Our West Wales region wins Bridgend College’s ‘Employer Partnership Award’

Persimmon West Wales is celebrating after they were named the winner of Bridgend College’s Employer Partnership Award for 2022.

The College’s Annual Awards Ceremony acknowledges support from valued employer partners while recognising learners with outstanding academic achievement and commitment to study.

Our West Wales region has been recognised for its work with Bridgend establishing a ground breaking education and training academy, which is producing the next generation of construction workers in South Wales.

The ‘Persimmon Academy’ sees apprentices develop their skills at a bespoke construction and learning facility at the development in Llanilid, Ponytclun.

This year, the College has also designed a ‘management apprenticeship’ course that is bespoke to Persimmon and will train future staff for the company’s Welsh developments with qualifications in construction and site management.

The initiative builds on a successful relationship that has been built over the past five years, and has created over 150 new job opportunities in construction across South Wales.

Commenting, Persimmon Homes’ Carl Davey said the award highlighted ‘the significant investment the company is making in staff training and recruitment’.

He added:

“Persimmon’s partnership with Bridgend College is vital for the future of the business in South Wales, and we are delighted our work with apprentices has been recognised.

“Construction is the great enabler of the Welsh economy, and our apprenticeship programme has already created over 150 job opportunities for workers on our sites across the country.

“The establishment of the Persimmon Academy at Llanilid strengthens our commitment to apprenticeships and will ensure our workforce reflects the communities we build in and the customers we serve.

“The bespoke management apprenticeship is another unique addition to our training offer and will ensure we attract quality candidates to propel the business forward in our quest to be the nation’s leading homebuilder.

“We look forward to continuing our partnership and delivering a first-class learning environment that produces the next generation of construction workers in South Wales.”

Congratulating Persimmon on the award, a Bridgend College spokesperson, said:

“Persimmon West Wales are worthy winners of our Employer Partnership Award for 2022.

“Our partnership is delivering apprenticeship opportunities in an area of Wales that has been affected by job losses from the steel and automotive industries.

"The model we have created with Persimmon West Wales has created over 150 new job opportunities both for apprentices starting their career, and also for those looking to retrain and enter the construction sector.

“The partnership has also expanded into offering a new Persimmon specific site management apprenticeship, creating the Persimmon leaders of the future.

“The training academy is also a fantastic opportunity for apprentices to gain real work experience while they learn. We hope that our close working relationship will continue to go from strength to strength in the future."