Member Article

Business supports local graduates and apprentices

While many graduates and school leavers across the UK are finding it difficult to find full-time work, one North-East business recently completed the ‘hat-trick’ by employing its latest young recruit.

Adam Robinson has been taken on by totrain, a Norton-based training business which specializes in supporting the food industry.

The 22-year-old, from Bishop Auckland is a Web Developer, having graduated from the University of Teesside with a degree in Multimedia and Web Development.

He joins fellow ‘young guns’ Louise Smith and Lewis Berry who joined totrain as a graduate and apprentice respectively.

Adam says: “My main role is looking after the training academies we create for clients to run their own bespoke in-house training. These clients include large national food production companies such as Charlie Bighams and SK Chilled Foods.

“This is my first full time job. It is a really nice and relaxed place to work. I work closely with Louise and Lewis, trying to find the best solutions for our clients.”

Louise, 26, Redcar, started at totrain 18 months ago. In her role as an e-Learning Developer, Louise develops courses for clients, creating alongside Adam and Lewis, a series of engaging and interactive e-learning courses.

She said: “I did my degree in Graphic Design at Teesside University which covered many different aspects so I had the knowledge in different areas of design when I left.

“I graduated in 2013 and I was lucky I got a job pretty much straight away in a digital signage company where a few of us had gone on work experience and they offered me a job. My old tutor then me about the job here at Totrain and so I applied.

“It seemed like a really nice place to work and it was a good opportunity to make the change. I like doing the design work and liaising more with the clients, I enjoy that. I get the chance also to do branding which I enjoy.

“totrain are a really good company to work for. I’m getting more responsibility and there’s opportunity for me to grow even more within the company and as a person.”

Lewis, 24, from Billingham, has been with totrain for three and a half years. He came to the business as an apprentice aged 19 having left school in 2010.

He said: “I was in college doing media studies, computing and IT as A levels. I heard about the Totrain apprenticeship online and it appealed to me as it was making use of my skills that I’d learned at college in IT.

“It’s a good working environment and very relaxed. It’s been great as there was a real synergy between what I was learning at college and what I was doing in the work.

“I develop course materials and change them into engaging and interactive courses for clients. They can include video and film and animation for example. I like to work on different mediums and different media and my job gives me the chance to do that.

“I would recommend it as an apprenticeship, it’s given me a really good grounding in lots of skills.”

Helen Hood, Director at totrain, said: “We really want, as a business, to support local graduates and school leavers. Our team have been really successful and are vital parts of our organisation.

“Adam, Louise and Lewis have key roles ensuring we offer a range of training solutions for businesses in the food sector including online academies, online courses and training consultancies.”

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