Employer of the Year Award
(10-49 employees)

Benchmark is 46-strong Berkshire-based company, specialising in designing, making and installing handmade furniture and joinery for a wide range of clients, including Vodafone UK, the National Trust, the Eden Project and even the producers of the Harry Potter films. More than half of its workshop employees started out as apprentices.

In its rural area of West Berkshire, the company has found it more beneficial to attract and train apprentices as opposed to employing only skilled carpenters. Recruitment advertising costs are high due to Benchmark’s location just off the M4 corridor. To overcome this, the company has developed close links with local schools, enabling it to attract 12-25 young people for work placements every year. Some of these go on to do a full Apprenticeship. In addition, the apprentices themselves get involved in promoting Apprenticeships to young people in schools. 

Notably, retention of trained staff is one of the big benefits the company enjoys from Apprenticeships. Over half of Benchmark’s workforce is made up of previous and current apprentices, allowing them a unique insight into and understanding of the importance of training and investing in staff development. As the apprentices qualify and grow, Benchmark offers great opportunities for them to progress to senior positions, such as workshop foreman, supervisor and director, evidenced by the fact that one of the company’s current directors is a former apprentice.

Benchmark co-founder Sean Sutcliffe says the company, which currently employs six apprentices, regards the Apprenticeship programme as its “cornerstone for staff development.”

In the last year Benchmark has also set up a new mentoring initiative where each apprentice works alongside an experienced craftsman – all trained as mentors by Training Provider West Berkshire Training Consortium.