on EU structural funding

The North East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) is seeking reassurance that European (EU) funded projects already signed off by Government will continue to be delivered.

To date, the North East LEP area has £89.5million of its £437million EU structural funding committed to projects for the 2014-2020 period.

A further £104.5million worth of projects were put forward to Government for approval in advance of the Referendum.

Collectively these projects will support over 7,400 businesses across the North East LEP area, which covers Durham, Northumberland and Tyne and Wear, driving growth and job creation.

The funding will also support almost 30,000 local people into employment and provide those in employment with the skills they need to progress in work.

Chair of the North East LEP Andrew Hodgson said: “We are hopeful that these projects will be honoured by Government and deliver important support to businesses and local people before Brexit happens.

“It is important to realise we will not be immediately losing the opportunities that EU funding has historically brought to the North East.

“Millions of pounds of projects are still likely to go ahead, bringing new jobs and closing the skills gap in the North East. The truth is that we just don’t know yet if or when we will see changes.

“EU funding has hugely benefitted the North East over the last few decades and we are lobbying Government for clarity and seeking assurances that any potential future funding gap will be filled. We urge the Government to provide this guidance quickly to ensure opportunities to create jobs and growth are not lost.”

There is no formal Government guidance available currently following the EU Referendum result on the amount of European funding that will be available in the future for North East businesses and organisations beyond the projects already approved.

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Come and work at the North East LEP

The North East Local Enterprise Partnership is currently recruiting for two new full-time roles, to help us deliver more and better jobs in the North East.

First is a fixed term contract for an ESIF (European Structural Investment Funds) Programme Manager.

The successful candidate will work with partners and raise awareness of the 2014-2020 ESIF programmes across the North East.

This will include running regional events to promote the launch of project calls, coordinating and supporting local partners with their local ESIF events, and supporting local partners in the development and management of a robust pipeline of ESIF projects that will support the delivery of the ESIF Operational Programmes, the North East LEP area ESIF Strategy and the Strategic Economic Plan.

To apply for this position or to find out more about the role, please click here. The closing date for applications is Friday 24 June.

We are also currently recruiting for a permanent Skills for Business Manager to join the new North East LEP executive team.

The successful candidate will take the lead in identifying what businesses within the North East require both now and in the future for businesses and the economy to grow. The post holder will work with business and education providers to design and implement a demand led skill strategy.

To apply for this position or to find out more about the role, please click here. The closing date for applications is Wednesday 29 June.

We look forward to hearing from you.

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Manufacturing and service sector growth underpinning record numbers in work

A continued surge in North East jobs is being fuelled by manufacturing and the service sector, today’s Labour Market statistics reveal.

North East LEP Chief Economist Chris Milne pointed to record employment statistics being driven by both the manufacturing and service sectors, as the North East narrowed the employment rate gap with the UK to 3.7 percentage points.

The percentage of people aged between 16 and 64 in employment in the North East in the latest quarter between October and December 2015 stands at a record 70.4%, up 2.1 percentage points on the previous quarter.

A total of 1.2m people are now in work in the North East – the highest ever recorded figure.

The final quarter of 2015 also saw the UK employment rate rise by 0.4 percentage points to 74.1%.

Today’s figures show that there are 9,000 more jobs in manufacturing and 28,000 more in the service sector, the two main sectors driving new employment growth in the region.

Unemployment is down 0.4 percentage points in the last quarter and people claiming Job Seekers Allowance is also down.

Economic inactivity has also fallen in the same period, down by 2.1 percentage points in the last quarter.

The statistics reveal that more people want to work and the number of people citing both long and short-term sickness as a reason for inactivity has fallen.

Chris said: “While we must not get carried away by short term fluctuations in statistics, today’s labour market figures give us reason for optimism.

“We are seeing a longer term trend towards an improved labour market picture in the North East, driven by job creation in a broad range of sectors.

“Manufacturing job growth demonstrates growing demand for the things we produce in the region and service sector job creation indicates broader economic growth and a sense of prosperity.

“Over the past year private service sector job growth in administration and support services and accommodation and food services has been particularly important, delivering 19,000 more jobs combined.

“The service sector will remain an important sector for economic growth of the region, and has more than compensated for public sector job losses over the past year.”

Chris continued: “Labour market inactivity has been a real challenge for the North East economy and with the national economy reaching full employment, it is essential that we get more people back into the labour market so that we can take advantage of economic growth opportunities.

“At 23.3%, we now have the lowest inactivity rate since the second quarter of 2014, where we hit an all-time low of 22.9%. We still need to do more to get people aged 50 plus back into work with a third of those in the inactive group.

“However, looking at today’s figures against a backdrop of strong GVA growth over the past few years we can see that the North East is on the up and good progress is being made towards achieving what we have set out in our strategic economic plan; 100,000 more jobs by 2024.”