Serving the Teesside Business Community | 53
Joanne Cotton of Ambrose & Co
Accounting Solutions with team
members Ryan Stephenson
(left) and Joshua Rae.
N
orthern Skills Group, a leading
provider of apprenticeships,
retraining and employer-led
training in the North of England, is
celebrating a very successful first year.
The group, created by Middlesbrough
College following its acquisition of the North
East Chamber of Commerce’s apprenticeship
training business and subsequent merger
with the college’s employer-facing,
training arm, now operates across the
North of England with bases in Durham,
Middlesbrough, Newcastle, Sunderland and
York.
The group works with more than 2,000
employers in the region, training over 2,700
apprentices following more than 100 different
pathways - including but not limited to
accountancy, customer service, dentistry,
engineering, health and care, information and
communications technology, leadership and
management, and transport operations.
Clients include owner-managed
businesses, the NHS and multi-nationals
such as British Steel.
A Middlesbrough-based businesswoman
turned to Northern Skills Group to recruit
apprentices for her firm. Joanne Cotton, who
runs Ambrose & Co Accounting Solutions,
embarked on a similar route herself after
realising A-levels and university weren’t for
her, despite getting As and A*s at GCSE.
She opted for an Association of Accounting
Technicians (AAT) apprenticeship through
Northern Skills Group, which led to starting
her own business and taking on her own
apprentices.
Northern Skills Group lead Peter Wilson
said: “Joanne’s story is an inspiration to all
young people, and just goes to show how an
apprenticeship can be a fantastic springboard
for an exciting career.”
British Steel is also seeing the benefits of
working with Northern Skills Group. It joined
forces with the training arm to find and train
12 new apprentice steelworkers.
British Steel sponsored the apprentices,
who were employed by Northern Skills
ONE YEAR
AND COUNTING
Training group helps thousands in first 12 months
Group, with the aim of them joining the
manufacturer on a permanent basis once
their training ended.
Paul Martin, managing director at
British Steel, said: “We have always been
committed to apprentices and ensuring our
people have the very best training, and this is
another example of how we are investing in
the future.”
Meanwhile, a partnership between
Northern Skills Group and South Tees
Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust led to
apprentices being trained at James Cook
University Hospital in Middlesbrough.
Mark Sexton, Arran Sco tt and Lydia
Newton are on a Level 2 Association of
Accounting Technicians (AAT) programme and
spend half a day each week at Northern Skills
Group’s base at Middlesbrough College.
Once their apprenticeships finish, they
have the opportunity to join the trust on a
full-time basis as finance assistants.
Faye Revely, financial services manager
at South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation
Trust, said: “Many of our senior management
team are former apprentices and it remains a
fantastic way into careers with the NHS.”
So what next for the Northern Skills
Group? The business continues to grow as
it works alongside employers to design and
deliver workforce development solutions
designed to improve business productivity
and support the region’s economic
competitiveness.
Northern Skills Group is going in the right
direction to achieve that and the focus for the
second year will be to continue on that path.
By its second anniversary, it’s likely there will
be more to celebrate.
South Tees NHS apprentices, from left, Arran Scott,
Lydia Newton and Mark Sexton spend half a day a
week with Northern Skills Group.
Northern Skills Group director Peter Wilson (left)
with Carol Jordan, director of engagement, and
Andrew Robson, executive director of apprentices.