Member Article

Leeds City College and ABP UK join forces to bridge industry skills gap

A new working partnership has seen industry and education come together to invest in essential skills and training essential for the meat industry. ABP UK and Leeds City College are officially working together to ensure the continuation of the industry’s skills, processes and traditions while helping to provide established routes into employment. The two organisations share a commitment to providing an environment for those entering the industry to be educated and developed.

The partnership will help enhance the college curriculum, with an investment in specialist equipment, work placements opportunities for students and the provision of demonstration and talks by industry experts. There are also plans for an annual ABP Award to recognise students’ talents and achievements.

A key component of the partnership is to provide relevant progression opportunities into employment. ABP run a fully integrated graduate scheme across all areas of the business providing a potential stepping-stone into various areas of the industry for those completing their studies at the College. A number of former college students have successfully progressed onto the company’s scheme, and are now working in supervisory roles in production and boning. Mandy Thompson, Graduate Development, who has been instrumental in establishing the new partnership, said: “At ABP we are committed to investing in young talent for the future. We currently employ almost 1,000 people across our three sites in Yorkshire – many of which have progressed within the company through our multidiscipline graduate scheme which offers career development paths across sales and marketing, livestock, technical and engineering disciplines. “We are delighted to partner with Leeds City College in helping to develop the next generation of skilled butchers for Yorkshire and beyond, and we are confident that this partnership will help promote butchery as an attractive career path for school leavers and those thinking about entering the meat processing industry.” Leeds City College works in collaboration with a number of high profile companies as part of its commitment to develop effective partnerships with key sectors.

Leeds City College’s James Richardson from Meat Technology said: “By working together, we are creating a collaboration that is the first of its kind for Leeds City College students within butchery.” “This partnership will broaden their experience and help to produce people who are knowledgeable and industry competent which will help take the industry forward in years to come.” “This collaboration with ABP shows both parties’ commitment to educating the industry’s future workforce, and will hopefully encourage some new young blood to enter into an industry which can offer a diverse career.” The College butchery department, located in its new £26 million, state-of-the-art Printworks Campus, consists of new purpose-built, high level industry standard facilities with an on-site accompanying deli, ensuring students gain ‘real-life’ relevant experiences, which are relevant and transferable to the workplace. It delivers high quality training on-site and out in industry, including apprenticeship programmes (Level 2 & 3 Certificate for Proficiency in Meat & Poultry Industry Skills) alongside bespoke programmes, working with independent family butchers to large-scale food manufacturers.

A special launch event to officially mark the new working partnership was held at Leeds City College on Thursday, November 6th and included an official plaque unveiling, tour of the on-site facilities and student demonstrations of butchery skills and techniques on ABP supplied cuts of beef and a lamb donated by Welcome to Yorkshire’s Chief Executive and award-winning Dales sheep farmer, Gary Verity.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Richard Savage .