Member Article

Tea and toast cement special relationship

The new school year has reignited a unique relationship between an leading north east company and a popular school.

Pump manufacturer Grundfos struck up the special relationship with Portland Academy, which caters for secondary-aged pupils with special needs, six years ago.

Now Grundfos, based in Sunderland, hosts weekly work experience placements for Portland students, with both company and school finding the regular visits richly rewarding.

“The placements offered to our students are heavily supported by a fantastic and dedicated team of mentors who support our students throughout their time at Grundfos,” said Rachel Chaffe, Leader of Parents, Community and Business Links at the academy.

The placements have been designed in blocks of six weeks with students attending one day a week: “We find that this benefits our students more than the conventional one or two week placements that mainstream students tend to be placed on, as it gives our students the opportunity to carry out tasks and improve on them week by week.

“All of the students that we have had pass through the Grundfos doors have had valuable experiences within a real work setting,” added Rachel.

“Not only have they carried out duties that they wouldn’t ordinarily get the opportunity to experience in school, they have grown in self esteem and confidence.

“The students also have their eyes opened to the world of work and meet new people. The mentors and other staff working at Grundfos have commented on how they have had their eyes opened to how capable many of the students are in carrying out tasks that are asked of them,”

Lee Carlin, General Manager at Grundfos, the world’s leading pump manufacturer celebrating their 40th anniversary in the city this year, said: “We really value the relationship we have with Portland and the opportunity to help and develop the academy’s students.

“Grundfos colleagues really enjoy working with the students and the school, to the extent that June Torgersen our Production Director is a governor at the academy.

“We think of ourselves as a north east company and this is a meaningful, practical way of putting something back into the community,” Lee said.

Rachel added: “We see our relationship as a win-win situation: our students gain valuable experiences and many transferable skills while Grundfos staff feel they are contributing to the community and look forward to working with our students.

“One other thing, the students love the tea and toast that they get on arrival and also the lovely lunches served in the canteen,” she added.

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