30th apprentice joins ranks of Marley Contract Services

All 30 of Marley Contract Services’ apprentices are trained to a minimum of Scottish Vocational Qualifications (SVQ). This involves day release to college and practical learning on site. The company has a full-time training manager who supports apprentices through their first few years and beyond.

The contractor recognises the role it plays in helping develop the future of the roofing trade and has an ongoing commitment to recruiting and training apprentices. Its apprenticeship programme forms a central part of its ability to offer a full range of specialist roofing services from an in-house team.

Billy Baird, Projects Director at Marley Contract Services, said: “Marley Contract Services has a long record of offering quality apprenticeships across various trades. From roofers through to specialist leadworking, it’s great that we now have 30 apprentices currently enrolled within different parts of our business. This focus on the future lifeblood of our trades ensures we can continue to offer a quality service over the long-term.”

Apprentice roofer Dean Fulton, commented: “I’ve always been a practical person and enjoy being outdoors, so an apprenticeship in roofing is ideal. The training and support I get in my role with Marley Contract Services ensures I’m developing my skills to provide the highest quality workmanship. I am looking forward to my career in construction.”

Many of Marley Contract Services’ apprentices and adult trainees are recruited from local communities through partnerships it has with local authorities where it carries out planned refurbishment programmes.

A recent example is North Ayrshire Council’s Term Contract Apprentice and Trainee Recruitment Scheme. An initiative – ‘One in a Million’ – required Marley Contract Services to recruit one person from the local community in which it worked for every £1m of issued funds. However, Marley Contract Services exceeded this obligation and appointed four local apprentices and seven local trainee operatives. Aside from this, it initiated a new apprentice and trainee system with a number of sub contractors which led to recruitment of a further seven local operatives.