New Maryport Training Centre To Provide More Job Opportunities

System Training has opened a new training facility in Maryport which it hopes will provide job opportunities and automotive apprenticeship programmes for young people across West Cumbria.

The new facility will employ two lecturers and assessors and additional support staff and services will come from System Training’s newly refurbished headquarters at Carlisle Airport.

The first intake of 16 students will undergo a 26-week City & Guilds Level 2 Vehicle Fitting Apprenticeship where they will learn to repair and replace tyres, brakes and exhaust systems.

They can then progress on to a Vehicle Maintenance & Repair Level 2 Apprenticeship which builds on their experience and skills. The apprenticeship also provides them with employment within local motor garages and vehicle repair centres – providing benefits for both students and employers.

It’s hoped the new training centre will not only help provide young people in West Cumbria with the specific skills and experience that employers are after but will also help boost the offering and service delivered by businesses.

Highly-trained and motivated young people are a benefit to any business and System Training’s motor apprentices have provided many benefits to employers in the past. The apprenticeship model, as well as receiving government support and funding, allows employers to mould apprentices to their specific practices and fine-tune their skills.

System Training has over 650 apprentices currently within its programmes and last month received a royal seal of approval when HRH The Princess Royal opened its new Skills Training Centre in Carlisle.

The company employs 370 staff and operates from 19 training centres across the UK.

Dave Walker, System Training Motor Vehicle Manager, said: “This is an important new training centre for West Cumbria and gives young people more options and opportunities to gain important skills and enter employment. I also believe it will help boost the local motor repair industry by providing employers with highly-skilled young people who are keen to make a real difference.”

Andrew Black, a 16-year-old Vehicle Fitting Apprentice from Maryport, said: “The apprenticeship is great for us as we learn practical skills that local garages want us to have. There’s no guarantee of a job if you go to university so it makes sense to do the apprenticeship and work locally.”