Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps the UK Space Agency to help develop high-skilled jobs in the space sector; and whether the agency supports (a) apprenticeships and (b) development programmes.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The UK Space Agency Education and Future Workforce programme aims to build and strengthen a diverse workforce. This includes formal and informal educational activities, as well as specific support for developing a skilled workforce. Development programmes include the Space Placements in Industry internship programme, where 119 students were placed in UK space organisations in Summer 2024, alongside scholarship funding and the £2.1m Training Programmes Fund to address known skills gaps in the sector.
In July 2023, the Department for Education launched the Level 6 space degree apprenticeship, developed by a trailblazer group of space industry experts and building on the Level 4 space engineering technician apprenticeship launched in August 2020.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to support the Scottish space sector; and whether his Department provides support for UK entities bidding for European Space Agency contracts.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
From 2018-2025, the UK Space Agency (UKSA) will have enabled and invested ~£126 million in Scotland through national programmes and European Space Agency (ESA) funding, including funding to establish launch services, co-funding for Space Scotland, and funding via the Space Cluster Infrastructure Fund to expand access to key engineering infrastructure.
The UKSA supports the UK sector in bidding for ESA contracts through initiatives including ESA 101 courses and Bid Writing Workshops. Over 1,000 individuals from 558 different organisations have signed up to take part, equipping them with skills to enhance their ESA bidding success.