Two employees at Kensey Foods have become the first in the UK to be awarded a new qualification designed to boost productivity and efficiency in the food and drink industry.
Shift manager Nick Toulson and team leader Martin Robinson took the Proficiency in Food Manufacturing Excellence (FME) qualification developed by Improve, the food and drink skills council, as part of a pilot scheme undertaken by the Launceston-based bakery and chilled foods manufacturer.
FME qualifications are now available to all food and drink companies at proficiency levels 2, 3 and 4, with £2.4 million in government funding available to support training costs.
They are the first industry-specific qualifications developed for the food and drink industry in nearly 30 years and offer a flexible choice of learning and assessment options which can be tailored to suit the different needs of employers and employees, as well as be incorporated within existing in-house training programmes.
Nick and Martin were presented with their awards by Amanda Clark, development director at FDQ, the awarding organisation which ran the trial, and Derek Williams, development director at Improve.
Derek Williams said: “I am delighted to celebrate Kensey Foods’ achievements. They quickly recognised the advantages of implementing Food Manufacturing Excellence and were keen to work with Improve and FDQ to trial the qualifications. I would like to thank them for their support.
“The FME qualifications have been developed through significant consultation in response to what employers have told us they want – a flexible, work-based training programme aimed specifically at improving business performance. It incorporates elements of lean manufacturing, sustainability, improvement in the value stream and other business improvement techniques, and the feedback we’ve had from the pilot schemes is that it does make a real difference to productivity and efficiency.”
Anyone interested in finding out more about the qualifications is being invited to attend a special conference, Attracting Talent and Increasing Productivity, being hosted by Improve’s partner organisation the National Skills Academy for Food and Drink and the Food and Drink Federation (FDF), in London on March 23.
Kensey Foods now has a further 66 employees working towards their FME proficiency qualifications and plans to make it available to all staff working in its bakery.
Speaking of his award, Martin Robinson said: “I found it very beneficial and very practical to my job role whilst working through each unit, It has given me a better understanding of what the business requires to move forward.
“Hopefully my own staff will soon take up the qualification, which will benefit them as well as the business as a whole. I would definitely recommend it.”
* To find out more about the FME qualifications and about the Attracting Talent and Increasing Productivity conference due to be held at the BIS Conference Centre in London on Wednesday, March 23, please contact Will Bales by e-mail at will.bales@improveltd.co.uk.
