Get your fingers at the ready because National Coding Week (NCW) is almost on us and if you want to be a part of the digital revolution, now is the time.
The first ever National Coding Week, sponsored by JT, takes place from 21st to 28th September and features a Code Expo held by the Isle of Man Code Club. The event is being held on Saturday 27th September at The Forum between 4pm and 6pm. There will be an introduction to coding and a number of displays showcasing different coding platforms and applications, games and utilities.
Owen Cutajar, founder of the Isle of Man Code Club and EU Code Week Ambassador for the Isle of Man said, ‘We're delighted to be working with National Coding Week to help improve code literacy all around the UK. Coding has opened many doors for me and I welcome any opportunity to share these skills with people around me. We have a great session planned and will be demonstrating a range of different programming skills. The whole team is really looking forward to it.’
NCW will see coding events across the UK and Channel Islands with leading industry organisations lending their support. One of the NCW organisers, Richard Rolfe says they have been overwhelmed by the response, ‘We established this week because we’re passionate about spreading tech skills and making everyone aware of the opportunities in the industry. Considering we only started organising the event a month ago, the response has been phenomenal with support as far afield as Brussels and the European Union.’
Jordan Love is an EU Code Week Ambassadors for the UK, he’s also co-organiser of NCW, ‘There are lots of opportunities for young people like me to get involved in exciting careers such as web development however, there are great opportunities for older people too. What we need to do is give people the confidence to learn the new skills and offer the support and encouragement to take the first few steps.’
One of the aims of the week is to show that coding can be for everyone, and Bettina Parker-Macrae, a former lawyer, is one person who is getting behind it. Bettina is currently on an intensive six month coding programme, ‘An awareness campaign like National Coding Week is brilliant it’s so important for people to realise that everyone can get involved. I represent mature women/mothers, and whilst in some ways it’s more challenging for me because I haven’t had the same exposure to technology as younger people, it is still something I believe in passionately.
With women under represented in the tech industry Richard Rolfe welcomed the support of coding group, Women Who Code, who will be running events in London and Belfast during the week. Sheree Atcheson, Founder of Women Who Code said, ‘We are very proud to be a part of National Coding Week because we’re all about helping women excel in tech careers. Through a week like this, we can all work on showcasing amazing tech careers and prospects to girls and women all over the UK.’
JT CEO, Graeme Millar said encouraging a range of people into the industry is essential,
‘We’re keen to see school leavers and young people considering technology and telecoms careers, but we also need people with maturity, who have experience of life and other industries. National Coding Week is a fantastic initiative which will help showcase and highlight the opportunities on offer.’
The EU estimates that by 2020 there will be up to 1.3million jobs unfilled due to the lack of relevant digital skills.
Everyone can get involved by following an online coding course for free such as those with codecademy, while there will also be events held in London, Blackburn, Northern Ireland, Stoke-on-Trent and the Channel Islands.
Photo - Bettina Parker-Macrae.
