2008 Employer of the Year Medium business (50 – 249 employees) - Mark Wilkinson Furniture
Richard Smith
Employer of the year Medium business
Employer - Mark Wilkinson Furniture
Learning Provider – Wiltshire College
Richard is discussing a finished kitchen with Cynthia, checking the build quality.
Cynthia says “I think the whole reason of running the apprenticeship scheme is to have the skilled staff of the quality that we require, because nothing but the best will do.”
Cynthia and Richard are discussing a technical drawing “We’ve been running our apprenticeship scheme now for ten years. And it’s been really successful for us because our trained apprentices now make up about 25% of our furniture-making workforce. We’ve actually helped train 48 people, and of those 48 only two are not working within the industry. The training the apprentices get is not just training for Mark Wilkinson Furniture, but training for them for their careers.”
We see Richard and Cynthia fully inspecting a finished, checking the quality of the fit, checking the doors and the cupboard joins
Richard says “The apprenticeship was definitely the right way to go because it’s given me a lot more insight into how things work. The scope of this company is perfect really, exactly what I needed. I know where I want to be and I’ll do everything I can to get there. And this company has given me every opportunity.”
Cynthia says “Running an apprenticeship scheme isn’t just altruistic; it is also about business sense. Since we started the apprenticeship scheme our company has increased from a 10 million turnover to 24 million. And they’ve been every part in making us the internationally recognized market leader we are today. Without a doubt I can see the future of our company in the hands of the apprentices and how they’ve worked with Mark Wilkinson Furniture.”
Mark Wilkinson Furniture, winner of the Medium Employer of the Year Award at the Apprenticeship Awards 2008.