Tag: skills

Powering opportunity: how energy investment can deliver for communities

28 September 2026

Opinion

Ross McKenzie, Corporate Affairs and Sustainability Officer, Drax

Having begun operating a single coal-fired power station before transitioning to sustainable biomass, Drax’s current 4.4GW diversified portfolio of battery energy storage, hydro and pumped hydro, and wind and solar generation tells a wider story about the changing UK energy system.

Furthermore, our plans to host a AI data centre at Drax, further investments into flexible and renewable energy, and our roll out of EV charging points all point to the direction in which our electricity system is heading. Vitally, these developments will be a key pillar to support UK economic growth.

Working with More in Common, we have developed some polling on public attitudes towards investment in local energy projects. For me, three immediate lessons that stand out.

First – energy is well placed to serve as a catalyst for regional economic opportunity.

The results show that a majority of the public, some 53%, do not believe that their area currently offers good opportunities for well-paid, high-skilled jobs.

At the same time, whether the project is wind, solar or battery storage, people understand the main benefits of energy investments to be new skilled jobs for local communities, alongside apprenticeships and training opportunities for young people.

The Prime Minister has been right to identify reindustrialisation and technology as essential tools for bringing growth to every postcode.

To achieve this energy investments must extend far beyond the energy system itself. They must support jobs, strengthen local supply chains and generate opportunities for communities.

This brings us onto the second lesson. People will support energy developments which deliver training opportunities for the next generation.

In recent years, governments of all colours have recognised the energy sector’s role in creating those opportunities. Just as importantly, it is clear the public recognise it too.

Indeed, the findings show that only 5% of the public would oppose a flexible energy site being built in their area if it brought jobs and apprenticeship opportunities for young people.

That matters at a time when the Prime Minister is rightly focused on expanding opportunities for young people not in education, employment or training, with the Milburn Review due for publication shortly.

At Drax, we are already working to help meet this challenge and are proud of the work our Community and Education teams do in the areas in which we operate.

Last year alone, we supported 1,890 young people at risk of becoming Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) through mentoring and workplace visits and reached 9,500 learners through STEM events in Yorkshire and the Humber.

It’s also important that our young people have people in sectors to look up to. That this is why we have funded 12 high-potential STEM trainee teachers to complete a PGCE. Supporting role models for the next generation of engineers and scientists.

We believe that the challenge of NEETs is national, but the solutions will often be local. They depend on trusted relationships, practical collaboration, and employers willing to invest time, knowledge and opportunity in the next generation.

Finally, economic issues remain important to the public, but these must go hand in hand with nature and local consent.

Whilst only a minority of people believe that any drawbacks of new battery storage (29%), wind (19%) or solar (18%) generation sites would outweigh the benefits, the polling shows that chief amongst the public’s concerns in these areas are impacts on wildlife and green space.

For energy companies, this means showing that investment is not simply transactional. Whether it’s restoring a bog ecosystem in Wales or supporting research into the decline of the Arctic Char in Scotland, our work in these areas has been to demonstrate that new energy infrastructure can sit alongside a serious commitment to the natural world.

Energy projects can unlock jobs, apprenticeships, industrial investment and regional competitiveness, but they will only command lasting support if communities also see safeguards for nature, green space and local identity.

As we look to the evolving grid and the development it will require, the lessons are clear: national support does not always translate into local consent. To succeed, changes to our energy system must go beyond infrastructure alone.

It is also, and has always been about jobs, skills, opportunity and communities. If we get it right, the next phase of our energy transformation can help deliver the growth and renewal that Labour has rightly placed at the heart of its mission for government.

This is an abridged article first published in The LabourList

Recognition is welcome – but the real test is how more doors can be opened for young people

23 June 2026

Opinion

When Drax was Highly Commended for ‘Skills Leadership’ in this month’s Renewable Energy Association’s (REA) awards, it was welcome recognition. But awards matter most when they point to something deeper: sustained, practical work that helps young people see their futures, gives employers a route to engage with local talent, and builds the skills communities need for the economy ahead.

That recognition comes at a significant time. The recent Alan Milburn report on Young People & Work has renewed our focus on the number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEET), and on the long-term consequences of disconnection from opportunity. The challenge is not only unemployment. It is confidence, aspiration, access, networks and whether young people can see a credible path from the classroom into meaningful work.

For businesses rooted in their communities, this is where responsibility becomes practical. It is not enough to talk about future skills or the green economy in abstract terms. Young people need early exposure to workplaces, meaningful encounters with employers, mentoring, careers insight, work experience and clear routes into apprenticeships, technical education and employment.

This is the substance behind Drax’s REA recognition. Through work led by the Drax Community & Education team, we have been building a connected pathway from education to employment in Selby, North Yorkshire and the wider Humber region. In 2025, activity included 97 educational tours of Drax Power Station for 2,300 students, 111 STEM education and careers ns reaching more than 9,500 students, and 260 hours of mentoring delivered by 36 Drax Education Ambassadors.

The impact is visible in the detail. Drax Foundation support for SKILLZ CIC has helped deliver employability workshops and mentoring for young people at risk of becoming NEET in North Yorkshire, engaging 1,890 young people through mentoring, career talks and visits to Drax Power Station. Drax’s partnership with Springpod has opened free virtual work experience and project simulations for students aged 13–19, with nearly 4,000 enrolments and 98% of completers rating their awareness of sector careers as good or excellent. Our new partnership with Futures for All is providing meaningful experiences of work for young learners in the communities where we operate.

But reducing the risk of young people falling out of education, employment or training cannot be solved by one employer, school, charity or public body alone. That is why the launch of Selby Connected matters. Developed by Drax and Up for Yorkshire as a private, public and voluntary sector partnership, it brings local employers together with civic and community partners to coordinate action, pool insight and improve access to support across the region.

A key focus is on education, skills and employability. Local analysis has shown that awareness of specialist employment support, including skills training and work experience opportunities, remains low. Young people and residents also face barriers linked to geography, transport, access to services and suitable local opportunities. Selby Connected is designed to join up what exists, identify gaps and help more people find opportunities that can change their trajectory.

The lesson from both the Milburn report and Drax’s own experience is clear: employability is not created when someone applies for their first job. It is built earlier, through repeated experiences that develop confidence, communication, problem-solving, ambition and a sense of belonging in the world of work. It grows when employers show up consistently, schools have access to trusted partners, and community organisations are resourced to reach those who may otherwise miss out.

Drax’s Highly Commended REA award should therefore be seen as a proof point, not a finish line. It recognises the quality of work already being delivered by our Community & Education team and partner organisations, but the bigger opportunity lies in scaling that work through partnership. Selby Connected provides the platform to bring businesses, the public sector and voluntary organisations together around a shared ambition for Selby and the surrounding villages.

The challenge of NEETs is national, but the solutions will often be local. They depend on trusted relationships, practical collaboration, and employers willing to invest time, knowledge and opportunity in the next generation. In Selby, that work is already under way. The task now is to keep building it, so more young people can move from aspiration to experience, and from potential to meaningful employment

Local businesses or public and voluntary sector organisations in Selby and the surrounding villages who would like to learn more about Selby Connected or get involved can contact [email protected]