Ocean Winds has strengthened its partnership with Buckie Community High School by announcing the allocation of £6,500 toward enhancing the school’s provision of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) initiatives, ensuring its students have access to the tools and experiences they need to develop as informed, responsible citizens who are well-prepared to meet the challenges of the future.
The funding has enabled the school to purchase a wide range of additional equipment for items such as ipads, digital anemometers, electronic circuit kits and Lego technic sets that will help prepare students for innovative work environments by enhancing problem-solving skills, develops critical thinking, and incorporates hands on learning.
Ocean Winds has a strong presence in Buckie having officially opened its Operation & Maintenance Base supporting for the Moray West Offshore Wind Farm, employing over 60 people, in September last year.
The funding for Buckie Community High School is part of the company’s commitment to establish a long term and collaborative relationship with the school and wider local community. It also evidences Ocean Winds’ broader skills development strategy to work with trusted education partners such as Scottish Schools Education Research Centre (SSERC), Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) and local colleges with the ambition to best prepare the workforce of tomorrow.
Paul Cavanagh / Asset Director at Ocean Winds, said:
“We are delighted to be able to support students at Buckie Community High School with a wide range of new and exciting equipment that will enrich their learning experience, equipping them with the skills to give them the very best chance of forging long and successful careers.
“We are extremely proud of our presence in Buckie and are determined to enhance our support for the wider community through our commitment to a comprehensive skills development strategy that benefits this and future generations.”
Liz Bain / DHT and lead for DYW Moray at Buckie Community High School, said:
“At Buckie Community High, we are committed to working in partnership with our wider community and this is especially true when we are working towards employability with our partners at Developing the Young Workforce. We want young people to have positive experiences and be ready to leave school with the confidence and qualifications to go into a positive destination suited to them.
Local employers and organisations contribute to this by allowing work experience, workplace visits, volunteering, supporting school events and working with our young people in school. We particularly want our students to be aware of excellent local opportunities and Ocean Winds are a key partner in this as they have been keen to find out about our needs and how they can help us in a relevant and meaningful way.
Support has been targeted at STEM subjects and projects and has made a huge difference for the subject areas they have contributed to. Ocean Winds’ involvement has allowed new and exciting experiences which enhance learning and engage young people: highlighting to them the exciting renewables industry we have locally and the opportunities for them in education and employment in the future.
We would like to extend a genuine and massive thank you to Ocean Winds from Buckie Community High School and to Jolene Young and Kelly Cormack from DYW Moray for facilitating our collaboration.”
Jolene Young / Schools Delivery Manager at DYW Moray, said:
“Seeing this partnership come together has been incredibly rewarding. The support from Ocean Winds will open up exciting opportunities for pupils across Buckie Community High School, giving them hands-on ways to explore STEM subjects and develop skills that will be invaluable for their future. We are very grateful for their continued support.”
