Work is underway on innovative new Skills Street project in South Yorkshire

Building work on South Yorkshire’s new innovative and immersive careers experience, Skills Street is underway.

The project, part of a winning bid secured by Rotherham Council through the Government’s Levelling Up Fund, will be built on the site of the UK’s newest theme park, Gulliver’s Valley.

Representatives from Skills Street partners Gulliver’s Valley Theme Park, The Work-wise Foundation and The Source Skills Academy were joined by Rotherham Council on site to mark the vital step forward in the development of this transformative project that will change the way the region delivers work related experiences and training for young people, schools, families, and educators.

Skills Street, which is expected to open in 2024, will be a new hands-on approach to developing, growing, and honing skills with the aim of inspiring and informing children, young people and adults about the world of work and careers.

This interactive centre will be a Centre of Excellence to learn about the world of work across all sectors and industries.

Julie Dalton, managing director of Gulliver’s Valley said: “We are so proud to be taking the next step in creating this vital asset for the region.

“We have been thrilled by the support from the local business community and educators to date and can’t wait to have a building to show them round.

“Skills Street will be a real game changer for the pipeline of employment in the region. This project will be amazing because it is a collaborative project and from day one, we’ve been asking and listening.

“This fully immersive street will see us working with children from the ages of five upwards. We need to start harnessing the excitement that our younger children have and developing that from an early age.

“South Yorkshire is a home to some amazing organisations, and we are looking forward to working with them as we showcase this new engaging, innovative experience developed to inspire and inform children, young people, and adults from across the region.”

John Barber, CEO of the Work-wise Foundation added: “We know that Skills Street will not only inspire our young people as they are shown the amazing world of work and career opportunities available in the South Yorkshire area, it will do this in a fun and exciting way with a team of edutainers bringing the opportunities to life and showcase the opportunities on offer and skills needed to succeed.

“Skills Street will provide hands on experiences for children, young people and adults, of all ages, from across South Yorkshire.

“This is going to be wonderful for our region and is one of the most exciting projects to happen in the field of skills and careers for young people in our region for a long time.”

The project is part of a £20 million pound investment secured by Rotherham Council to help improve the leisure economy and skills in Rotherham. Other attractions also benefiting from the Levelling Up funding include Wentworth Woodhouse, Thrybergh Country Park, Rother Valley Country Park, Magna and Maltby Learning Trust.

At Skills Street children and young people will be able to walk into a bank and learn about the different roles and skills needed to work in the financial sector, or step into an engineering environment and have a go at designing or making a product. retail shops will enable customer service and money taking skills to be practiced and leisure and hospitality outlets will demonstrate the skills needed to succeed in these careers – all through hands on play, practice and performance.

Tricia Smith, Chief Executive, The Source Academy, said: “We are thrilled to see work underway on the building of Skills Street. We are involved in this project because we believe in the young people of South Yorkshire and we believe that we can support business to drive and innovate curriculum development, work experience and the education of young people.

“Skills Street will be an amazing space where individuals, families, schools and the community will be able to explore the great opportunities for careers and training in the region in a relaxed and informal setting.

“We’re working with local businesses to ensure that the jobs and careers on offer locally are not only showcased but that the skills needed to fulfil these roles are learned from a very early age.”

Businesses wanting to get involved with Skills Street can contact the Skills Street Development Manager, James Beighton via [email protected]

To find out more about Skills Street visit https://skills-street.co.uk/