September 2015 e-bulletin
In This E-Bulletin
Spending Review 2015
New CaSE Members
CaSE on GCSE and A-Level Results
STEM Apprenticeships
CaSE Annual Review
Guest articles
Policy jobs
Open consultations

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Diary
16/09/15 CaSE held a member and collaborator Spending Review meeting, hosted by the Wellcome Trust

15/09/15 Naomi Weir appeared before the House of Commons S&T Committee

14/09/15 CaSE met with Chris Green MP

14/09/15 CaSE met with Paul Blomfield MP

11/09/15 Naomi Weir met with officials from the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee

11/09/15 CaSE held an immigration Opinion Forum for industry members and collaborators

11/09/15 CaSE held an immigration Opinion Forum for academic members and collaborators

11/09/15 Dr Martin Turner attended a meeting of science policy advisors at the Royal Society

08/09/15 Naomi Weir attended a Universities UK Annual Conference reception

08/09/15 Dr Martin Turner attended a Social Market Foundation event

08/09/15 Naomi Weir gave a keynote presentation at the IPEM Annual Conference

07/09/15 Naomi Weir met with the University of Liverpool

02/09/15 Dr Martin Turner met with Universities UK

02/09/15 Naomi Weir attended a Dowling Review workshop

25/08/15 CaSE met with Science is Vital

24/08/15 Naomi Weir met with officials from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

20/08/15 Dr Martin Turner attended an immigration meeting with the Migration Advisory Committee

19/08/15 CaSE held a pre-CSR meeting for members and collaborators, hosted by Rolls-Royce

17/08/15 Naomi Weir met with officials from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

14/08/15 CaSE met with the British Library

Please forward this on to any colleagues or friends you think would be interested in supporting science and engineering.

  
Spending Review 2015
Earlier this week CaSE published its submission to the 2015 Spending Review. To deliver on its commitment of repairing Britain's finances and move to a higher-wage, more productive economy,  CaSE has called on the Government to nurture its means: science and innovation.

On Tuesday, CaSE Acting Director Naomi Weir appeared before the House of of Commons S&T Committee, to discuss the science budget, alongside CaSE Chair, Professor Graeme Reid.

CaSE also held a member and collaborator Spending Review meeting this week, kindly hosted by the Wellcome Trust, to help foster a strong and unified voice across the sector.

As part of our cross-sector approach, CaSE is publishing a wide number of guest blogs, highlighting the strength of consensus on the Spending Review. We've already had one on the Life sciences letter published in the Financial Times on Monday, and one from the Science Museum on the need to tackle misconceptions of British science policy. Please do get in touch if you would like to contribute an article.
New CaSE members 
CaSE has welcomed Facebook and Arthritis Research UK as new members. We look forward to working with them, and all our members, throughout this important Spending Review period to ensure the views of the whole science and engineering sector are being heard.

To discuss CaSE membership for your organisation get in touch with our Membership Engagement and Development Manager Jenni Lacey . For the latest news from our members, visit the Members News section on our website.
CaSE responds to GCSE and A-level Results
A-levels
STEM subjects are more popular than ever before, accounting for 39% of all A-level exams entered in 2015. However, for the first time since 2009, the number of students taking exams in the core sciences of biology, chemistry, and physics has dropped.

CaSE has raised concerns that small declines in some of the sciences could turn into downward trends in coming years. There is much work to do to ensure all young people have the opportunity to access quality support, education and advice as they take their next steps.

GCSEs
Last month's GCSE results show an increase in the proportion of exam entries for STEM subjects. Unfortunately, there is also a clear gender divide, with non-compulsory STEM subjects remaining more popular with boys than with girls.
STEM Apprenticeships 
New analysis by CaSE has revealed that STEM apprenticeships have become less popular since 2011 and too few young people are choosing the vocational route into a STEM career as an alternative to higher education.

The analysis was covered in the Independent last week.
Annual Review 2014-15 
CaSE has published its Annual Review for 2014-15. It gives a summary of CaSE's activities over the year, including meetings with ministers, policy consultations, events and campaign achievements.  Highlights include:
  • 3 briefings published on investment, education and scientific advice
  • 10 letters received from political party leaders setting out election manifesto commitments
  • Meeting with Number 10 Downing Street, HM Treasury, BIS, Department for Education, Bank of England, and others
  • 13 new organisational members 
Guest articles in the CaSE blog 
CaSE publishes a number of guest articles on a wide range of science policy issues. Recent posts have included:
Policy Jobs Page 
We are currently listing a number of science and engineering policy job opportunities on our website.

If you are a prospective employer and would like to advertise a vacancy here, please email [email protected].
Open Consultations 

For more information on our activities go to our website www.sciencecampaign.org.uk
 
To contact us please telephone 0207 679 4994  or email [email protected]