Pictured above: Start on Site (L-R back row on truck)
Jack Labbett; Chris Swain; Ruidhe O'Mahony and Lewis Roberts.
(Middle row) Mark Stevenson, William Davis Production Director;
Brian Bradford, William Davis Personal and Training Manager; Mark
Chettleburgh, William Davis Production Manager; (On digger) Harry
Collinson and Sam Limbert. (Front Row) Bill Eccles, William Davis
Apprentice Master; Nathan West; Liam Henson and Peter Weston,
William Davis Apprentice Master
Whilst the economic downturn has hit the construction industry
extremely hard, the current trading climate has not waned William
Davis' commitment to aspiring youngsters from Leicestershire and
this week, eight teenagers from across the County were the latest
to join the Loughborough-based contractor and developer's award
winning apprenticeship scheme.
The young apprentices will spend the next three years learning
to be qualified carpenters & joiners, plumbers, electricians
and bricklayers, being trained and mentored by the Company's own
apprentice masters. This 'hands on' training is also supplemented
through day release courses at Stephenson College, Loughborough
College and at the company's dedicated in-house training
centre.
Eager to begin their new careers in construction Harry
Collinson, Jack Labbett (both carpenters/joiners), Chris Swain,
Liam Henson (both electricians), Sam Limbert, Nathan West (both
plumbers), Lewis Roberts and Ruidhe O'Mahony (both bricklayers) met
with their apprentices mentors and personnel from the William Davis
Production team on site in Loughborough.
Commenting on the new intake William Davis' personnel and
training manager Brian Bradford said: "As a company, we pride
ourselves on the quality of our work and we recognise that our
employees are our biggest asset. Through our scheme we have trained
many young apprentices who have gone on to become highly skilled
tradesmen and women, who galvanise the reputation William Davis has
built over the past 75 years.
"The young apprentices who join us today are not only the future
of William Davis but will also become the future of a better
skilled Britain."
Echoing those sentiments, Mark Stevenson, production director,
William Davis said: "Traditional apprenticeship schemes are the
building blocks to achieve quality at every level and with the
construction industry having had such a tough time, it is important
to ensure that we equip our future workforce with adequate skills
to maintain the standards required for both William Davis and the
industry as a whole.
"We are committed to giving these impressive youngsters a
comprehensive training programme, supported by both Construction
Skills and J T Limited* and look forward to seeing them fully
qualified in their chosen trade in the future."
Since the scheme's inception in 1946 William Davis has employed
well over 1000 apprentices, with many remaining with the Company
for their entire careers, working their way up the ranks to become
managers and mentors themselves.