Member Article

SME businesses in North East benefit from skills upgrade

A European-funded training programme being delivered by North East skills provider Ingeus is bringing real benefits to the region’s SME businesses.

That’s the view of Cramlington-based premium furniture manufacturing business George Smith Ltd, whose management team has just completed a bespoke ‘Skills Support for the Workforce’ (SSW) training package aimed at further enhancing their skills and abilities.

Endorsed by the North East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), the SSW programme is modular, and includes a broad range of topics such as management control, conflict management and reporting structures. It is aimed at companies, like George Smith, which employ fewer than 250, and is free of charge.

“It is our aim to ensure all members of our senior management team have full confidence in the decisions they make,” said George Smith’s HR manager Betty Mahan. “We spent considerable time researching the training opportunities that are available and the SSW programme was a perfect fit for us. It was designed by Ingeus around our business and so was a perfect match for our needs.”

Two of those who participated in the training were project planner Steve Fawkes and Harry Mockett, who heads production at the company’s wood mill on the Nelson Park Industrial Estate.

“I’ve completed training courses before, but this time I made real progress,” said Steve Fawkes, who has been employed by George Smith for the past 21 years. “I benefitted by taking a step back from my everyday job and gaining a greater understanding of my team and how we do our job, and the impact we have on the rest of the company.”

“It’s helped me develop even further in my role,” added Harry Mockett. “I have enjoyed looking at the whole business and how manufacturing fits in. I really enjoy my job and, even though I have worked for George Smith for more than 25 years, I know there’s always more to learn.”

Ingeus skills broker Caroline Whitmore said, “Those who took part at George Smith have gained Level 3 accredited qualifications helping them develop further as managers. One of the many advantages of the SSW programme is its flexibility and so we shaped the training around the roles and responsibilities of those who took part.”

The funding for SSW is secure until the middle of next year, and local businesses are urged to enrol before March 2015.

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