Bringing together business, education and students

The past few months have seen Eastbourne EBP write a new chapter as it begins life as an independent service that continues to broker links between education and business in Eastbourne and Hailsham. The partnership is no stranger to change since launching in the mid-80s as ‘Industry Matters’.

We are now in another period of transition following contract changes that resulted in VT Enterprise leading on core 14-19 EBP work in East Sussex. With change has come the opportunity to review the purpose, structure and future delivery strategy of Eastbourne EBP. Following redundancy last June, I continue to be involved with Eastbourne EPB as part of my new freelance work in Sussex. Together with our Chairman, Steven Goss-Turner, we have been meeting our key stakeholders, namely Eastbourne & District Chamber of Commerce, Eastbourne Borough Council, Eastbourne & Hailsham Federation and Eastbourne Consortium to start this review. In addition, we remain in close contact with past colleagues at VT Enterprise. We have been encouraged by the unanimous support for both the continuation and development of Eastbourne EBP activities that will help to underpin work-related learning and contribute to work-force development agendas.

Eastbourne & Hailsham will now benefit from both core 14-19 activities, provided by VT Enterprise, and a wider independent service, provided by Eastbourne EBP that includes both primary and independent schools. Events such as Eastbourne Youth Radio, In- Bloom and Young Engineers are now secured for the future. Young Chef is likely to become a collaborative event with VT. Many of these activities will contribute towards the diplomas that launched in secondary schools in September.

At the time of writing, no firm decisions have been made about the future operating structure of Eastbourne EBP. Options including charitable status and Community Interest Company have been considered together with closer ties to the Chamber. It is important to get this right without taking on any unnecessary (and expensive) administrative burden. Finance is of course critical to future sustainability. The long established format of charging participating schools/colleges together with seeking event sponsorship will continue. In addition, we hope to apply for ‘contributions’ from both education and business member groups. Costs have also been rigorously reviewed during the year resulting in savings in excess of £5k. During the past 12 months, Eastbourne EBP has delivered activities that have benefited over 1800 students aged 4-19 and engaged with business partners from some 50 plus organisations. Star attraction was again Eastbourne Youth Radio that continues to excite and motivate everyone involved. As always, a huge thank to everyone that helped to make all this happen, and particularly during such a challenging time! Look ahead, who knows what we will write during this exciting new chapter in the life of Eastbourne EBP?