Volunteers from London Luton Airport (LLA) have hosted career and skills development workshops for more than 200 local Year 8 and Year 9 students.  

Thirty staff from across the airport, including the Operations, Security, Sustainability, Health & Safety and Guest Experience teams, volunteered for the programme, developed in partnership with not-for-profit social enterprise, Skills Builder.  

The 'Essential Skills in Aviation’ workshops are designed to provide students with career insights and advice to help prepare for the workplace, as well as opportunities to develop essential, transferable workplace skills. Schools have a choice of three activity themes: early careers talent attraction, sustainability or accessibility.  

Nik Jones, HR Director at London Luton Airport, added: “It’s not every day that you get to do something at work that might well change the life direction of another person. It is a powerful thing to be able to positively influence how young people think and feel. As a major local employer for a wide range of professions and trades, London Luton Airport is ideally placed to invest in skills development and education in the community. Our education outreach programme has been led by our amazing sustainability team, supported by colleagues across LLA, many of whom have benefitted from LLA’s own career development programmes. Our aim is to shine a light on the many exciting career pathways that the aviation industry can offer, whilst continuing to make a positive social impact on our local communities.”  

Bella Audsley, Employer Development Manager at Skills Builder Partnership, added: “Skills Builder Partnership has been delighted to work together with London Luton Airport to deliver the Essential Skills in Aviation school workshop series and to see its successful impact in the local community. The positive engagement from students and volunteers was a testament to a collaborative partnership focusing on authentic and inspiring skills-based activities to bring careers at London Luton Airport to life. Skills Builder looks forward to continuing to support the airport's Social Mobility and Sustainability goals, to ensure everyone is equipped with the essential skills to succeed, as the outreach and employability programmes expand over the coming year. With a shared vision to ensure long term impact, this summer's programme has been an exciting start to the journey."  

The outreach programme is designed to align with Luton Council’s 2040 vision and strategy with the airport working closely with Luton Council’s education and learning team to develop the programme and identify local schools to work with. 

-Ends-  

Notes for Editors 

'Essential Skills in Aviation’ is the second education initiative rolled out by LLA’s sustainability team in 2024. Earlier this year, the airport joined forces with The Forest of Marston Vale Trust, to launch a hugely successful environmental education programme aimed at local primary school children, providing children with an opportunity to visit the community forest and enjoy first-hand opportunities to develop their understanding of nature and biodiversity. These two programmes aim to reach 2,000 students annually and form part of LLA’s wider skills, education and outreach programmes, providing a variety of interventions throughout students’ school journeys, equipping them with skills, opportunities and career insights to help them thrive in the workplace.  

Skills Builder partnership is a global non-for-profit social enterprise that works with employers and educators to ensure that one day, everyone builds the essential skills to succeed. Skills Builder and LLA partnered together to develop this tailored programme aligning to the Skills Builder framework ensuring that all students had the opportunity to practise Listening, Speaking, Teamwork, Creativity and Problem-Solving skills. You can find out more about LLA’s accreditation level here Essential Skills in Aviation Workshop 

About London Luton Airport

London Luton Airport (LLA) is one of the UK’s busiest airports, carrying over 16.2 million passengers in 2023. The airport is operated by a consortium, of which the majority shareholder is AENA, the world’s largest airport operator, and InfraBridge, a leading infrastructure investment manager. Airlines include easyJet, Wizz Air, Ryanair, Tui, FlyOne, Sun Express and El Al.

The Luton Airport Express is a new dedicated train service that allows passengers to travel from central London to the LLA terminal in around 30 minutes. The Luton Airport Express runs from St Pancras International to Luton Airport Parkway station and connects seamlessly with the DART, an electrically powered people mover that connects to the airport terminal in less than four minutes.

In 2024, LLA was named European Airport of the Year (10-25 million passengers) by ACI EUROPE. This followed being named as the UK’s best airport by readers of the prestigious Condé Nast Traveller magazine in 2023.

Last year, LLA also became only the third major UK airport to achieve Level 4 of the globally recognised Airport Carbon Accreditation scheme, demonstrating that it is ‘transforming its operations to achieve carbon reductions in line with global climate goals’. With a maximum score of 100 and a five-star rating, LLA has been ranked as a sector leader for two consecutive years in the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) benchmark of sustainability governance management and performance of major infrastructure assets worldwide.

To learn about the progress London Luton Airport is making across its sustainability programme please click here.

Further information on London Luton Airport can be found here: https://www.london-luton.co.uk/

Contact Details:

London Luton Airport Press Office
T: 01582 395333
E: pressoffice@ltn.aero

London Luton Airport – PR agency:
E: LLA@tinmancomms.com

URL: https://mediahub.london-luton.co.uk/news/27092024/lla-launches-new-education-programme