Member Article

Kitchen firm tells school leavers - ‘you’re hired!’

The second largest employer in Kirklees, Dewsbury-based Rixonway Kitchens, has continued its campaigns to support apprenticeships, offer job opportunity to young people in the region and tackle worklessness, by adding two more apprentices to its growing complement and offering permanent positions to two more.

And the company, which is the UK’s biggest manufacturer of kitchens for the social housing sector, now with 462 staff, intends to employ four more of its established apprentices permanently over the next 12 months, adding to the three signed up recently.

With the business actively helping to build up the skills and employability of local people of all ages, there is a lot more going on than just employing apprentices. For example, it runs regular training programmes where the unemployed can shadow the work of its designers to acquire new skills.

Chief executive, Paul Rose, is also planning another initiative with local schools called World at Work days. These will involve several local schools and will see whole classes taking part in day long work experience visits.

Featuring presentations from different members of staff exploring the many different roles involved in modern manufacturing as well as a factory tour and a Q&A session with Paul, the first World at Work day is scheduled to take place before Christmas.

Rixonway is also a national apprentice ambassador and takes part in Apprentice Week each year (the next will be in March 2014) and works closely with Kirklees Council on its initiative, the Kirklees Apprentices Incentive Scheme, which offers grants of £1,500 to businesses that offer apprenticeships.

Both new apprentices are school leavers, with Laura Brentnall, 19, joining from Earlsheaton Technology College and Joshua Smith, 18, from St John Fisher Catholic High School, Leeds.

They have each been given one-year term; Laura working in the administration department and Joshua securing a business apprenticeship that will allow him to work across a range of departments before deciding a preference.

With the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealing the unemployment rate for 16 to 24-year-olds has risen to 21%, both were understandably delighted at securing the jobs.

The two apprentices to have been offered permanent roles at the company have each been with Rixonway for over a year and achieved NVQ qualifications there. Gemma Gibson, 20, began as an administration apprentice and has now been taken on as a contract co-ordinator, with duties including liaising with customers and the internal design team. Jerome Austin, 19, joined the company as a transport office apprentice and is now a purchasing planning assistant, responsible for placing orders for bought in materials.

Paul Rose said: “We have experience of supporting apprentices at Rixonway and as the second biggest employer in the region we are keen to play our part in offering young people the opportunity of a good start in working life.

“The idea that manufacturing is an unskilled industry is long gone and we offer a range of career opportunities for apprentices in different areas of the business. Giving a chance to 16-24 year-olds that are keen and motivated to learn new skills is also a great way to build our workforce and maintain our competitive edge.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by David Gatehouse .