During National Apprenticeship Week, Jenny Johnston, People and Culture Manager at KMF Group, tells Daily Focus about the business’s in-house apprenticeship scheme and why it is so successful.
“KMF has taken on apprentices since 2002 and we now recruit 12 to 14 young people from local schools and colleges each year to level 2 engineering technology and level 3 sheet metal fabrication apprenticeships.
We launched our own fully accredited in-house training scheme in 2007 and since then, we have recruited and trained more than 150 apprentices. Every apprentice who successfully completes our programme is offered a full-time role at KMF – and around 50 per cent have gained middle-management positions within the company.
We were prompted to start exploring our own in-house training after we had our first few retirements in 2005, individuals who had been with KMF since it was established in 1971. We looked at the age profile of the organisation and realised that within a 10-year period we would lose around 50 people to retirement – around half the workforce at that time.
That was a bit of a shock, and we realised that we needed to backfill the skills and knowledge that we would lose to retirement. We originally worked with a local technical college in Stoke, but we realised that only about 30 per cent of their engineering courses were relevant to our business needs – and so we started the journey of bringing it in house.
After looking at the main engineering awarding boards, we decided to work with EAL, and in 2007, we registered our first four 16-year-old apprentices straight from school. This went so well that in 2008 we recruited four more.
The in-house training programme was so successful that we decided to build our own training centre. We recruited teachers and I even went back to college to get my PGCE in post-16 education.
The training centre opened in 2009, and we later invested an additional £500,000 in an in-house training workshop.
As apprenticeships evolved in the 2010s, KMF registered with the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) as an Employer Provider, allowing us to use our apprenticeship levy to fund training and support not only new apprentices but also existing employees looking to upskill.
Today, we have 35 engineering apprentices and a total of 52 apprentices across various levels – including me, as I am one of three employees currently studying a level 7 senior leader apprenticeship.
Today we have 325 employees, with apprentices making up 16 per cent of our workforce. Our average workforce age has dropped from 55 in 2005 to 45 today, helping to secure the long-term sustainability of our business.
It’s great to see experienced engineers pass down essential skills to the next generation, while young apprentices bring enthusiasm, drive and confidence with technology.
We offer lots of opportunities for development and have a retention rate of around 95 per cent. Apprentices can progress from level 3 to an HNC, HND or a degree, all fully funded while earning a salary. Compared to traditional university routes that leave students with significant debt, degree apprenticeships provide a financially viable alternative.
For businesses considering apprenticeships, I say: go for it. It’s not just about taking on young people, it’s also about upskilling the existing workforce. Apprenticeships are open to individuals aged 16 to 65, offering opportunities that will benefit both employees and the business.”
- For more information about KMF’s apprenticeship program, click here.
