The London Veterans and Advisory Pensions Committee (VAPC) is encouraging veterans seeking employment to attend a series of career transition events, the first of which will be held on 2 October 2017.

The events are organised by companies who are working with the Veterans Employment Transition Support (VETS) programme. Alex Jablonowski of London VAPC and a member of the VETS steering committee said:

The VETS scheme continues to enrol substantial numbers of veterans seeking career opportunities. We also have a strong flow of mentors coming forward to advise and counsel those veterans. 37 signed up in just one week recently!

Job opportunities are continuing to grow and several new corporate partners have signed up in the past weeks who bring with them new roles and mentors.

In addition to the events mentioned below, new roles are constantly being added to the VETS Website and it is well worth looking at these and forthcoming events to view opportunities which you may not have considered.

The following events are designed for veterans interested in a career in financial services:

• 2 to 6 October 2017, Bishopsgate: free week’s training course on management consultancy in the financial services sector, for more information contact adam.libbey@bishopsgate-financial.com or telephone 0207 448 3000
• 20 October 2017, Barclays military cyber awareness: Barclays are already a major employer of veterans, and are offering a series of presentations about the different functions within Barclays and the roles available, for more information contact john.chantry2@barclays.com

VETS is a coalition of partners that have come together to support all veterans as they seek to find the right job. The coalition consists of a broad range of leading companies from across the commercial sector such as Barclays, Carillion, Deloitte, Jaguar Land Rover, the Ministry of Defence, the Career Transition Partnership as well as service charities.

VETS aims to join up the existing transition support initiatives into a single programme that significantly improves employment outcomes for veterans and businesses.

You can contact the VETS team at vetshub@barclayscorp.com or via the VETS website.

Secretary of State for Wales, Alun Cairns joined engineering apprentices from Aston Martin to promote the value of STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subject careers to pupils from St Athan Primary School on Monday 25 September.

This came as the luxury car manufacturer announced last year that its first Welsh-made cars will roll out of the St Athan factory in 2019, creating around 750 new jobs in the Vale of Glamorgan site, with a likely further 1,000 across the supply chain and local businesses.

Pupils were excited to come face to face with the brand new DB11 model and a Rapide S, as they learnt more about the work of the apprentices and history of the firm. Apprentices Luca Freemantle, Varun Mudan and Neath-born Adam Hill spoke to pupils about the company’s four-year scheme, and how they were looking forward to moving into the Welsh site over the next couple of years.

The new St Athan site will manufacture two four door models exclusive to Wales; the Rapide E electric model and the DBX, Aston Martin’s first ‘crossover’ sports utility vehicle.

Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns said:

Aston Martin’s move to Wales is hugely significant in making St Athan an important centre of employment, bringing with it valuable skills and a lasting legacy for the entire region.

I hope that pupils like these will take an interest in STEM subjects to become the apprentices, manufacturers and business leaders of the future, contributing to the UK’s rich automotive export history, and making Wales a great place to invest and do business.

Aston Martin’s decision to invest in Wales shows that we are creating and supporting the right conditions for industry investment. The UK Government’s comprehensive industrial strategy will build on that success, ensuring that we have the right infrastructure, skills and support in place for our world-leading industries as well as support for new emerging sectors to flourish.

The Prime Minister began by re-stating her wish for a bold and unique new economic partnership with the EU, based on a joint commitment to free trade and high standards.

Returning to the theme of her speech in Florence last week, the PM said the UK and the EU should be imaginative and creative about the way this new relationship is established. The PM said she was optimistic about a joint future which benefits both the EU and the UK.

President Tusk welcomed the PM’s speech, which he described as constructive in progressing talks between the UK and the 27 member states.

The PM and President Tusk welcomed the good progress that had been made on citizens’ rights in the talks so far, and restated their commitment to finding a positive solution to the issue of the border between Northern Ireland and Ireland.

The PM also stressed the importance of agreeing a period of implementation once Britain leaves the EU in March 2019. She said this would build a bridge to that new relationship that ensures the process is smooth and orderly and creates as much certainty as possible for everyone.

At the end of the meeting, the PM said her Florence speech had been intended to create momentum in the ongoing talks. She said it was important for EU negotiators to now respond in the same spirit.

Decommissioning of the former used fuel cooling ponds at Oldbury site has reached a major milestone.