- 30,000 local primary school children to gain AI and digital tech skills thanks to new funding from North East mayor
- 1,000 teachers backed to teach AI and 150 work placements to keep talent in North East
- Technology Secretary praises ‘strong partnerships’ driving AI Growth Zone Taskforce as billions of pounds invested and further support pledged to upskill women
Tens of thousands of young people and workers across the North East will gain new skills and career opportunities as a result of investment unlocked by the region’s AI Growth Zone, helping residents secure good jobs and local businesses grow.
Announced today (Tuesday 12 May) at the second meeting of the North East AI Growth Zone Taskforce, the package shows how the AI Growth Zone is delivering real benefits for communities – turning AI investment into skills, jobs and opportunity on the ground.
The North East mayor will back the effort with a new £750,000 investment in the government’s TechFirst programme, that will specifically ensure 30,000 primary school children benefit from early AI and digital skills. This will include ‘discovery days’ and local businesses engaging with schools to outline career paths and explain the wider benefits of AI – so children who will grow up with the technology as it develops are given a solid grounding to apply it in their lives.
This follows £1.5 million invested by the government in the North East through the programme, as part of a wider ambition to help 1 million young people from across the UK to benefit directly from the growth of AI, rather than being left behind.
For the first time, the mayor and government have also agreed a regional target – with 80,000 local students in the North East to benefit from the training until 2029.
This will be further complemented by commitments to support 1,000 local teachers to confidently teach AI while the Authority will deliver 150 local work placements, giving young people real experience and reasons to stay and work in the North East.
Speaking at the meeting today, Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said the AI Growth Zone is about more than technology – it is about ensuring growth reaches every part of the region. She praised the ‘stronger partnerships, new opportunities for local communities, and shared sense of purpose’ developing in the area since the Taskforce’s launch in September.
Meanwhile the North East Mayor Kim McGuinness has published the North East AI Growth Zone Prospectus for consultation, which sets out how it will build on the AI Growth Zone to support skills, adoption and innovation.
This includes proposals for creating good jobs, backing local talent, helping businesses adopt new technologies with confidence, and making sure the advantages of AI are not locked up in a few places, but spread across our towns, cities and communities.
As one part of this SAGE, Accenture and other leading businesses will come together to provide mentoring and leadership to help more women build long term careers in tech.
The AI Growth Zone has attracted major private investment, including £10 billion committed by QTS/Blackstone to build its new data centre with the potential to support up to 5,000 high?quality jobs rooted in the North East.
Elsewhere the team behind Sovereign AI – a £500 million first-of-its-kind national effort to back Britain’s smartest founders and keep the future of AI built on British shores – are hosting an event in Newcastle today, inviting some of the North East’s most ambitious AI startups to share their growth plans and ambitions, helping government support those driving growth and innovation in the region.
Science and Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said:
The North East is already showing how AI can deliver for working people, with billions of pounds invested and thousands of new jobs on the way, as businesses and government work together to make the region a leader in Britain’s AI future.
We’re investing in that progress for the long term. By giving young people the AI skills they need, supporting start-ups and acting to bring more women into tech we can keep talent and opportunity in the North East.
North East Mayor Kim McGuinness said:
The North East is the one to watch when it comes to cutting-edge tech and AI as we work to make sure everyone benefits from our AI growth zone.
We’re already working closely with local employers, training providers and schools to make the North East the best place to live, work and thrive when it comes to tech.
But we know we need to go further to make sure local people really benefit from more opportunities than ever before. That’s why we’re investing in training so our young people can make the most of the exciting opportunities around AI and working with some of the region’s brightest companies to support more women and girls in the tech sector.
Leading software company Sage is also boosting its work to widen access to AI skills and supporting innovation led by women across the region through 2 new partnerships. Working with Empowering You, as the founding partner of Empowering Women to Lead AI in Northern England, it will support women in the region to develop leadership skills in AI through workshops, coaching and group presentations.
In partnership with Techbible, an AI company focused on helping businesses manage their AI tools, it will host a hackathon at its headquarters in June, which will bring together women from businesses across the region to build and deploy AI agents, with no prior coding experience required.
Jonathan Cowan, EVP Product at Sage, said:
The North East has everything it needs to become the UK’s next major tech cluster, combining world?class academic institutions, deep technical talent and a growing community of innovative businesses.
Through the AI Growth Zone, we have a real opportunity to support small businesses and strengthen the region’s role on the global AI stage. Sage is proud to play its part in our home region, including through partnerships that widen access to AI skills.
Notes to editors
- NECA are investing £750,000 each to expand TechFirst. It builds on £1.5m committed to the programme in the North East by the government over 3 years.
- The Sovereign AI roadshow will be in Newcastle on 12 May for an afternoon event hosted at Atom Bank, as part of its UK-wide engagement tour connecting with AI founders and ecosystems across the country.