Aylesbury College tutors in the driving seat to promote women in the motor industry
Following the success of the third annual Mark Webber Youth Challenge event, where students from local colleges including Aylesbury College compete over a range of events in order to raise money and awareness for the Inspire charity, Helen Carter, College Lecturer in Motor Vehicle, and Clair Thomas, Motor Vehicle Assessor Trainer of Aylesbury College have been talking about their careers and experiences as women in the motor industry.
Helen started her career as an Apprentice Vehicle Technician building Caterham race cars, working her way up the formula levels to be a Race Mechanic for a GT team, who she supported in USA and European race events. Moving into the retail motor industry, she was the only female mechanic working across the entire UK network for Porsche.
Clair never wanted a mundane job in an office, so at 15 years old she started a four-year motor vehicle apprenticeship. Although many people made comments about her being a girl in a man’s world, she never saw herself as anything other than another apprentice.
Helen said: ‘Having industry experience is vital when you are teaching young apprentices, and it’s something that Aylesbury College focuses on across all our subject areas. Clair and I have had such varied and interesting careers and we love teaching and passing on our knowledge. I would certainly encourage anyone interested in a career as a mechanic to talk to Aylesbury College about programmes and apprenticeships available.”
Interested in the Motor Vehicle course? You can find more information on the Aylesbury College online prospectus, Destination AC.