First Qualifications for Staff at Kirkpatrick

Staff at Kirkpatrick Ltd in Walsall are currently celebrating success on work-based NVQs delivered in the workplace by Walsall College Assessors.

Thirty-seven members of staff have achieved their qualifications in Performing Manufacturing Operations and Warehouse and Storage Operations, many of whom had never achieved a formal qualification before.

Kirkpatrick Ltd has been manufacturing high quality malleable iron castings for a variety of uses since 1855. The company manufactures a range of products, including cabinet furniture, handles, hinges and coat hooks.

All training was delivered by a Walsall College Assessor onsite at the Walsall factory,causing minimum disruption to productivity and output.

Stephen Preston, Managing Director of Kirkpatrick Ltd said: “We started out training just two people and it was so popular, we ended up putting 37 staff through qualifications. The training didn’t interfere with production or dispatching goods at all and my staff have gained a great deal from the experience”.

Stephen added: “The company has benefitted from staff having increased awareness of health and safety issues, along with the insight to develop new systems and new ways of working. On a personal level, members of staff taking part in the training have increased in confidence and self-belief, particularly as for many, this has been the first formal qualification they have attained”.

James Till, Manager of the Packing Department said: “The training has definitely made me more aware of health and safety. It has refreshed my skills and brought important issues that we were already aware of, to the front of our minds. I’ve now changed the way I run the warehouse so that everybody is now aware of our priorities for the day and the progress we are making in achieving our targets.

“I’ve got no GCSEs or any other qualifications and there’s no way I would have come to college to study. Taking the qualification at work was great and didn’t interfere with my job at all. The course was really hands-on and the Assessor was very helpful. It’s great to have something on paper to show what I can do”.