↑ fuelling futures launch day
@theleapbd
launch day
Imaginations were revved up and passions were ignited as school pupils from across Bradford district took part in the Fuelling Futures launch day at City Hall (July 14).
The campaign, run by The Leap in partnership with bradford college and bradford council, is supported and funded by Sir Lewis Hamilton’s charity mission 44 – in fact a few of the young wannabes even got to meet the man himself in the run up to the event on a trip to Silverstone, the home of the British Formula One Grand Prix.
what happened?
The Fuelling Futures launch day started with a showcase of modified cars from The Precious Metal with support from local business Oasis and the Bradford Modified Car Club. All of whom have thousands of members, all with one thing in common – a love of cars and car culture.
There was quite a buzz around City Hall and Centenary Square as the cars and car fans lined up for photos and filming, before heading inside for a day of motoring-related activities.
Mohammed Ali Younis was there to talk to young people about channelling their passion for all things automotive into a career in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths) related professions or motorsports.
He said: “I thought it was important to come down and support the young people in being productive around cars, not only just looking at cars, but learning about engineering and the Formula One side of thing.
“They're whizzing (remote controlled cars) around the track, enjoying themselves, having the time of their life, not only just learning about how to drive a Formula One car, but what goes into it, the skills, the engineering, which is the most vital part about driving.
”These kinds of events help divert that energy that young people have into something positive and that's the most spectacular and amazing part. It's about diverting that energy, promoting safe spaces for young people to come and enjoy themselves and educate themselves about cars and what it really means to be a car enthusiast.
“We are inspiring young minds here. Maybe somebody here could end up on the Formula One team, building a race winning car or a championship winning car. It would be not just their dream come true, it would be my dream come true.”
A large part of the day was spent in workshops, run by specialist STEM educator RC Vision, with young people able to race remote controlled cars around a track, build and test ramps and a scrambling course for them, and learn all about the engineering magic that goes into building a racing car.
Here’s what some of the young attendees at the Fuelling Futures launch had to say:
Amairah Dawood (18): ‘I didn’t really anything about the engineering of cars before today. I’m currently learning to drive. Being here today does excite me. From a young age I’ve grown up around cars, and we have had some nice cars in the family. My dream car isn’t expensive, it’s fun. My dream job in cars would be building my own cars, going into manufacturing.”
Umar Mahmood: ‘The Radio Controlled car activity is fun. My dream career is something in motorsports, the engineering behind Formula One. I’m learning loads here today, more than usual at school. It does make me want to pursue things further.’
Jawairiya Malikah (16) : Going to Silverstone made me get more intrigued about cars, and by coming here I can learn more. I do like cars. I come from a family with boys who all grew up around loving cars and fast cars, but not a lot of girls go into this type of stuff. Silverstone sparked the interest in me more. When I went there, I met a few girls who are part of a group there. I was excited to learn about what opportunities might be out there and to speak to some of the girls working at Silverstone . The best bit about today he been being able to drive the radio-controlled cars!’
Kelly McAllister, head of apprenticeships and business development at bradford college, said the day was a great way to start “raising aspirations and inspiring the younger generation”.
“The Leap is doing an amazing job in terms of shining a light on that,” she said.
“Bradford College will then be supporting them into working with employers and moving to sustainable employment through the apprenticeship route within those industries.
“One important thing for us is around giving (women and girls) the confidence to feel as though they can apply for apprenticeships and enter what I think is perceived as quite a male dominated industry.
“And we know that automotive has a long history within Bradford and there's an awful lot of interest for young people around that. So it's been great to get them here today and see them learn a little bit more.”
Sabir Musaji, Fuelling Futures lead for The Leap, says:
“We want to take the passion that young people in Bradford have for cars and car culture and steer it towards an educational outcome. And I think the Fuelling Futures launch day helped us make a great start.
“On the day we had a a couple of young people who had dropped out of school, who came to the event, learnt about the opportunities and careers in STEM. They immediately wanted to access them – and they have signed up for the Bradford College apprenticeships.
“If we can change one- or two-people’s hearts and minds, then that’s a fantastic start for Fuelling Futures.”
