Fisher & Paykel has announced its participation in the HEEST apprenticeship scheme. The appliance brand will provide apprenticeships to aspiring electrical engineers, commencing with a year-long placement for two trainees this September.
Spearheaded by The Household Electrical and Electronic Servicing Training Forum (HEEST), Fisher & Paykel – alongside other leading industry brands – will annually take on two apprentices through the programme. HEEST’s key goal is to shape training in the Electrical Electronic service and installation sector. The 3-year programme is delivered in partnership with Swansea Gower College and Birmingham Metropolitan College.
The HEEST forum has representation from the white goods, brown goods and commercial catering bodies. This includes manufacturers, trade organisations, service and retail providers. Chaired by Terry Tudor and now Steve Williams, the HEEST group is dedicated to supporting the needs of the sector in introducing new engineers into the exciting electrical and electronic service sector.
Steve Williams, chair HEEST forum, commented: “I am delighted that Fisher & Paykel have engaged with the apprenticeship program. The realisation that the sector has to invest in the next generation of technicians has been embraced and this level of investment will certainly pay dividends going forward for Fisher & Paykel and the white goods sector.”
Dan Jackson, head of customer experience UK at Fisher & Paykel, joined the industry via this apprenticeship 8 years ago. Having seen the success of the programme firsthand, he became passionate about bridging the gap between prospects and opportunities.
Jackson said: “The field-based training I received during my apprenticeship was instrumental in building up the valuable skills required to work within this industry. I believe this scheme equips apprentices with transferrable skills for life, and so now my goal is to help to upskill young people so we can bring more talent in into field services. As an innovative luxury brand, Fisher & Paykel is very pleased to be one of the industry leaders participating in this scheme. Our trainees will learn valuable skills and each day will be different thanks to a combination of field-based work alongside an industry professional, as well as scheduled classroom days for essential theory-based learning.”
