What is McLaren Racing Engage?

The first programme of its kind in F1, McLaren Racing Engage represents a pioneering strategic alliance with four expert partners that aims to significantly improve diversity and inclusion across the industry, and to inspire future generations of talent.

Established in 2021, the programme focuses on multi-year investments in grassroots-level STEM initiatives, funding and mentorship. McLaren Racing Engage will advance the team’s diversity, equity, and inclusion agenda as part of its broader sustainability programme. 

The alliance has been envisioned to drive a shared agenda to encourage STEM and F1 as an accessible vocation to under-represented and under-privileged groups to those with an interest and passion to work in the motorsport industry.

Equally, the programme aims to promote a diverse and inclusive culture within McLaren’s workforce and communities by providing accessibility to young people and under-represented groups. While the programme also reinforces McLaren Racing’s commitment to meaningful and sustained changes as an employer, and F1 as a sport and industry.

McLaren Racing Engage works with a number of different social enterprise organisations and charities to design and deliver a range of programmes. This alliance of organisations ensures that McLaren supports a cross-section of under-represented groups and has access to industry experts who help us to constantly increase our reach and impact.

What are our aims?

We want to be the most diverse and inclusive team in sport.

Our aim is for 40% of our people to come from underrepresented groups by 2030. This includes women, ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, neurodivergence, the LGBTQ+ community and people from low socioeconomic backgrounds.

We aim to tackle the STEM skills shortage, address systemic inequalities and find new ways to open pathways into motorsport careers.

This means promoting STEM and F1 as an accessible vocation to under-represented and under-privileged groups and fostering a diverse and inclusive culture within McLaren’s workforce and communities by providing accessibility to young people and under-represented groups.

We aim to advance meaningful and sustained change for McLaren Racing as an employer, and F1 as a sport and industry.

What has been said?

McLaren Racing Engage Interns

Annaleigh Dixon
Intern, Brand Management
23-years-old

“I am extremely proud to say that I have just recently completed my master's in Brand Management, set to graduate in November 2022. Previously, I was fortunate enough to secure an industrial placement with Harrods when I took some time off education during the pandemic, and most of my previous experience was in direct customer service and sales.

“My day-to-day at McLaren is a different story every day! The world of brand management is extremely diverse, and we work across a variety of projects every day. This ranges from branding approvals, campaign approvals, digital asset management to assist the whole team, and business development brainstorms for upcoming, exciting partnerships.

“So far, I have really developed my processing and communication skills. Previously, I have only worked with small teams with everyone knowing all the information, whereas here, there is a large amount of collaboration with multiple people who have different priorities and understandings. A part of brand management is aligning all these different people to deliver everything in the best way possible.

“My highlights so far have been the moments where everyone has come all together, and I have been able to learn about the different parts of the business that I don’t have as much knowledge about. Everyone here has been so unbelievably friendly and kind and have allowed me to access their roles and see how they operate within the company, so I have been able to do some really cool, special projects!”

Alanna Holtby
Intern, Fan Engagement
18-years-old

“My role sits within the CRM Team and predominantly involves opening and responding to fan mail, facilitating competitions (including tours of the McLaren Technology Centre and signed merchandise giveaways) and cataloguing email communications. I love that my role enables me to see the positive impact our actions have on our amazing fans and appreciate the diverse creativity they choose to share with us, such as bracelets and artwork made for the team.

“As an avid follower of motorsport, it is really interesting to see this side of racing and how vital teamwork is to achieve and maintain a high-performance culture in the sport. There’s always something new to see and be a part of here at McLaren, which constantly reminds me of how lucky I am to be working within such a supportive and dynamic team.

“One of my favourite experiences was getting to work in the McLaren Paddock at CarFest South. I loved being able to speak to fans in person and see their enthusiasm for the team!” 

McLaren Racing Engage Arkwright Scholars

Rory Simm

“I applied for an Arkwright scholarship because I know I want to be an engineer, and I know that being an Arkwright scholar would be the best way to help me get there. The scholarship provides me with a mentor and brilliant connections that will help me go further in my career. Being sponsored by McLaren is a dream come true, and with me wanting to be a motorsport engineer, I know that it is the best sponsor for me. I can still hardly believe it’s happened!”

Livia Pasta

"The opportunities McLaren has presented me with are countless, but some of the most significant to me has been the attentive mentors they have provided me. As I will soon be joining a university, I have many big decisions to make and having someone who has been through this already and successfully ended up in a career I aspire to has been incredibly valuable. I am also grateful for the work experience they organised. I have learnt what it's like to work in motorsport day-to-day and had a great opportunity to network."

James Keil

“I am thrilled to be sponsored by McLaren Racing as part of my Arkwright scholarship. This opportunity is beneficial to me and the career I want to pursue. Having this scholarship will allow me to build relationships with different areas within McLaren and engineers who are experienced in the sector I want to excel in. Being sponsored by McLaren is a huge honour considering they are one of the most successful teams in motorsport – especially in F1 - and I can't wait to work with them.”

Thomas James

“Achieving the Arkwright scholarship and thus having the opportunity of being sponsored by McLaren has been one my proudest achievements to date. This has brought many privileges that I wouldn’t have had, including a mentor from the McLaren team, work experience for a week with their Formula E team, and multiple visits to the McLaren Technology Centre. During my time with McLaren, I have been able to find out what skills I need to focus on for this highly sought-after career path, as well as enjoying the experience of contributing to and being part of a competitive team.”

Arunima Unde 

“Life–changing does not even begin to describe this scholarship. Being sponsored by McLaren Racing has been brilliant, as I have grown so much in the past year. My mentor, Alvaro, is just so inspiring and knowledgeable and I have learned so much from every interaction. A fascinating week of work experience at the MTC in a welcoming, buzzing atmosphere left me in awe of the team dynamic, and the cutting-edge technology, so with the financial award, I could pursue my interest in building a model of a wind tunnel. I am grateful and look forward to the next year with them!”