GREATER Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham was the guest speaker at
Greater Manchester Chamber’s Annual Business Dinner held at Victoria
Warehouse, Old Trafford.
Mr Burnham looked back on his first year in office and the key issues facing
Greater Manchester.
In her speech, Chamber President Jane Boardman focused on the launch of
her Future of Skills 2028 campaign, which aims to equip young people with
the right skills for the future workplace.
She said: “Skills, endeavor, the right opportunities and clear guidance need
to come together to ensure our young people succeed. These will secure the
UK’s global success and, in turn, secure the future growth and productivity
of our local economy here in Greater Manchester.”
She said many employers were concerned about how unprepared young
people are when entering the world of work.
“We see these ‘oven ready’ young people, products of the education system
with fantastic grades but who are poorly equipped for the workplace. We
also see bright young people who have average grades and the aspiration
and motivation to achieve more but no idea where to start.
“And then we see those that have no working role models, no grades and,
frankly right now, no hope of changing their situation. We need mechanisms
to help all these people achieve their potential, whatever their background
and wherever in Greater Manchester they are from.”
The evening also saw Jo Clements announced as the winner of this year’s
Greater Manchester Arts Prize for her video ‘Unit for’. The prize aims to
connect contemporary visual artists to the business community, provide
opportunities for national and international recognition, and to retain artistic
talent in Greater Manchester.
The winner and runners were presented with their awards and received
vouchers from Fred Aldous and paper products from GF Smith.
The dinner was hosted by comedian Andrew Ryan with music from Twisted
Tubes, Manchester Camerata and DJ Craig Charles.