Portsmouth charity 1851 Trust is given £100,000 to lead the way in promoting maritime careers for women

Portsmouth looks set to lead the way in helping women into a career at sea thanks to new funding for a local charity.
By Neil Fatkin
Published 7th Mar 2019, 15:44 BST
Updated 7th Mar 2019, 16:50 BST
The Tech Deck centre at the INEOS TEAM headquarters which will host 120 girls interested in STEM learning - pictured is a previous visit from children at Northern Parade Junior SchoolThe Tech Deck centre at the INEOS TEAM headquarters which will host 120 girls interested in STEM learning - pictured is a previous visit from children at Northern Parade Junior School
The Tech Deck centre at the INEOS TEAM headquarters which will host 120 girls interested in STEM learning - pictured is a previous visit from children at Northern Parade Junior School

On what is International Women’s Day, the maritime minister, Nusrat Ghani, has announced that Portsmouth based educational charity, the 1851 Trust, has been given £100,000 by the Department for Transport to support the promotion of maritime careers.

The funding will be used by the charity to specifically target attracting young women into maritime industries. 

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Mrs Ghani said: ‘I am determined to ensure that the great career opportunities in the maritime industry are open to everyone, no matter their gender. This International Women’s Day, I am delighted to support the 1851 Trust in linking up 1,500 young women with female role models and inspire them to consider a life at sea or on shore.’

Sir Ben Ainslie, patron of the charity, 1851 Trust.Sir Ben Ainslie, patron of the charity, 1851 Trust.
Sir Ben Ainslie, patron of the charity, 1851 Trust.

This funding will go towards 10 roadshows around the UK where girls, aged 11 to 14 making GCSE subject choices, can speak to women already working in the sector about the full breadth of careers available.

Mrs Ghani added: ‘Having seen the work the trust does encouraging young people to consider maritime careers, I am confident this series of roadshows will inspire and provide plenty of food for thought about the breadth of possibilities available in the industry.’

The 1851 Trust, have been working to challenge young people’s perceptions of STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects and encourage them to choose these subjects – many of which are linked to many maritime careers.

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Four time Olympic gold medallist, Sir Ben Ainslie, is patron of the 1851 Trust, the official charity of INEOS TEAM UK.

Sir Ben said: ‘The work the trust does to showcase STEM in such an exciting and positive light, in particular with girls, is fantastic and much needed. To now be delivering a nationwide STEM programme for the Department for Transport is testament to their high quality education offering. As a professional sports team, we truly hope to inspire not just the next generation of America’s Cup sailors, but engineers and innovators alike.’

As part of this commitment, the trust is hosting a girls STEM learning event at the INEOS TEAM UK headquarters in Portsmouth today. The event will enable 120 girls to take part in a range of STEM activities as well as the chance to speak to representatives from maritime companies to find out about career opportunities.

Today’s funding announcement follows the launch of Maritime 2050, which sets out the long-term vision for the future of the UK maritime sector. The Department for Transport is part of a Maritime Taskforce established to address gender imbalance in the maritime sector.