THE CREATION of a new apprenticeship scheme and the growth of a farm business were among the highlights of a week long tour of the borough by the town’s MP.
Karen Lumley spent the week visiting various companies across the constituency in a bid to learn more about the work that goes on and understand the issues they are facing and what support the Government can offer.
The tour started last Friday (August 8) where she visited Stables Farm Shop, Café and Farm Park which in seven years has grown from a redundant stable block and an area of intensively farmed arable land with only one part time employee, to a business which now employs more than 30 people and has become a popular destination for locals and visitors.
On Monday (August 11) Mrs Lumley visited the Redditch headquarters of Tamlite Lighting on the Park Farm Industrial Estate. The firm is one of the country’s leading manufacturers and designers of lighting with extensive research and design and manufacturing activities at nine factories in the region, six of which are in Redditch. Over the last three years the company has invested £4million and sells more than four million products a year.
The company has also unveiled its new apprentice training scheme having taken on its first Tamlite Lighting Trainee as part of a new scheme to uncover talented individuals from the local area. Not only will it equip new workers with the skills the firm needs but it will also groom the company’s future managers.
John Allden, general manager of Tamlite Lighting, said: “There are so many eager young people in the local area and, with our trainee scheme, we’re keen to help some of them to achieve the skills they need to succeed. We know that investing in people now will help Tamlite to grow further in the years to come. When it comes to business in the Midlands, we’re in it for the long haul.”
Mrs Lumley said: “The success of businesses is key to the economic recovery and businesses in the West Midlands are feeling more confident than ever before as the economic improvement gains momentum with confidence well above the UK national average.
“It has been very useful to learn more about the jobs in our area. There are a number of issues I will be sharing with my colleagues on my return to Westminster and reporting back to the businesses who raised them.”
MP Karen Lumley gets welcomed to Tamlite Lighting by Ricky Podmore, group manager, Colin Lawson, head of sales and marketing, John Allden, general manager, and Peter Taaffe, group manager. Picture by Marcus Mingins 3314008MMR
