A small business which started in Nuneaton more than three decades ago and continues to grow there is well-equipped for further growth following staff training funded by the Skills Escalator programme
MES Systems Ltd, created by Andy Morgan in his home 35 years ago, install and maintain security and life safety systems such as CCTV, fire alarms and automated gates.
The business continues to thrive at its premises on Attleborough Fields Industrial Estate with Andy’s son Richard now Managing Director. With a total of 21 employees, MES Systems Ltd has made use of the Skills Escalator Fund to provide training for 4 of their employees covering a range of IPAF and Health & Safety training.
“The funding enabled us to get some staff trained up and others to go on refresher courses much sooner than would otherwise have been possible,” said Richard. “Training like this is so important because, these days, most customers, especially the bigger ones, demand assurances that staff are trained to a high degree. Thanks to the Skills Escalator funding we can say they absolutely are.
“We also had some earlier funding from the Skills Escalator because we were part of the pilot scheme in Nuneaton & Bedworth. The training has been brilliant, in many cases tailored exactly to our business - for example the risk assessment training that our sales surveyor undertook.”
Councillor Martin Watson, portfolio holder for Economy at Warwickshire County Council, added,
“MES Systems is a great example of a small Warwickshire business which has the skills and enterprise to grow and succeed and it’s fantastic to see how much the business, and individual employees within it, have benefited from the Skills Escalator training.”
MES Systems’ business trajectory remains very much upwards in Attleborough Fields where it has been since first moving into the Warwickshire County Council-run Centenary Business Centre in 2010.
“We moved into the Centenary Centre when my mum suggested it was time the business moved out of the house!” said Richard. “That move gave us space to expand and the business centre was perfect for us, enabling us to grow to the point where we had to move again to our current base.
“We love it in Nuneaton. The town and especially the location at Attleborough Fields are ideal.”
The Skills Escalator programme is delivered by Warwickshire Skills Hub and funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund in partnership with the county’s district and borough councils.
To find out more about how Warwickshire Skills Hub can support your business with apprenticeships and upskilling, contact skillshub@warwickshire.gov.uk and a Business Support Advisor will be in touch.