Silverstone University Technical College (UTC), situated directly alongside the British Grand Prix circuit, has become a definitive success story in engineering education, with graduates now working for top Formula One teams. In 2025, as many as 30 students went directly into motor sport, including placements with F1 teams, race engineering employers, and specialist motor sport degree courses.
Graduates Join Top F1 Teams
Kian Brown and Savannah Morgan, both graduates from last year, have secured positions with F1 teams. Brown is now a composite machining apprentice at Mercedes, and Morgan is an advanced digital machining apprentice at Cadillac. They join alumni who have gone on to roles across motor sport and engineering industries.
Morgan said: “I love maths and physics but I also like doing practical work. Lewis Hamilton is a big inspiration. As a person of colour myself, seeing him stand out in such a field where there isn’t much diversity is a big inspiration.” She added that work placements twice a week allowed students to gain real-world experience and explore which areas of engineering they enjoy most.
Unique Location and Industry Partnerships
The college occupies a campus next to the circuit, opposite the old start-finish straight between Woodcote and Copse corners. Founded in 2013 by Neil Patterson, a design engineer at McLaren, the land was donated by the British Racing Drivers’ Club and Silverstone circuit. The UTC has partnerships with Aston Martin, Red Bull, and Haas, with ambitions for more.
Principal Angela Murphy said: “We are just so so lucky to be here. It’s a truly enviable location I would say and one of those pinch-me places. The opportunities that we give to our students are jaw-dropping at times and that’s so special, the location is a huge part of that.” She noted that the UTC has built a strong reputation with employers in engineering, not just in Formula One but in high-performance engineering.
Addressing Industry Needs
This year, the Department for Business and Trade announced that F1 contributed £12bn from a £16bn annual UK motor sport turnover to the economy. The Motorsport Industry Association survey of 2024 stated that Formula One employed 50,000 people but identified recruitment and training as one of the most prevalent barriers to growth.
The college is part of the solution. Funded like any state school, it has capacity for 480 students, but demand already outstrips places. Some families have moved across the country to access the UTC. One former alumni embarked on a degree apprenticeship at Cosworth with the University of Warwick, travelling from Kent every day.
Facilities and Student Commitment
The college features full-size industry standard tools, lathe and milling equipment, computer numerical control machines, welding bays, and a computer-aided design suite. Murphy noted that changing schools at 14 is not a normal transition point, illustrating how special the opportunities are.
“It doesn’t feel like a school, it doesn’t look like a school,” she said. “We’ve got incredible workshops sat there with glass walls that you can see through. It’s a beautiful building, a really stunning place and the sound of the track alongside it is just an added bonus really.”
Impact on Students
Brown, who had long dreamed of working in F1, found the chance to do something beyond mainstream A-levels ideal. “I went to the school because I knew that it did everything,” he said. “You could do every part of it, there’s the theory side, there’s the practical side, hands-on, all that. Our teachers all come from the industry themselves, so they’re able to guide us in the right direction.”
He added: “I had to move from my town in Stafford all the way to Northampton, away from everyone there. It’s probably the best decision I’ve ever made.”
F1’s popularity is evident, with record-breaking attendance of 570,000 expected at the British Grand Prix. The UTC continues to drive the next generation that will sustain this thriving sport.
