SKILLS MINISTER OPENS NEW KIDDERMINSTER ACADEMY
Matthew Hancock MP unveils £10M makeover for Academy to equip young people with vital qualifications in software and electronic systems
10 October 2012, Birmingham, UK - Samsung Electronics UK, a global leader in digital media and convergence technologies, today invited business and skills minister Matthew Hancock MP to officially open the Samsung Experience Academy at Kidderminster Academy after a £10 million regeneration programme to better equip students with the skills to thrive in the UK’s high tech industries.
The Academy based at the Piano Building, Weaver’s Wharf features new state of the art Samsung technology which provides students the opportunity to study for City and Guild’s Level 2 and 3 NVQs, Higher National Certificates and Higher Professional Diplomas. Courses cover a broad range of disciplines from fashion to hospitality and software applications development.
The skills and entrepreneurial academy is an innovative collaboration with industry and will create a wider and better choice of education and training for learners and employers in the Wyre Forest Region. The facilities are amongst the very best in the country with industry standard kitchens, fashion labs, gaming labs, interactive digital media suites and the Samsung Experience to allow the learners to gain real industry experiences.
Commenting on the opening of the Samsung Experience Academy, the Principal and Chief Executive of Birmingham Metropolitan College, Dr Christine Braddock CBE, added: “We’re delighted that Samsung has chosen to extend their commitment to our students and to the regeneration of the region. We share an understanding of the value a skilled and trained workforce can deliver back to businesses and that innovative collaborations with global firms such as Samsung are key to enhancing employment opportunities.”
Skills Minister Matthew Hancock said: "I am delighted to open this state-of-the-art academy which will equip young people with the skills to keep our digital and creative sector thriving.
"High-tech industries strengthen our global competitiveness and are important drivers of growth. It is centres like the Samsung academy that will ensure the future workforce is at the forefront of technological innovation."
The investment is the latest step in Samsung’s collaboration with Birmingham Metropolitan College which already houses two cutting edge Academies dedicated to provide training for Smart devices, such as Samsung’s Smart TVs and digital appliances including the Ecobubble washing machine and Dual Cook oven.
The Samsung Experience Academy will be a hub for the delivery of qualifications to meet the ever growing skills demand in new technologies such as Samsung’s 3D Smart TV products and handheld devices. A growing collection of Apps is now available on Samsung Smart devices including ITV Player, BBC iPlayer, Rightmove, Muzu.tv, Facebook and Twitter, giving viewers a huge choice of content and entertainment. ‘Samsung Apps’ is the first and biggest Apps store available, with over 20 million Apps already downloaded worldwide, proof that consumers are rapidly embracing the Smart TV and mobile phone format.
The sophistication of consumer electronics appliances is rapidly increasing, with innovation heavily dependent on the availability of skilled software engineers to develop the applications that run these devices and specialist staff to oversee diagnostics and testing to ensure they function in the real world.
Samsung’s investment in the 16-19 age group for vocational qualifications in high tech industry closely supports the Government’s skills agenda helping to tackle rising levels of youth unemployment by providing skills matched to future jobs needs. All technology training is endorsed and accredited by Samsung and is carried out in collaboration with leading global and UK software houses.
Andy Griffiths, Managing Director of Samsung Electronics UK & Ireland said: “Samsung is committed to creating opportunities for the next generation through access to technology and skills development. The next decade will see our lives increasingly shaped by Smart devices and in the UK we see innovation and talent which we are keen to unlock, by investing today to support the technology of tomorrow.”
The first students have already joined the Academy in Kidderminster and will be fully equipped to enter the workforce in 2014.
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Notes to Editors:
About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies with 2011 consolidated sales of US$143.1 billion. Employing approximately 206,000 people in 197 offices across 72 countries, the company operates two separate organisations to coordinate its nine independent business units: Digital Media & Communications, comprising Visual Display, Mobile Communications, Telecommunication Systems, Digital Appliances, IT Solutions, and Digital Imaging; and Device Solutions, consisting of Memory, System LSI and LED. Recognised for its industry-leading performance across a range of economic, environmental and social criteria, Samsung Electronics was named the world’s most sustainable technology company in the 2011 Dow Jones Sustainability Index. For more information, please visit www.samsung.com.
About Birmingham Metropolitan College
Birmingham Metropolitan College are one of the leading providers of further and higher education in the West Midlands, providing a wide range of education and training programmes in central and north Birmingham. The curriculum specialises in the delivery of high level technology and advanced manufacturing training which includes digital, environmental and low carbon technology along with medical provision in pharmaceutical, dental nursing and podiatry. For more information, please visit www.bmetc.ac.uk
For more media information please contact:
Shobby Patel, Kidderminster Academy
Telephone 0121 355 5671 ext. 5788 or 07970 268522
Or email:
CONTACT:
SAMSUNG UK Press Office
Red Consultancy
Tel: 0207 025 6620
Email:
Alix Vonk
SAMSUNG UK
Tel: 07918 765969
Email:
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