North Norfolk Manufacturing Group hosts inaugural meeting

Date published: 18th July 2019

North Norfolk District Council, in collaboration with New Anglia Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering (NAAME), has launched the North Norfolk Manufacturing Group. The launch, hosted by Raptor Aerospace, was held at Scottow Enterprise Park and saw twenty five senior figures from a range of local manufacturing and engineering firms, as well as education and training providers come together to identify the challenges faced by the sector. The discussions and outcomes from the meeting will shape the future activities of the group so that it best serves the needs of the businesses within the district.

The businesses also heard from two promising UTC Norfolk students, Connor and Joe, who are currently working at Raptor as part of a two-week work placement. The Group were all impressed with the pair. Their enthusiasm and pride was clear for everyone to see, demonstrating the benefits of businesses working with young people through curriculum-led placements.

Cllr.Richard Kershaw, North Norfolk District Council’s Portfolio Holder for Economic and Career Development, said: “It was very pleasing to attend the meeting of NAAME kindly hosted by Raptor Aerospace. The number and quality of the businesses attending was good to see. It was apparent that there was an appetite for networking in the room. The overriding message that came out of the meeting was the need to find, encourage and retain staff and the need to establish appropriate training. It was very encouraging to see that the businesses who attended were all growing and innovative, something that needs to be publicised to awaken interest in the broader public arena.”

The Group will meet quarterly with the intention of addressing the challenges identified. This will be achieved through the sharing of best practice, the co-ordination of training, workshops and networking.

The next meeting date is set for the 16th of October 2019. Any interested businesses wishing to attend should contact the Economic Growth team at North Norfolk District Council.

Contact economic.growth@north-norfolk.gov.uk for more information.