4th April 2018

Stockport-based technology company CDL has opened its doors to year 8 pupils from Stockport School, giving them the chance to get hands-on with a range of creative team building activities and experience what it's like to work at a leading UK software company for a day.

The year 8 pupils visited the software firm's state-of-the-art technology campus on Kings Reach Road in Stockport, where they toured the site and learned about the key skills and employability criteria that recruiters look for at technology firms - including team work.

To put collaboration into action, the students were split into groups and challenged to see who could build the tallest tower using only spaghetti and string.

Throughout the day, employees from all areas of the business were on hand to answer students' questions about what it's like to work at CDL and the sorts of exciting careers they can aspire to there.

The visit was part of a long-term partnership with the school, which is seeing CDL create a range of opportunities designed to inspire young people to pursue careers in technology and see for themselves the vibrant and growing tech scene in the local area.

Developed through CDL's membership of Business in the Community (BiTC), the partnership is seeing the tech firm organise a host of visits, including an 'Inspiring Girls' day on International Women's Day, which aimed to tackle the under-representation of women in IT and encourage year 10 girls from Stockport School to see the value in pursuing computer science as a GCSE qualification.

Laura Georgious, learning and organisational development business partner at CDL, said: "It was a pleasure to host the pupils and introduce them to the world of work. We hope that the experience has inspired them to seek out the many opportunities in technology that are right on our doorstep."

Ranked 20 in a recent list of the top 100 technology companies in the North, CDL employs nearly 700 people. Last month, it announced that it had retained its exclusive Top Employers certification, meaning it is officially recognised as one of the best places to work in the UK for a second consecutive year.