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PUPILS from schools in Sunderland have been given the inside track on the world of motor manufacturing, as part of a prize organised by one of the city’s leading companies.

At this year’s Work Discovery Week –where hundreds of young people from across the city were involved in a range of activities aimed at helping to boost their employability and build relationships with companies in the region – attendees took part in a competition organised by motor vehicle parts maker, Unipres UK.

The leading company was an exhibitor at the opening day careers fair held at the Stadium of Light, and as part of their interactive display asked pupils to guess the weight of a piece of equipment.

And last week the winners and runners up received their prizes, which included a trip to the factory at Cherry Blossom Way.

Overall winner was Allison Atkin from Thornhill School who attended the visit, along with joint runners-up Kaitlin Mason of Venerable Bede Academy and Josh Watson of Biddick Academy.

Rob Dodds, Apprentice co-ordinator at Unipres, said the visit had been a great success and praised the Work Discovery Sunderland programme.

“We had a great response from the schools at Work Discovery Week and with the winners who came to the factory,” said Rob.

“For us Work Discovery Week has been an excellent way for us to engage with schools in Sunderland which was very important to us and we’re looking forward to being involved in next year’s event.”

The winners met with key staff including Managing Director Gary Graham and were given a tour of the factory, along with watching a presentation about the company.

The prize winners also received a range of gifts including vouchers, cinema tickets and games.

Paul McEldon, co-chair of the Sunderland’s Economic Leadership Board Business Schools Task Group which set up Work Discovery Sunderland, said he was delighted to see the on-going support given by Unipres UK to the initiative.

“This was not only a great opportunity for these young people to see at first hand how a major company in the city works but it also shows the value of the Work Discovery Sunderland programme in building lasting relationships between employers and schools,” he said.

Work Discovery Week was launched in 2013 after the Business Schools Task Group identified a need for schools in Sunderland and businesses from across the region to have better relationships.

More than 1000 school pupils have been involved each year, taking part in activities ranging from a careers fair, business challenges, visits to companies, workshops and hands-on activities.

Many of the region’s biggest employers –including SAFC, Nissan, Gentoo, Sunderland University, Sunderland College and Arriva- support the event and its success has paved the way for a whole host of other activities including the sector days and guest speaker days.

Work Discovery Week is already planned for 2016 and will run from June 27 to July1.

Pic caption: Apprenticeship coordinator Rob Dodds from Unipres (UK) Ltd with Work Discovery Week participants (left to right) Samantha Wilby (15) and overall winner 16-year-old Allison Atkin along with Aariful Islam and Nicholas Chrisholm, all from Thornhill School.

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