Whitemeadow has continued its efforts to recruit the next generation of furniture makers by holding its first external open day to showcase its sewing and upholstery academies to local school pupils.
Whitemeadow’s in-house upholstery trainer and a number of apprentice sewing machinists were on hand with Webs Training to make sure all the pupils got some valuable hands-on experience on the day.
‘The pupils really enjoyed the visit and they were very interested in seeing how something is made from start to finish. Doing visits like this gives them the opportunity to experience the world of work and hopefully gives them ideas about what they can do for a future career,’ says Kim Dellar, Quarrydale Academy careers lead.
‘We had a fantastic day sharing our knowledge and skills with local students, plus educating them on the apprenticeships on offer here at Whitemeadow. We all feel that it is a very worthwhile project, not only promoting the company in the local area, but showing school children in the community that there are some fantastic career opportunities right on their doorstep in the future. We hope to see some of their faces behind a sewing machine or an upholstery bench in a few years’ time,’ says Karen Clarridge, Whitemeadow, head of group HR.
Local residents were also offered the opportunity to come along and find out more about career opportunities in the furniture industry and the company says that thanks to the success of the open day it will hold similar events in the future.
