EE Smith appoints seven apprentices

Leicester-based fit-out and joinery specialist EE Smith has appointed seven new bench hand joiners after they all successfully completed a two-year furniture manufacturing apprenticeship with distinction.

Fenton Williams, Oscar Allen, Adam Ball, Chris Burnett, Mark Cluer, Jack Mullings and Padraig Taylor are the first cohort to benefit from EE Smith’s dedicated Apprentice Learning Centre, opened two years ago to provide a specialist space for developing skills. 

The programme combines 80 per cent practical work – split between the learning centre and the main production workshop under the guidance of qualified joiners – with 20 per cent study at Leicester College.

The firm celebrated the apprentices’ achievements at an awards ceremony, with Fenton Williams named 2025 Apprentice of the Year and first-year apprentice Alice Musgrove, pictured below, receiving the Rising Star Award.

Claire Noble, HR manager at EE Smith, said: “It is fantastic to welcome seven extremely talented bench hand joiners to the business as permanent members of the team as a result of their exceptional achievements.

“We are very proud of our apprenticeship programme, and it is clear that the investment in our dedicated learning centre is already paying dividends.

“The new dedicated learning centre provides a more structured approach and we have some very committed in-house trainers supporting them.

“We work on some extremely prestigious projects, and it really gives us the opportunity to develop talent from the ground up.

“We have been based in Leicester from more than 125 years, and we always try to give back to our community by striving to recruit and train local people, with a third all of employees starting their careers at EE Smith Contacts as apprentices.

“We are also aware that many of our apprentices join us between the ages of 16 and 18, so we do everything we can to help them settle into working while they study.

“This includes holding a special welcome event for the new starters and their parents just before they join, providing free lunches before their first pay day and regular wellbeing checks throughout their apprenticeship.

“It is also wonderful to be able to give recognition to our apprentices at our annual awards ceremony, and it was excellent to see Alice, who is our only female apprentice, receive the Rising Star Award.

“We look forward to continuing to support our current apprentices to progress.”

Fenton, pictured below with John Richardson, production director at EE Smith, added: “I am very pleased to join EE Smith as a bench hand joiner. 

“The business has provided me with a wealth of experience and the opportunity to develop high-quality skills which will stand me in good stead to have a successful career in the industry.

“It was also excellent to be named Apprentice of the Year 2025 in recognition of my achievements.”

EE Smith’s 2025 intake sees a further eight new apprentices and three trainees joining the Leicester programme, along with two new London apprentices, and four returning second-year apprentices joining the programme.

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