A report by the London-based MyKinda-Crowd social enterprise group reveals that 32% of 12- to 25-year-olds are considering engineering as a potential career, while two thirds say they would benefit from hands-on experience by being taught engineering in the work-place.

However, it added that many of these young people have “over-simplified or incorrect” ideas about the industry and associate engineering with physical labour.

Speaking at the launch of the report, ‘apprenticeship ambassador’ Andrew Jones MP (pictured) said: “Engineering is a key skill for our future prosperity. It is important that young people have all the facts at their fingertips, so that they can make an informed decision about a career in engineering.”

William Akerman, managing director of MyKindaCrowd, said: “It is clear the industry needs to work hard to encourage these young engineers of the future. Greater collaboration between business and education is vital to the success of engineering being taught in secondary education.”