Last Friday the SLR team had the privilege of exhibiting at the Shaping Portsmouth Conference 2023. It was a truly inspirational and humbling event packed with incredible speakers, charities, businesses, local government, and Armed Forces participants.

Purpose of the conference
This year’s conference slogan was Transforming Portsmouth Together. The mission of Shaping Portsmouth is to build sustainable collaborations and innovative programs aimed at elevating Portsmouth and ensuring it is a city that people want to visit, invest in, live, and work. Shaping has built programs over three broad areas: business, education, and community. The conference, therefore, invited speakers and exhibitors that would further these aims. Every one of Shaping Portsmouth‘s programs is aligned with the values that SLR Marine Recruit holds dear and that is why we agreed to become a patron of this incredible initiative.

Speakers and agenda
The conference was a massive success and was the biggest ever attended with over 200 businesses present, 385 attendees overall. This was the agenda:

 

Welcome and Introduction
– Stef Nienaltowski, CEO
           – Yvonne Clay, Director for Marketing & Branding

08:45 – Introduction to Portsmouth Guildhall’s
Basement Renovation Project
           – Andy Grays, CEO of The Guildhall Trust

08:55 – Portsmouth Football Club
– Andrew Cullen, CEO of Portsmouth Football Club
           – Clare Martin, CEO of Pompey In The Community

09:20 – Shaping Portsmouth’s Education Pillar
– Stef Nienaltowski
           – Hayden Taylor, Director for Education Programmes
           – Sharon Burt, CEO of The Solent Academies Trust

09:50 – In Conversation With…
– Temporary Superintendent Paul Markham,
              Portsmouth District, Hampshire Constabulary

10:10 – Networking & Refreshments

11:20 – City Council Update & Q&A
           – Cllr Steve Pitt, Member for Culture, Leisure &

               Economic Development

11:40 – Shaping Portsmouth’s Business Pillar
– Stef Nienaltowski
           – Jane Lamer, Director for Business Programmes

11:55 – Portsmouth Historic Dockyard Regeneration
– Hannah Prowse, CEO of the Portsmouth
              Naval Base Property Trust

12:10 – Shaping Portsmouth’s Community Pillar
– Stef Nienaltowski

12:20 – Disability Confident
– Led by Chris Hillman, Head of Employability and
              Apprenticeships at Minstead Trust

12:35 – Shaping Portsmouth Awards
– Stef Nienaltowski
           – Presented by Lord Mayor Cllr Hugh Mason

13:00 – Close and Networking

Every single speaker delivered a vision for Portsmouth that energised and inspired. The Armed Forces Covenant and the British Marine Academy apprenticeship are particularly close to our hearts. With National Apprenticeship Weeklooming, opportunities for young people to pick up tangible skills that naturally feed into the ambitions of the UK shipbuilding sector give an opportunity for SLR Marine Recruit to support the young people of Portsmouth.

Networking opportunities
SLR has always put the city of Portsmouth and its people at the centre of its recruitment vision. It is therefore vital that the team be given the space to interact with members of the public, and other like-minded businesses to promote conversations around our young people and transform the economy of the city. There were a couple of spaces in the schedule for this valuable networking time. The team loved speaking to visitors to its stand and we built valuable relationships and contacts and gained a greater understanding of how we fit in the overall vision for Portsmouth. The other attendees shared SLR’s enthusiasm for the sessions and there was lots of productive activity and connection between various organisations.

Awards
This was the most inspiring and emotional part of the conference. We were thrilled to see Roni Edwards receive an award for her incredible work to inspire young girls and women in the city.

We look forward to supporting her next month at the Inspirational Women of Portsmouth Awards!