Championing vocational education is broadcaster’s business

Like Ms McGovern, Chamber has become increasingly concerned that more investment in human capital is needed. Problems recruiting and retaining talent and a widening skills gap are recognised to be stalling business growth – a problem only exacerbated by the island’s ageing population.

Chamber invited her to Guernsey as a guest speaker for its annual dinner this week, but on her brief stop-over she decided to take the opportunity to connect with the local young workforce.

‘Vocational education is an under-represented, underfunded and really important part of our economy. I went to a school that was sponsored by industry, and that made a real difference to how well I’ve done in my life,’ she said.

‘It taught me about the world of work from a young age, and made me see that actually I do want to go out into industry and earn money and do well and be ambitious. And I don’t see enough of that across education.

‘I think there’s a problem with how we view vocational education compared to the purely academic route, and that is a problem for the economy – so that’s why I bang on about it all the time.’

Ms McGovern started an engineering career while still at school. In the sixth form she won an engineering scholarship and at the age of 19 was named Young Engineer for Britain before she went to work for Black+Decker.

But then she moved into journalism at the BBC and has gone on to host many different BBC shows, including BBC Breakfast as its main business presenter, and now co-hosts the popular podcast The Rest Is Money.

Justin Bellinger, a Chamber director and a former electronic engineering graduate, said that it was important to recognise that vocational training can match and exceed the difficulty of university education.

‘We’re just thrilled to have Steph over and showcase what we’ve got here, and really how we’re punching above our weight. It’s so, so important from an island skills perspective to have someone like Steph come and champion what we’re doing here. Not only for that pathway out of school into adult education, but more importantly, for people looking to get into a different career path at any time,’ he said.

One such person who has benefitted from a career switch is CA Duquemin’s 2024 Apprentice of the Year in carpentry and joinery, Clem Le Pelley. He referred to his apprenticeship qualification as a carpenter as his ‘freedom’.

He had initially travelled to London to study architecture at university after finishing his A-levels, but found that he was not enjoying his course. He started to look for something more ‘hands-on’ at home, and began helping a friend on a construction site.

‘Through that, I realised that I quite liked it, and so I got involved with the college doing carpentry and joinery. I wanted to do something where you see the results more quickly, so that’s why I love carpentry. You can physically see what you’re building, being built. It’s improving all the time,’ he said.

‘Now I’m qualified as a carpenter, I’ve got my piece of paper, which is my freedom. I can do what I want. As a qualified carpenter, you can go and work abroad. You can get a green card for Australia, New Zealand, places like that – not that I intend leaving.’

He noted that he would never discourage anyone from going to university, highlighting that Guernsey also needs graduates, but encouraged young people to recognise that there are many more career options accessible through The Guernsey Institute and apprenticeships on-island.