Earlier this year, NSI took part in an innovative apprenticeship training session with young apprentices at Secom plc, as part of FESS – the expanding Fire, Emergency and Security Systems Technician Apprenticeship programme.
FESS was launched following a Government review of all apprenticeships across England, which found many were unfit for purpose in not addressing employer needs. In response the FESS Apprenticeship Standard has been developed with input from the FESS Employer Group, which maintains a continuing oversight to ensure it remains fit for purpose.
Working in conjunction with Secom’s Head of Training and Development, Derek Jones, NSI devised a specialist training session addressing a part of the FESS curriculum, which is now available to other organisations’ training centres and offices, delivered by qualified NSI auditors.
NSI’s Head of Field Operations (Systems), John Davidson, a representative on the FESS Stakeholders Group and NSI’s Systems Auditor Gary Hurst, who plays a key role in the design and adjudication of the annual national Engineers of Tomorrow (EoT) competition for apprentice installers, conducted two sessions for Secom apprentices at the company’s National Training and Development Centre in Birmingham.
This supportive training session, mapped to the FESS Apprenticeship Standard, gave apprentices insight into the role of certification in the security and fire sectors. It also provided an appreciation of the importance of Standards and Codes of Practice and how they develop, and provided them with an opportunity to discuss specific technical and installation issues with expert auditors.
As one of 15 companies involved in developing the FESS Apprenticeship Standard, Secom is an employer-provider to training engineers in-house, and is a true believer in the multi-skilling of apprentices.
The value of the company’s in-house apprentice training was highlighted in its last Ofsted monitoring visit report, which stated: “Secom use their good industrial experience and expertise from supplier awarding bodies and manufacturers very effectively to provide apprentices with technically demanding, challenging learning tasks, and delivery of specialist technical modules, which enhance apprentices’ enjoyment of their training.”
Commenting on NSI’s recent training session, Secom’s Head of Training and Development, Derek Jones, said: “I believe that this additional learning is a key aspect of a technical apprenticeship and should be used more widely to engage with those who support the industry.
“The sessions will have a big impact on our apprentices’ work ethics, standards, abilities and professionalism going forward. We know sessions like these ensure our apprentices are aware how to seek support, obtain guidance and it helps raise the standard of security engineers throughout the industry.”
Apprentices who attended the session indicated it was engaging and informative, providing a unique insight into the importance of compliance in the security industry and why this is a priority for Secom and its customers.
Richard Jenkins, Chief Executive of the NSI
Responding to its initial successful training session for Secom, NSI’s Chief Executive Richard Jenkins explains how similar training for other industry employers can now be rolled out: “As the industry’s premier certification body, we are committed to raising standards across the security and fire safety sectors in which we operate.
“The feedback this session received was extremely positive. Given our long history of supporting apprenticeships in our industry, getting involved, albeit, in some small way, with the FESS Apprenticeship Standard makes perfect sense. Our expert knowledge of industry standards is second to none and we are proud to able to utilise this for the benefit of apprentices who are the future leaders of our industry. Ultimately, this end-to-end apprentice training support will feed through in the standard of professionalism and service delivery in the industry.”
Those wishing to find out more about NSI’s FESS training which is available to all FESS apprenticeship providers should contact John Davidson, NSI’s Head of Field Operations (Systems) via email: [email protected]
Find out all you need to know about the FESS Apprenticeship scheme.
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