Work-Integrated Learning in the Midlands Space Cluster
This research examines work-integrated learning (WIL) models in the Midlands space cluster, focusing on their role in addressing skills challenges and enhancing productivity in the UK space sector.
The UK faces a pressing productivity challenge, with its productivity gap widening compared to leading economies like Germany and the United States. The four Midlands institutions collectively showcase the significant potential of WIL in developing industry-ready graduates, fostering innovation, and strengthening the links between academia and industry.
The study investigates four key institutions in the Midlands, exploring how closer collaboration between academia and industry through WIL programmes can impact workforce capabilities and sector performance. The research aims to shed light on how WIL might serve as a mechanism for addressing productivity challenges in high-tech industries, particularly in the context of regional economic development.
Policymakers should prioritise providing sustained funding and support for regional development initiatives such as Space Park Leicester and the Midlands Space Cluster Initiative. They should also work on developing national frameworks to streamline space education efforts across the UK and support international collaborations in space education. Future research should expand its scope to include the entire educational ecosystem supporting the space sector, including Further Education institutions, non-degree routes, and degree apprenticeships.
Meet the Author
Dr Chloe Billing
Since taking up the post of Research Fellow at City-REDI, Chloe's growing research experience and scholarship have enabled her to build a reputation as an Economic Geography researcher, focusing on firm-level competitiveness, commercialisation, innovation, technology and skills. Chloe has particular expertise and interest in the Space Sector (building on her PhD research) and in regional productivity.
Chloe has initiated her own research projects and has worked as a member of several project teams with different researchers within and outside City-REDI. She recently led a UK Space Agency-funded project to support the development of an early-stage local space cluster in the West Midlands. This was a cross-college project (EPS and COSS), aimed at providing insight into how a West Midlands space cluster could participate in and contribute to a nationally linked network of Space clusters and hubs to benefit the whole of the UK.