Adey Steel plays an active part in National Apprenticeship Week.
The steel fabrication infrastructure specialists, which are based on a purpose-built, five-acre site in Loughborough, have been huge advocates of apprenticeships.
The family-owned-and-operated business has been operating an apprenticeship programme with both Loughborough College, and more recently, Leicester College for over 10 years.
Marking the return of National Apprenticeship Week, which ran in February , Adey Steel exhibiting at the Leicester College Apprenticeship Fair
Richard Greasley, a former Adey Steel apprentice and now Production Director at Adey Steel, said: “We’re really looking forward to providing young people with an insight into working life at Adey Steel later this week alongside other companies such as Galliford Try, Pukka Pies and William Davis.
“Training the next generation in engineering, fabrication and welding is critical to the long-term future of both Adey Steel and the wider UK steel fabrication industry – which is why events such as these at Leicester College are important. As our workforce ages and the recruitment of experienced employees becomes harder, we will increasingly need more apprentices in a wide variety of roles to help us deliver the critical infrastructure projects across several sectors.”
Adey Steel was recently singled out for an Employer Partnership Award by Leicester College for supporting its successful intermediate apprenticeship programme. The company currently has six members of staff completing their three-year apprenticeship programmes.
Among those to have successfully completed their apprenticeship with Adey Steel is Systems Administrator Bradley Sheppard. The 29-year-old explained: “After a number of years working in jobs that I didn’t want to do, I decided to embark on an apprenticeship and ‘earn while I learn’ rather than go to university.
“The apprenticeship has given me the technical knowledge I needed for my role in IT as well as the confidence to put what I have learnt through my apprenticeship into practice as a Systems Administrator at Adey Steel. Without the apprenticeship I’d probably still be doing jobs that I didn’t enjoy.”