APPENDIX 1
Atlantic Gateway
Major Projects and future Career Opportunities
First Draft
May 2014
Background
The Atlantic Gateway is an area of the UK where great economic change and opportunity
are beginning to take hold. The Atlantic Gateway which stretches from the start of the
Mersey Estuary, along the Ship Canal and into Greater Manchester, is a place which is
seeing transformational projects being designed and implemented.
These major development opportunities currently being advanced along the Atlantic
Gateway will create opportunities for new jobs and new career opportunities.
The changes are likely to mean that demand will emerge for new skills, and new career
opportunities will exist for the benefit of a wider pool of residents. Recognising the
nature of these new opportunities, and reviewing the type of skills and attributes
required to secure these new roles, should form a key part of planning the future
provision of skills training, careers advice, and should shape how individuals make
choices about their own learning.
For students making choices about which options they take during their secondary
education (11-18) and the choices that face them for their tertiary education (18+) it is
important they consider how those choices can influence their future choice of
occupation.
It is apparent that a wide number of opportunities will open up for those with STEM
(Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) skills and qualifications.
Equally, a wide range of semi-skilled and customer facing roles will also become
available as new development takes place.
There are major growth areas along the Atlantic Gateway, and where there is growth
there are increased opportunities for employment.
The Key Project Factsheets
1.
Airport related opportunities in the Atlantic Gateway
Manchester Airport
Manchester Airport Enterprise Zone
Liverpool Airport
World Cargo Centre LJLA
2.
Port related opportunities in the Atlantic Gateway
Port of Liverpool Atlantic Terminal
Port Wirral
Port Bridgewater
Ellesmere Port Docks
Port Salford
3.
Opportunities in the Enterprise Zones in the Atlantic Gateway
Wirral Waters Enterprise Zone
Liverpool Waters Enterprise Zone
Liverpool City Enterprise Zone
Daresbury Enterprise Zone
4.
Opportunities in Logistics in the Atlantic Gateway
3MG
Omega
5.
Opportunities in the Media and Digital in the Atlantic Gateway
6.
Opportunities in building and maintaining new infrastructure in the
Atlantic Gateway (road, rail, housing, commercial development)
Factsheet 1 Airport Growth
The North West has a large and important aviation sector. The two principal North
West Airports, Manchester and Liverpool, represent, by a clear distance, the second
largest concentration of airport activity outside of the South East.
Both airports are expected to grow over the next ten years, and not only is the level of
flight activity likely to increase, the opportunities to create economic activity on sites
around the airports are significant.
Twenty years ago Manchester Airports principal business was as a base for charter
airlines, who flew people away on holidays. The mix at the airport has radically changed
with a big increase in scheduled services, usually daily, to a mix of key business and
leisure destinations worldwide.
Manchester Airport has the largest global flight network of any UK airport outside of
London. It has several daily transatlantic flights directly serving key business hubs such
as New York, Chicago, Philadelphia and Atlanta, as well as connection to key leisure
destinations of Orlando and Las Vegas.
The Airport has also built connectivity to key middle-eastern hubs, with three daily
flights to Dubai, as well as services to Abu Dhabi, Riyadh and Qatar. There are daily
flights to all major European business hubs, such as Amsterdam, Paris and Zurich.
It has been announced recently that Cathay Pacific will start direct flights to Hong Kong
from December 2014. It is estimated that the addition of just this one new route will
create 200 new jobs. There are strong prospects for further new routes to growing
global business hubs to open up, such as flights to mainland China.
It is likely that Manchester Airport will continue to grow its international flights roster
over the next twenty years, especially as new generations of jets, such as Boeing 787 and
Airbus A350 jets make new long-haul routes increasingly viable. Changes made to Air
Passenger Duty in the March 2014 budget will also contribute to an increase in new
long-haul routes as the reduced tax makes new routes increasingly viable to airlines.
Manchester Airport also still retains a very large ‘charter’ market, flights designed
specifically for the leisure sector. Many of these operators, such as Thomson and
Thomas Cook have a base at the airport, and hire Manchester based flight and cabin
staff.
Liverpool Airport is an important hub for the two key low cost carriers in the UK, Easy
Jet and Ryan Air. The two airlines service a large and varied range of European
destinations. The airlines both have strong growth plans, with new aircraft on order,
and are likely to base new aircraft at both Manchester and Liverpool airports.
The on-going increase in flights will create a future on-going demand for people to
undertake roles related to airport growth. This includes the wide range of aviation
related roles from pilots, airport operations, flight crew, dispatchers, immigration, air
traffic controllers, baggage handling and check-in staff. But it also increases the number
of roles in wider activities, such as airport retail, hotel and hospitality related careers,
various driving jobs and entry level roles such as security.
Careers Box 1: Customer Facing Roles
There are a number of different airport related roles where language skills can make an
important difference. Key customer facing roles both at the airport and in surrounding
facilities such as hotels, value potential employees who can speak a second language.
Key European business languages such as Spanish, French and German are valuable,
other global languages such as Mandarin, Arabic and Hindi may become increasingly
sought after.
Airports increasingly resemble 24 hour cities, with activity going on around the clock.
This will support a wide number of roles which require shift working. Whilst not for
everyone, shift work often offers a higher level of pay, and some extra flexibilities
traditional 9-5pm contracts don’t.
The Airports will typically support a number of management roles, Manchester Airport
runs a graduate scheme. This allows people to progress into senior roles in the
operational management of the Airport. The Airport has to manage complex
commercial relationships with retailers, car park operators and hotel operators, these
all require higher level business and commercial skills.
The Airports also have teams of people whose job it is to promote the airport to airlines
that don’t currently fly to Manchester or Liverpool. The people working in these teams
have to assemble business and economic cases to present to airlines on the potential for
creating a profitable new route. The skills required for these types of roles include
economics, statistics and business planning.
Liverpool John Lennon Airport Future Growth
Liverpool Airport has started to develop its international connections and is an
expanding airport. Its expansion plans include the creation of 5,600 jobs over the next
twenty years with a focus on a new transport corridor and World Cargo Centre.
The addition of a freight business at the Airport will increase the number of distribution
and logistics businesses that will cluster in the vicinity of the airport. This will continue
to open out career opportunities in the logistics sector (see Career Box XX)
Careers Box 2 : Airport Careers
Role
Locations
Immigration Officer
Liverpool Airport
Manchester Airport
Port of Liverpool
Cruise Liner Terminal
Passenger Handling Agent Liverpool Airport
Manchester Airport
Cruise Liner Terminal
Pilot
Manchester Airport
Liverpool Airport
Education and Experience
- No specific requirements
- Will need to pass a written test to
demonstrate decision making skills
- Speaking a second language is a benefit
- Educated to GCSE level in English and
mathematics
- Preference for a foreign European
language
- Qualifications in travel and tourism are
helpful
- IT literate
- Minimum 5 GCSE grade A-C in English,
maths and science
- Minimum of 2 A Levels, preferably in
maths and physics
- Higher Education, preferably in scientific
or aeronautic areas
- Some experience in aviation is helpful
(such as membership of the Air Training
Corps)
- Entry levels vary between different
airlines, usual minimum of 3-5 GCSE’s
- A foreign language is a definite advantage
- First aid certificate
- Must have a valid passport
Cabin Crew
Manchester Airport
Liverpool Airport
Trainee Firefighter
Manchester Airport
Liverpool Airport
- Good general education including GCSE in
English and Maths
- Full clean driving license – held for six
months
- Some experience of working in a team
environment
Terminal Maintenance
Engineers
Liverpool Airport
Manchester Airport
Air Traffic Controller
Liverpool Airport
Manchester Airport
Aviation Security Officer
Liverpool Airport
Manchester Airport
Airport Operations
- Ground Services
- Airport Operations
Liverpool Airport
Manchester Airport
- Most companies require you to be a
minimum of 18 years old
- To become an engineer an Apprenticeship,
City and Guilds or ONC is required
- Minimum requirement is 5 GCSE’s (a-C)
including English and Mathematics
- 2 ‘A’ Levels, or a GNVQ Advanced Level
- A degree in a maths or science related field
is an advantage
- Good general education
- Full and clean driving license
- Previous history of customer service is
helpful
- 5 GCSE’s including maths and English
- Experience of working in an operational
environment
- Experience of working in shifts is an
advantage
Airport Hotels + Parking
Transfer Buses
Airport City Mcr
Liverpool Airport
- To operate larger buses will require a
license for PCV (passenger Carrying
Vehicles)
- Commercial license can cost up to £1,000
to obtain
- Must be 18 and hold a full UK car license
- Must pass a theory and practical test
- Have to renew and pass medical test every
5 years
Factsheet 2 Port Growth
The Port and Maritime sectors, since the time of the industrial revolution, have always
been of particular important to the north-west of England. At the start of the 20th
century, Liverpool was the most important Port in the British Empire, and was the home
to one seventh of the worlds shipping fleet.
In the 21st century Ports play a still vital but different role in world trade . In an era of
globalisation, where goods are manufactured and produced in all continents of the
world, the role of container ships and Ports that host them has become ever more
important.
Whereas once Ports largely managed the importation of ‘bulk goods’, raw materials such
as coal or grain, now they are increasingly the means for shipping higher value
consumer goods and products. The method for shipping is ‘containers’, there are an
estimated 17 million containers in use in the world, and the largest container ships
(Maersk Line a global shipping company with a base in Liverpool recently took delivery
of a new generation of container ship capable of carrying 18,200 20ft containers) in the
world will soon be able to make stops in Liverpool. This is directly related to the
construction of a new in-river berth.
The Atlantic Gateway area is in a strong position to capitalise on this shift in global
markets to expand its port operations and develop a more integrated transport network
with the Port of Liverpool, Port of Salford, Port Warrington and Port Wirral at its core.
The development of the port network is a major priority for Atlantic Gateway and
provides an opportunity to
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Attract significant business investment into the area;
Increase trade volumes in and out of the Port of Liverpool;
Substantially reduce freight transport costs;
Reduce road freight and carbon emissions;
Create a substantial number of port centric jobs; and
Increase the ability of Atlantic Gateway businesses to compete internationally.
Super Port
Super Port is the term sometimes used to describe the combined Port infrastructure in
the region. The region’s £1.8bn Super Port investment plans are predicted to create
20,000 jobs and £6.1bn in GVA by 2020 and a further 8,000 jobs by 2030 through major
infrastructure projects.
The Port of Liverpool
The Port of Liverpool (also known as Port Seaforth) is one of the most significant Port
operations in the UK.
There are ambitious plans being implemented to further expand the Port. The
construction of a new terminal, called Liverpool 2, will allow the worlds largest
container ships to call into Liverpool. The proposals will have a national impact, most
goods for north of England markets reach the north of England via Ports in the South,
the implementation of ‘Liverpool 2’ will change this.
This expansion will have a number of impacts;
-
It will create additional visits from container ships, increasing the volume of
activity at the Port and the number of jobs at the Port
It will create a significant supply of new jobs in the logistics and distribution
sectors
It will create additional Port related opportunities along the Manchester Ship
Canal, as goods are trans-shipped onto smaller vessels to new Port
developments further inland
This new terminal will almost double the capacity of the existing operations and will
enable faster turnaround of vessels in and out of the facility. It is anticipated that the
new terminal will create some 6,000 jobs, cost £300m and will establish the Atlantic
Gateway as a major destination for manufacturers and retailers.
The Port of Garston
There is a large Port facility at Garston. The Port of Garston is a mixed facility, which
includes both bulk goods and containers. There is also a bulk scrap export facility in the
Port.
Future Port Development Opportunities
There are proposals for a number of new Port Developments in the Mersey Estuary and
along the length of the Manchester Ship Canal. These will be built out over a number of
years, the speed at which they are constructed will be dependent upon the level and
timing of growth of demand for goods imported by container.
Port Salford
Port Salford will play a critical part in the movement of freight to and from the Seaforth
terminal by short sea shipping, removing freight from local road and rail networks.
The Port will also be a major logistics hub in its own right without the growth of the Port
of Liverpool due to its tri-modal networks (road, rail and inland port), specialist
warehousing facilities and loading cranes.
It is estimated that the project will cost £140m, including an extensive road
development scheme, and will create more than 4,000 jobs.
Port Warrington
The Port Warrington site is close to the M56 and is rail serviced. It has some existing
warehousing on site, and has the capability to be expanded.
Port Bridgewater
The Port Bridgewater site is close to the Port Wirral site. It is a very large tract of
brownfield land, it can accommodate over 1 million square foot of logistics space.
Port Wirral
The site identified for Port Wirral is between Junction 6 and 7 of the M53 motorway, it is
directly alongside the Manchester Ship Canal. The site also has the capability to be
serviced by a rail service, which would offer multi-modal (an ability to move goods by
sea road or rail).
Port Warrington
Warrington is located near to the Manchester Ship Canal with considerable
opportunities to not only develop the port facilities with important supply chain
implications for existing and new businesses but also to develop the wider area linking
it through to the town centre. Other port developments are in various stages of
development such as Port Wirral, Port Ince and Port Bridgewater
Careers Box 3: Career Opportunities at the Port
There are a wide range of career opportunities associated with the development of Port
facilities, the main opportunities can be split between four principal areas. The Harbour
Master, the Port Manager, the Port Engineer and the Traffic Manager.
The Harbour Master is responsible for handling the movement of shipping within the
Port. There are a number of different career points from a Maritime Operative (which
requires an NVQ2) and then more senior roles of Maritime Team Leader, Maritime Pilot.
There are qualifications that can be undertaken for these roles, a Foundation
Degree/Diploma in Port Management and a Harbour Master Certificate.
The Port Manager is responsible for the general operational management of the Port.
There are a number of career points leading up to the role of Harbour Manager. There
are roles as General Operatives, and then Team Leader and Supervisory roles in Port
Operations. The qualifications that can lead to these roles include a Foundation
Degree/Diploma in Port Management.
The Port Engineer is responsible for ensuring all the mechanical and electrical
equipment is working. This role is supported by Mechanical Assistants, Mechanics and
Workshop Managers. These roles generally require an NVQ 4/5 or degree level
engineering qualification.
A large Port operation will generally require a mix of engineering disciplines, including
mechanical, structural, electrical and civil engineering skills.
There are also other more general career opportunities at the Ports.
-
For those Ports that offer passenger services there is a requirement for check-in
and customer interfacing staff, as well as a greater demand for staff with skills in
catering and hospitality.
There are a number of companies who operate freight forwarding services.
There is a particularly strong representation of these companies in Liverpool
City Centre.
There are opportunities in HM Customs and Revenues, in particular at the Ports
which receive international traffic directly.
There are likely to be a number of warehouses/storage areas at the Port. These
require warehouse operators, drivers and in some cases stevedoring companies,
who handle the loading and unloading of cargos.
Factsheet 3 Enterprise Zones
Wirral Waters, Liverpool Waters, Liverpool City EZ, Daresbury EZ, Manchester
Airport City EZ
Enterprise Zones are areas which have been designated by Government for special tax
treatment, this should lead to economic growth and new jobs in these locations.
The Enterprise Zones in the Atlantic Gateway are diverse, this means they are likely to
offer a wide range of career opportunities.
Airport City EZ
Over 35,000 people are expected to work in Manchester Airport and the neighbouring
Airport City Development in the next ten years with half of all new jobs requiring higher
level and graduate skills in key growth sectors such as logistics, digital and creative, bioscience, advanced manufacturing, hospitality and construction.
This zone is designed to create new economic opportunities for those businesses that
will benefit from proximity to a major international airport. The range of targeted
business hoped to be attracted to the area is very wide. This includes business space,
European Regional HQ buildings, a medi-park, logistics facilities, advanced
manufacturing and supporting retail and leisure, as well as hotel and conferencing.
The development of this area will create a wide range of career opportunities.
Careers Box 4: Careers In the Advanced Manufacturing
The Atlantic Gateway area contains a wide range of career opportunities in advanced
manufacturing. There are some very large existing manufacturers, in particular Jaguar
Land Rover at Halewood and Vauxhall at Ellesmere Port. In North Wales, there is a
large Airbus plant that manufacturers wings for many of the Airbus family of aircraft.
The Enterprise Zones at Airport City Manchester and Wirral Waters have targeted
advanced manufacturing operations. This is because as Port and Airport connectivity
allow parts to be delivered for manufacture and assembly in a rapid time frame. Many
of these companies may be attracted to the Enterprise Zones, as an ideal location as
suppliers of parts that are fitted to Jaguar or Vauxhall cars.
There are also career opportunities in existing manufacturing supply companies.
There is a strong presence at Knowsley Industrial Estate, and also in the Ellesmere Port
area.
Skills Mix for Automotive Jobs
The most relevant subjects for access to the sector are mechanical engineering,
electrical engineering, production engineering and manufacturing engineering. These
can be studied at BTEC, HNC and HND levels, many companies will offer a range of
apprenticeships and graduate opportunities. The base skills are founded in maths, IT
and design. These qualifications would all help access jobs in the sector.
Wirral Waters Enterprise Zone
The plans for this site are for a thirty to fifty year transformation of largely vacant dock
space. The size of the site is such that it will host a wide variety of uses, such as houses,
cultural facilities, educational facilities and offices.
Two of the earliest proposed projects are the International Trade Centre and an
Advanced Manufacturing park. The trade centre proposals are explicitly targeting
foreign companies who want to develop a presence in UK and European markets. The
site is being actively marketed to Chinese mainland businesses, and will give them an
opportunity to use the site in the Wirral to increase the penetration of their products
into European markets.
The development of the Trade Centre would see new business career opportunities
potentially open-up, and because of the nature of the likely occupiers those candidates
with second language skills are more likely to succeed.
There is likely to be demand for office development in the location. It was announced in
June 2014 that an £8.5m four-storey office development will be constructed for
completion by early 2016.
The development of an Advanced Manufacturing Park will likely increase the demand
for people with skills in advanced engineering related disciplines (outlined in Careers
Box )
Large manufacturers like General Motors (who run the Vauxhall Plant at Ellesmere Port)
and Tata who own Jaguar Land Rover and their facility at Speke are increasingly looking
to ensure they have a supply chain for their parts close to the factories. General Motors
have invested resources in attempting to increase the number of parts provided through
local suppliers for its Ellesmere Port plant to 25%. The motor manufacturing sector
needs production flexibility, and if parts take six weeks to be shipped from Asia to a
plant in the UK this can cause major logistical problems. This approach will help
increase the number of career opportunities in manufacturing businesses in the supply
chains of General Motors and JLR.
Liverpool Waters
The plans for Liverpool Waters are on a similar long-term basis to those for Wirral
Waters. The outline mix of development for the site sees a mix of office development
and residential development.
The Liverpool Waters site includes the existing Princes Dock site, which has a range of
existing office occupiers, as well as hotel and residential development.
Liverpool City Enterprise Zone
The city enterprise zone in Liverpool is more likely to attract office type development.
This is most likely to mean an expansion of some of the key employment sectors which
are present in both Manchester and Liverpool City Centres.
These include financial services companies, legal companies, contact and business
centres and company headquarter functions. These are increasingly supported by a mix
of hotel, leisure and retail businesses.
Liverpool City Centre has a number of particular specialities, where career
opportunities may expand. It has a wealth management sector, with some well
established companies operating in the city, as well as a strong presence in the
insurance sector. In general mathematics and accountancy skills are key to accessing
these roles, as well as on-going professional development.
The type of employment opportunities in city centre type locations are too wide to cite
in a document such as this, but the careers options are likely to be offered at a number
of different entry points.
Daresbury Campus
Daresbury Campus, which is located between Warrington and Runcorn, is a major UK
centre for science. The campus is known as ‘Sci-Tech Daresbury’.
The are a wide range of occupiers at the site. This includes organisations undertaking
research on behalf of the Government, research being carried out by large international
companies (such as Intel, BAe Systems and IBM) and a whole range of activities being
undertaken by a mix of small high-technology companies.
In Focus: The Daresbury Laboratory
The Daresbury Laboratory is a Government run facility on the Sci-Tech site, that is one
of the worlds leading scientific research centres and one of two national centres in the
UK. There are over 300 research scientists working in the facility. The facility is run by
the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC).
• Accelerator Science and Technology Centre
This Centre supports Particle accelerator research and development programme
focusing on accelerator science and technology development.
• The Cockcroft Institute
The Institute houses teams of scientists from STFC and the Universities of
Manchester, Liverpool and Lancaster carrying out research in accelerator
science with applications across a range of disciplines
• The Hartree Centre
This uses High Performance Computing to undertake scientific research in fields
such as engineering and medicine, and assists companies with research and
development of new products
• Medical Technology Exchange Centre (MedTEC)
This Centre brings together expertise from Science and Technology Funding
Council, the NHS and other related fields
• The Knowledge Centre for Materials Chemistry
This is a virtual Centre, operated in partnership with the Universities of Bolton,
Liverpool and Manchester allowing multi-disciplinary research and innovative
knowledge transfer based on world-class capabilities in applied materials
chemistry
• Engineering Technology Centre
This Centre providing integrated engineering solutions for STFC programmes
and facilities, campus tenants and other stakeholders
• STFC’s Nuclear Physics programme
• Detector Systems Group
This programme provides world class instrumentation and detector systems in
support of the STFC • The Innovations Technology Access Centre
The Centre offers entrepreneurs and businesses flexible and affordable access to
£3m of scientific equipment in fully-equipped biological, imaging, materials and
physical science laboratories for research and development
The site is also home to a whole range of different science related businesses. Some of
the specialisms at Daresbury include accelerator science, high performance computing,
and sensors and detectors.
The range of activities undertaken and the type of projects many of the companies are
engaged in are of international significance. For example, a small company based on the
site Croft Additive Manufacturing, have been working on the Large Hadron Collider at
the European Organisation for Nuclear Research in Switzerland. Croft Additive use 3D
metallic printing to manufacture parts for filters.
Many of the small companies have the potential to grow significantly, and add on
additional staff. A number of initiatives are being progressed by Halton Borough
Council in partnership with Sci-Tech and its occupiers to better promote the range of
career opportunities at the site.
There are also opportunities to work in the nuclear sector, with BNFL having a base at
the nearby Daresbury Business Park, and a number of other nuclear related companies
based in and around the Birchwood Park area of Warrington.
Careers Box 5: Opportunities for Careers in Science
Entry Level Opportunities
The majority of science related careers will require higher-level skills to access. In
sectors such as bio-science, the entry level type roles are for ‘Lab-Technicians’,
‘Technical Support’ and ‘Research Assistant’ type roles. To access these roles generally
an A Level, or equivalent, qualification in science related subjects are required.
Higher Skills Level Opportunities
Many of the roles projected into the future will require a minimum of a Science related
University degree, some will require post-graduate qualifications. Examples of these
roles include, ‘Microbiologists’, ‘Pharmaceutical Analysts’ and ‘Research Chemists’.
Factsheet 4 Distribution and Logistics Growth
Distribution and logistics are major areas for growth
Whilst both the Airports and the Port system in the Atlantic Gateway play a critical role
in providing the access for goods either arriving or departing from the region, it is the
large buildings where goods get sorted for delivery to businesses or domestic homes
which has grown tremendously over the last ten years, and is projected to grow much
faster in the next ten years.
There have been radical changes in the way households shop, with internet shopping (etailing) taking an ever greater share of the retail market. To achieve this growth
retailers must be in a position to deliver goods rapidly to households across the UK, with
consumers increasingly expecting next day delivery. This requires very large facilities
where goods can be processed, sorted and dispatched in a 24 hour working operation.
The large buildings that host these logistics and distribution facilities (often known as
fulfilment centres) are far away from the traditional warehouse. They are highly
computerised and sophisticated operations. They need to be as consumers will often
order a range of products, and expect to have them consolidated into one single delivery
package. This type of approach has been pioneered by Amazon, but all major UK
retailers have e-tailing businesses, and all of them require complex fulfilment centres.
The drive to achieve rapid delivery times, and meet consumer expectations of next day
delivery to households means that one single major UK distribution facility is unlikely to
work. UK companies will require a series of large facilities very close to major UK
populations, and the Atlantic Gateway is at the heart of one of the largest population
centres in the UK. It is also close to major population centres in the West Midlands and
Yorkshire.
It is because of the geographic location of the Atlantic Gateway, that the increase in the
size of the Port operation at Liverpool is so significant. Not only is it expected that the
distribution and logistics market in and around the Atlantic Gateway will grow, but the
positioning of the Port of Liverpool as a major place of entry for goods that then get
shipped across north of England, Scotland and Midlands markets means that future jobs
growth could be very significant indeed.
The 3MG site in Widnes is a very clear example of what a modern logistics site looks
and works like. The site has a rail freight terminal, so inward goods can arrive by railfreight, saving the roads from thousands of additional HGV journeys, and it hosts a
number of very large sheds. One of the largest operators on the site is Tesco, who
supply vast numbers of their northern stores with fresh produce from this one site.
The Omega site in Warrington, which runs alongside the M62 motorway between
junctions 7 and 8, has seen an enormous range of new distribution facilities be
constructed over the last 18 months. Companies are locating on this site because it
offers great connection to the national motorway networks, and can service very large
markets in the Atlantic Gateway area.
There are also a number of other large sites that support distribution in the wider
Atlantic Gateway area. These include the Knowsley Industrial Estate, Stonebridge Park
on the A580, Pioneer Park at Ellesmere Port, Liverpool International Business Park in
Speke, Harworths Estates Logistics North in Bolton and Trafford Park in Manchester.
As can be seen by ‘Careers Box 6’ there are quite a wide range of different roles in the
logistics and distribution sector. One key point to bear in mind is that many facilities
will work shift-patterns, these enable the centres to be open on a 24 hour a day basis. In
most cases these large facilities are difficult to get to by public transport, especially at
off-peak hours, so the ability to drive to these jobs is often very important.
Careers Box 6: Careers in Logistics and Distribution
HGV Drivers
3MG
Port of Liverpool
Port Salford
North Warrington
Warehouse
Operator
3MG
North Warrington
Fork Lift Truck
Driver
3MG
North Warrington
Warehouse
Manager
3MG
North Warrington
Logistics Manager
3MG
North Warrington
- Class 1 LGV (large goods
vehicle) license required
- Commercial license can cost
up to £1,000 to obtain
- Must be 18 and hold a full UK
car license
- Must pass a theory and
practical test
- Have to renew and pass
medical test every 5 years
- Qualifications not essential,
but can be helpful
- Such as an NVQ in
warehousing and storage
- No requirement for formal
academic qualifications
- Must pass an approved fork
lift training course
- Test is both theory and
practical
- Minimum age for the training
course is 16
- Progression to this role is
often through promotion from
warehouse operative roles
- There are degrees available in
Supply chain Management,
Logistics and Transport
management
- The Chartered Institute of
Logistics and Transport offers a
wide range of professional
qualifications
- Use of IT to keep up to date
with movement of goods
- Management of stock levels,
and monitoring of on-time
delivery
- Qualifications include the
Chartered Institute of
Purchasing and Supply
Factsheet 5 Media Opportunities
MediaCityUK is a specific example of a high growth opportunity which has a vision to
become a global hub for innovation and content creation.
It is recognised as an Atlantic Gateway priority project as it represents one of the UK’s
largest investments in the digital sector and a major step towards achieving jobs and
growth in the economy, with MediaCityUK uniquely placed as the new home for both the
BBC and ITV.
More than £650m has been invested in phase one by The Peel Group in developing a
state of the art environment for the creative and digital sectors. Overall, it is expected to
attract more than £1bn of private sector investment.
This is expected to create more than 15,000 additional jobs for the region over the
coming years. As well as the BBC and ITV, MediaCityUK plays host to the northern
headquarters for Satellite Information Services (SIS) and nearly 100 smaller creative
businesses.
More than 5,000 workers, students and residents are already in situ - the University
of Salford and Salford City College provide a focus for education, training and skills
development.
Broadcast Media
The BBC and ITV are now fully operational at Media City. These two companies are
major employers and will likely have a flow of vacancies as either new positions are
created or through people leaving existing posts. Both companies will advertise
opportunities on their in-house websites, and in specialist press, such as the Guardian
Media Jobs supplement which is published weekly.
It may be that a number of larger companies choose to relocate to Media City. When this
occurs they may advertise locally for new recruits. However, an important focus for
those looking for media careers is to bear in mind two important points.
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Much of the future jobs growth is likely to come from small companies that are
expanding. Jobs in these companies will not be advertised as clearly as
vacancies in major media companies, it will require some effort to find out who
the growing companies are, work out what they are looking for, and often be
prepared to make a speculative approach.
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The media sector is dominated by people who work on a ‘freelance’ basis. This
means they are effectively self-employed and undertake contract work for media
clients. This may involve working for a ‘day-rate’ or possibly for weeks or
months at a time.
Careers Box 7: Careers in Traditional Broadcasting
There are a range of career opportunities linked to more traditional ‘broadcast’ media
organisations such as the BBC and ITV. These include; Broadcast Engineer, Lighting
Technician, Make-Up Artist, Prop Maker, Screenwriter, Set Designer, Stage Manager,
Sound Engineer, Camera Operator, Producer, Video Editor, Wardrobe Assistant.
It is worth remembering that many of the programmes (content) is made by
independent production companies, who then sell their content on to the BBC, ITV or
indeed many other media outlets. Examples of independent production companies
based in the Atlantic Gateway area include Red Production Company, Acrobat Media,
Toasted Productions and Lime Pictures. There are also opportunities in London
companies with a presence in the wider area such as Tiger Aspect and Babycow.
Digital Opportunities
Whilst there will still be demand for those with traditional TV and media sector skills,
there will be emerging demand from media companies, especially those involved in the
consumer markets, for people with skills in ‘big data’. The demand for those with ‘bigdata’ skills will not be limited just to the media sector.
There are many small companies in Media City but also in locations such as the Sharp
Building in East Manchester or in the Baltic Triangle in Liverpool, many of these small
companies are in broader media occupations such as web and multi-media sectors. As
these sectors have grown and evolved, new skills and aptitudes are increasingly in
demand. An example of this is in the field of data analysis, or as it is increasingly being
referred to as, ‘big-data’
There is increasing volumes of data generated from everyday life. This data is collected
from peoples shopping habits, credit card records, social media sites and even phone
records. This vast collection of data can be analysed by companies, so they can do things
such as target marketing and advertising campaigns directly to people most likely to buy
their product.
The use of vast streams of data can also be used for general public benefit. This can
include helping the Police fight crime more successfully, improve targeting of health
campaigns or reducing energy consumption.
Careers Box 8: Careers in the Digital Sector
The ideal skills mix for ‘big-data’ includes mathematics and statistics, computer science
and graphic design. Whilst computer science is at the heart of careers in big-data,
design, multi-media students and interactive arts skills are also very valuable.
Many of the careers in ‘big-data’ will be in specialist and often small companies. However,
as the sector grows opportunities will increasingly be advertised on-line.
Factsheet 6 Building and Maintaining new Infrastructure (road, rail, housing
development)
Mersey Gateway
A new crossing of the River Mersey is to be constructed. It will comprise of a six lane
highway. The bridge will be tolled, and will help ensure that there is good connectivity
between North Cheshire and North Wales with the Liverpool City Region.
The bridge will be one of the largest civil engineering projects conducted in the North
West, and the construction programme is expected to run between 2014 and 2018.
It is an example of one of the largest civil engineering projects currently being planned
in the UK, and it will require a diverse range of specialist construction skills to enable it
to be built. A number of examples of these skills is included in Box XX.
Careers Box X Career Opportunities in Civil Engineering
Major Civil Engineering projects such as this call on a wide range of technical and professional
skills. An example of some of the skills a project such as this will utilise are;
Project Development
This will include a business case for the project
including expected economic benefits, environmental
assessments, detailed surveying of proposed site, and
initial designs and drawings and an outline project
budget
Project Planning
The initial designs will require detailed input from a
range of specialists, including structural engineers and
construction surveying. A project such as this is also
likely to require detailed geotechnical engineering
input.
Construction Engineering
This involves the implementation of the project
drawings and designs created by structural engineers,
transport planners, geotechnical engineers. This phase
will require Project Managers, who ensure that the
project is being delivered to specification and within
the allocated budget.
Railway Infrastructure
The presence of a comprehensive rail network is vital to economic competitiveness. The
wider Atlantic Gateway area sits at an important part of the national rail network. The
West Coast mainline linking Glasgow to London runs through Warrington, and there are
key lines connecting the west coast line to both Manchester and Liverpool. The area
also sees the Trans-Pennine network which is the main east-west link for the north of
England. In addition to this both Manchester and Liverpool have a comprehensive
network of suburban rail services, and in the case of Manchester there is the rapidly
expanding Manchester Metrolink tram network.
This extensive rail network needs constant modernisation, maintenance and updating.
Some modernisation programmes are of a large scale, such as the plans to electrify the
line between Liverpool and Manchester, which will be complete by December 2014.
These type of upgrading projects will always require the input of railway engineers and
electrical engineering disciplines, but the need to modify tunnels and bridges mean
there is demand for structural engineers and other construction related disciplines. An
example of a major upgrading project, the Northern Hub, is given below.
There are two specific projects have been highlighted as priorities for Atlantic Gateway,
Northern Hub and High Speed Rail 2.
Northern Hub
The Northern Hub is one of the largest upgrading projects in the UK. It will tackle a wide
rang of constraints, and the result of the investment should be the ability to run a
further 700 more trains and to reduce journey times. The project has a total cost of
£600m, and will see some of the following benefits;
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Doubling the number of fast trains between Manchester and Liverpool
25% more trains on key trans-pennine routes
More direct connections to Manchester Airport
In terms of the wider benefits, businesses on both sides of the Pennines will be able to
recruit from a wider pool of talent and their employees will be able to get to work
quickly and easily. Business will also enjoy greater flexibility and access to bigger
markets as capacity increases and journeys are more direct and quicker.
It will also mean that many more jobs and opportunities for commuting will start
opening up, improving prospects both for those looking for jobs, and for those
companies wanting to increase recruitment.
HS2
The Government recently ended its consultation period on HSR2 proposals for a wider
rail network linking London, West Midlands, Manchester and Leeds. The £32bn Yshaped network includes proposals which will reduce travelling times between
Manchester and London and create significant additional capacity.
The Government are currently considering the location for a High Speed Rail College.
The purpose of the College will be to provide the nation with the skills necessary to
build a high-speed rail network.
Housebuilding
It is estimated that the UK needs to build 250,000 new homes per-annum just to keep up
with demand, at the moment we build barely half that number. Whilst the greatest
demand for housing is in London and the South East, all parts of the UK have shortfalls,
and the cities of Liverpool and Manchester have been growing population, and
Warrington has also seen strong growth.
It is likely that over the next ten years there will be on-going demand for new housing.
Some of this housing will be in the form of flats or apartments, where some nontraditional construction methods will be required. There are proposals for large
residential towers in both the Liverpool Waters and Wirral Waters schemes, and good
examples of completed schemes on the Princess Dock in Liverpool Waters.
The issue of climate change is likely to continue to ensure that existing homeowners
invest in improving the energy efficiency and performance of their own homes, whether
this be by installing new energy efficient housing systems, improving installation or
replacing windows and doors. These requirements will continue to create opportunities
for people with skills in plumbing or fitting.
Careers Box X: Traditional Construction Trades
The on-going requirement to continue to build new houses will continue to support
opportunities for those with skills in the traditional trades, these include
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Bricklaying
Electricians
Carpenters
Roofers
There will also be emerging opportunities, as domestic houses contain ever greater
numbers of communication equipment, the specialist fit-out of houses with ever more
complex ICT will create new opportunities.
Likewise the traditional housing stock in the region will both require maintenance,
environmental enhancement and renovation. This will maintain demand for those with
traditional craft related trades.
Commercial Development
There will continue to be demand for new office, warehouse, factory, leisure and retail
development.
New office development will be required as existing offices become obsolescent and
increasingly energy inefficient. There will be opportunities connected with the
construction of new offices, and these will often be non-traditional. Modern offices often
have no brickwork, are often constructed of steel and glass, and increasingly the ‘fit-out’
of the new offices is ever more complex, as occupiers have more complex ICT
requirements. Acoustic engineers, heating and lighting specialists, broadband and ICT
fit out, space planners, architects, dry liners, steel fitters are among the trades
associated with the construction of new offices.
New office development will occur at different speeds in different locations over the
next decade (it is very much dependent upon demand from occupiers), areas such as
Manchester City Centre, Salford Quays, Liverpool City Centre, Birchwood Park in
Warrington, Airport City Manchester, Wirral Waters and Liverpool Waters are all
locations where new larger scale office may be constructed.
As with residential development, there will be many opportunities associated with the
refurbishment of existing offices, often to bring forward new heat and cooling systems,
new ICT infrastructure and general modernisation programmes.
New hotel, leisure and retail facilities are also likely to be a part of the mix of future
development in the wider Atlantic Gateway area. Higher specification modern hotels, in
common with new offices, require ever more complex ‘fit-out’ programmes, to enable
rooms to provide up-to-date communication technologies and to enable increased
automation of services. It is not possible to predict exactly where new hotel
development will occur, but in general the key city centres have proven strong markets,
and budget chains have continued to expand close to important road networks, as well
as in in-town locations.
New distribution and logistics facilities will continue to be constructed over the next ten
years, possibly at a much increased pace. The construction programmes for these types
of building are nowhere near as complex as new offices, they are often referred to as
‘sheds’. They will require input from a number of trades, including steel fixers and
cladding specialists, often they require new road infrastructure to be constructed.