Inspiring young people on the future of EV charging at Leeds Skelton Lake
This summer, we welcomed 27 Year 9 students from Mount St Mary’s school to our Leeds Skelton Lake services to take part in a bespoke EV insights day. Working with ESG specialist Ahead Partnership, volunteers from Extra MSA, IONITY and GRIDSERVE attended, helping to foster excitement among the younger generations around career opportunities in the green transport and infrastructure sectors.
The EV Challenge activity encouraged young people to plan an innovative pilot project in Leeds, aimed at supporting a net-zero future. The activity enabled them to visit the site, learning more about out the benefits and challenges of EV infrastructure, talking to customers about their experiences, collaborating to find solutions to upscale green technologies and meet customer expectations.
They were also able to meet people working across the green transport and infrastructure sectors, in roles ranging from operations, to PR and marketing, to customer experience.
The young people also got to listen to a keynote speech from our CEO, Tom Dobson. He must have left a lasting impression, as multiple students surveyed afterwards cited “CEO of Extra” as the job that interested them the most!
What’s more, 93% of students said the interactive day helped increase their understanding of how to get into different careers. One student said: “I learnt more about how electric vehicles work and what Net Zero is about.”
85% of students said the activity increased their interest in a green job, with one commenting: “I liked learning about the wildlife and the activities you can do. I liked learning about the future of EVs, how sectors are managed by different people, and how they are always trying to improve.”
At the end of the activity, the 27 students also had a chance to present their projects to a panel of decarbonisation experts who evaluated them against a thorough ESG strategy and framework. 93% of students said this experience improved their self-belief and confidence, supporting Extra MSA and Ahead Partnership’s wider goal of delivering a more sustainable future powered by young people’s insights and creativity.