Connect Magazine - Issue 17

connect withclarkson evans

issue seventeenJan 15

Contractor of the Year hat-tricksee page 4

The best for vocational trainingsee page 9

A new director on-boardsee page 11

Meet our latest ‘graduates’see pages 16 & 17

Location, Location, LocationSecuring our future in GloucestershireSee page 3

Steve Evans, Managing Director

Welcome


Welcome to issue 17 of Connect, the Clarkson Evans in-house magazine. As I hope you will see from this year’s bumper edition it really has been an action-packed 12 months.

We’ve opened two new branches, been voted the best company in the country for vocational training, worked on a record number of NHBC Pride in the Job winning sites (50) and been awarded ‘Contractor of the Year’ by no less than three of our customers!

As you can see on the opposite page, this year we’ve also managed to buy the small business park in Gloucestershire where our HQ is situated, giving us extra room for expansion and securing our future in this unique location.

This prompted us to take a look back at how it all started way back in 1980. As you can see from the centre pages they were humble beginnings with a first year turnover of just £7,700 from mostly odd-jobs. It’s a far cry from the award-winning company we are today with 14 branches, 600 staff, 300 vehicles and a turnover of £30m.

It’s our staff that have made all this possible – but 600 people didn’t just come knocking on our door - we’ve had to work hard to recruit such a great workforce and you can see from pages 12 & 13 the effort we put in.

But recruitment is only half the battle. Retaining good staff by offering them the opportunity to build long-term careers is just as important and Tim Bisp’s promotion is a great example of someone making the most of what we have to offer (see page 11).

We’re a social bunch too and I hope this comes across from the events featured towards the back pages. But because we’re so tight-knit it’s particularly sad when we lose someone and we were all shocked at the sudden and unexpected death earlier this year of Ann Gribble (page 19).

We’re keen to build long-term relationships with our customers too and we are delighted to have entered into two framework agreements during 2014 (see page 8). As the industry continues to boom we feel these agreements are the way forward - they are a win-win for both parties and there are more in the pipeline for 2015.

Thanks to all of you for your help and support during the past year.

2 connect with clarkson evans

Being part of the team on so many award winning sites is down to more than just luck on our part. It was back in 2010 – right in the middle of the downturn - that we made a conscious decision to up our game.

We introduced improvements like fitting timber noggins as standard to all metal partitions and flexible conduit to wiring in airing cupboards, and when we couldn’t find metal sheathing tough enough to satisfy the latest requirements for the protection of meter tails, we decided to have it purpose-made.

Team leaders across all of our branches are now inspected to a common standard by their area supervisor, typically once a month. But gone are the days when our quality audits led to hours spent ‘two-finger typing’ when staff got back to the office. Our supervisors now go through straightforward checklists on their iPad, tapping in their judgements as they go along and taking photos to record evidence. Completed reports are generated and emailed at the touch of a button, so team leaders receive regular feedback from directors and production managers, and hopefully a pat on the back for a job well done.

50 Quality Awards

16 Seals of Exellence

5 Regional Awards

High quality workmanship is at the forefront of our agenda so we’re pleased to be working on no fewer than 50 of the NHBC ‘Pride in the Job’ award winning sites this year – that’s five more than last year. And we’re delighted that 16 of the site managers went on to win Seals of Excellence with an amazing five of them declared Regional Winners.

Sections of an 11-page, 50-point 1st fix quality audit report produced and distributed electronically via an iPad

connect with clarkson evans 3

While business has been on the up and up we’ve also been climbing the property ladder.

We’ve certainly come a long way since we moved into our first commercial premises in 1993 - Unit L4 at Innsworth Technology Park. Back then our head office could more accurately be described as a 700 sq ft ‘lock-up’ that lacked even the most basic facilities such as a toilet and running water!

21 years later, and after a couple of moves in between, we are now the proud owners of a whole business estate in an enviable position with a direct view out to the runway at Gloucestershire Airport. It’s not often that you’ll find a business park in a place where people come for sight-seeing! We first moved to Meteor Business Park in 1999, taking on the lease for two units to house our head office and training centre. And when each of our neighbours started to move out in the years that followed, we were quick to lease those units too. The last of the neighbours

disappeared earlier this year, finally giving us sole occupancy of the estate and a great opportunity to buy the freehold from our landlords and secure our future in Gloucestershire.

Together with our 14 regional branches and the building we purchased earlier this year on the nearby Anson Business Park, we now have almost 100,000 sq ft of office and warehouse space.

That’s equivalent to the size of the pitch at Wembley Stadium plus an Olympic-size swimming pool and a couple of Wimbledon Centre Courts thrown in!

Meteoric Progress

Quite a journey in 21 years!

From this...

...to this!

...and this!Our first premises

Meteor Business Park

Offices at Anson Business Park


We’re delighted to have been crowned Contractor of the Year by three of our customers. Barratt/David Wilson Mercia, Persimmon Homes South West and Redrow South West all put us at the top of the list.

Voted on by a range of people from site managers, surveyors and customer care teams right the way up to directors, these awards are a real accolade. They marked us on everything from price, quality of workmanship and service on site to speed of response to customer service requests.

“All the feedback about Clarkson Evans was excellent,” said BDW Mercia Managing Director John Fitzgerald. “We were particularly impressed by the customer care service and the apprenticeship scheme.”

Contractor of the Year

Hat-trick

Our branch network has now expanded to 14 locations, with new premises in Milton Keynes and Bristol. Meanwhile rapid growth in Bridgwater has meant relocation to bigger premises after only two years.

Branching out Customer demand drives our expansion and having a branch in Milton Keynes means we’re now able to easily cover sites that were previously a bit of a stretch for our Oxford and Birmingham teams. It’s already the base for 17 staff and we’re working on 12 sites in the surrounding area.

In Bristol we’ve plugged what’s long been a gap in our branch network. The local staff now have a permanent base and this means reduced travelling costs for us and more competitive prices for our customers.

2015 could well see the opening of yet another branch, this time north of Birmingham. Watch this space!

Our business development director, Nathan Evans, with Redrow Homes’ regional managing director, Barry Stiles

BDW Mercia construction director, Harry Marcuse-Harris with Nathan Evans

Bristol


Bridgwater

Milton Keynes

SuccessSolo

We’re proud of the list of awards we’ve achieved as a company but this year several individuals have also found themselves in the spotlight…

Steve Evans had the great honour of being crowned Ambassador of the Year at a ceremony designed to recognise young people and the businesses helping them kick-start their careers.

The panel of judges, including the leader of Gloucestershire County Council, Councillor Mark Hawthorne, chose Steve thanks to his ongoing commitment to offering apprenticeships as well as the important work he does in advising young people who are looking to get on the first rung of the career ladder.

Steve was presented with the award by former winner of The Apprentice TV show Yasmina Siadatan, and BBC Points West reporter Steve Knibbs.


Ambassador of the Year, Gloucestershire Showcase Awards

Alex Exeter, Electrician (Gloucester)Outstanding Construction Apprentice finalist, Gloucestershire Apprenticeship Awards

Lindsey Young, HR & Training DirectorWoman of the Year Finalist, Gloucestershire Women in Business AwardsSelected from dozens of entries, Lindsey Young was shortlisted as a finalist for the main award of the night at this year’s Gloucestershire Women in Business Awards.

Now in their fifth year, these awards are designed to highlight the achievements of the women at the heart of the county’s business community.

“I was really pleased to make the shortlist,” said Lindsey. “Being considered for such an important award alongside the highest achieving women in the county was a real privilege.”

John Crossley, Team Leader (Newquay)

Adult Learner of the Year Regional Winner, ECA Edmunson Awards

Apprentice of the Year finalist, Electrical Industry Awards

John Crossley was one of the first apprentices we recruited at our Newquay branch when it opened in 2011. Pictured above with his partner Katie and his parents, he’s now a team leader whose success story has continued with recognition at two award ceremonies this year.

First John reached the finalist stage for Apprentice of the Year at the Electrical Industry Awards, attending a glitzy ceremony in London. Then a day later he was presented with a £500 prize for becoming the Regional Winner for Adult Learner of the Year at the ECA Edmunson Awards.

First he had the honour of being selected to attend the launch of the Gloucestershire Apprenticeship Awards where the Duke of York gave a presentation. Then Alex was announced as a finalist in the Outstanding Construction Apprentice category.

Beating off tough competition, Alex made the shortlist and attended the ceremony with his family (including his wife Leanne who is pictured) and his team leader Russell Smith (left).


A round of golf on a sunny

September day, with bacon rolls

for breakfast, hot dogs and

beer for lunch, and a stand-up

comedian and night on the town

to round things off – what more

could you possibly ask for?

Twenty-eight teams joined

us for what’s now one of the

highlights of our social calendar,

representing Barratt, Bovis, David

Wilson, Galliford Try, Linden,

Persimmon, Redrow and Taylor

Wimpey.

Although we tried not to take

the golf too seriously there

were some very impressive

performances, with Bob Morris’

Linden Homes team winning

first place (not for the first time).

Meanwhile team member Ian

Huxstep also won the individual

top spot.

Big hitter James Arrowsmith

from Barratt took the prize for

longest drive, while our very

own Sheridan Russell, Technical

Manager, achieved longest

walk. And while several people

dressed like true pros, it was our

commercial director Tim Bisp

who proudly accepted the ‘All

the Gear and No Idea’ prize.

At the nineteenth hole it was

over to comedian Paul Boardman

to provide us all with a break

from Nathan Evans’ jokes, before

everyone boarded the coach to

sample Cheltenham’s nightlife.

Off to a tee

The DB, Linden Homes South WestDo One United, Redrow Homes South

The No Hopers, Persimmon Homes


Sandy Balls, Linden Homes

Team Taylor Wimpey Oxford

Team Barratt West Midlands

Annus Horribilis, BDW Exeter

Wimpey Burger and Chips Please, Taylor Wimpey

Wimpey Seconds, Taylor Wimpey

PAR-Simmon Homes, Persimmon Homes

Cider Cup Dream Team, Linden Homes

MCL, Moore Contracting Ltd



Lindsey Young, Ian Huxstep and Nathan Evans

The 2nd Cut, Linden Homes

Wooky Slayers, Galiford Try


Redrow Hardwick, Clarkson Evans

The Andy Caps, Clarkson Evans The Shaft Strokers, Clarkson Evans

Team Persimmon Homes Severn Valley

No Direction, Taylor Wimpey West Midlands

Off the Tees and in the Trees, Clarkson Evans & Redrow HomesThree Men and a Bearded Lady, Persimmon Homes

The Young Ones, Redrow Homes South WestBovis Bogey Boys, Bovis Homes

The Mulligans, Barratt Homes Bristol

The ‘Fore’ Players, BDW Mercia

Fore, Clarkson Evans

Team Persimmon Homes Severn Valley

connect with clarkson evans 7connect with clarkson evans 7

Lindsey Young, Tom Allen and Nathan Evans

Comedian Paul Boardman

Lindsey Young, Ian Huxstep and Nathan Evans


Better tOgetHer

With the new homes market on the up and up, we think it’s a great time for builders and contractors to work together more closely for the benefit of everyone involved. That’s why we’re keen to establish more framework agreements like those we now have in place with Linden South West and Crest Nicholson South West.

We’re making a commitment to fix our prices for 12 months, meet build programme deadlines, maintain high standards of health & safety and workmanship, continue investing in apprenticeships, and provide design advice to maximise profitability. In return Linden have guaranteed us 1,350 plots on sites due to start within the next year and Crest Nicholson have guaranteed us 1,400. Knowing that we’ve got this

work coming up helps us better plan our labour requirements so it’s easier for us to deliver on our promises – a win-win for both parties.

“We’re currently in talks with other customers about entering similar agreements”, said Tim Bisp, Commercial Director. “We believe it’s the way forward for our industry.”

Back in April 2000 we introduced our own NICEIC test certificates, pre-printed with details like the circuit list and property address to save our electricians time on site. Nearly 14 years later we were amazed to receive the email below from sharp-eyed team leader Mark Perry from our Trowbridge branch.

We certainly do wire a lot of houses these days – over 13,000 in the past year including 1,500 in the last month alone - but we hadn’t realised we’d reached the 100,000 mark. This means since we introduced our own test sheets at the turn of the

millennium we’ve wired more homes than exist in the whole of Swindon!

Well done Mark for spotting this milestone.

testing, testing,

1, 2...100,000!

Jason Knight (Linden Homes SW Commercial Director) and Richard Crook (Linden Homes SW Commercial Manager) presenting a framework agreement for 1,350 plots to Clarkson Evans MD Steve Evans. Also in the photo are Nathan Evans (far left), Tim Bisp and Leigh Mason (all Clarkson Evans).

This is a framework agreement between Crest Nicholson South West and Clarkson Evans for 1,400 plots on the following developments:

Firepool Lock – TauntonHunts Grove – GloucesterLeckhampton Road - CheltenhamPotters Pond - Wotton-under-EdgePenarth Heights -CardiffRegency Place - CheltenhamThe Furlongs - Hereford

Framework Agreement


Lindsey Young, HR & Training Director, and Sharna George, Apprenticeship Contracts Manager, attended the ceremony in

Westminster, where they were presented with the trophy by the chairman of the Edge Foundation, Lord Baker and its CEO, Jan Hodges OBE.

Jan commented: "Clarkson Evans champions technical, practical and vocational skills within its workforce. In doing so it sends a strong message about the value of vocational qualifications, training and the benefits they bring to both employers and the economy.”

Everyone feared the worst for Alex Shirra after he was involved in a serious road accident in 2011, just months into his apprenticeship. But after a long and painful process of recovery we’re very pleased to say he’s finally completed his training to become a qualified electrician and is now an electrical quantity surveyor in our commercial department.

He was just 19 years old when his car was hit by a lorry and he had to be airlifted to hospital after being cut free from the wreckage. He spent 12 days in hospital in a coma and everyone thought that even if he were to pull through, his life would never be the same again.

But within four months Alex was able to begin standing again and walking with crutches. A couple of months later he was able to return to work for just two days a week in the office. And in 2012 he took up a full time office position. Then in 2014 he was able to make the big step

of heading back out on site occasionally to gain the experience he needed to complete his apprenticeship, finally passing the AM2 in May.

Alex attended our apprenticeship presentation evening (see pages 16 & 17) and collected his certificate in front of his very proud family. It was an emotional moment for everyone concerned.

“I’m so pleased to finally be qualified and I feel like my life is now back on track,” said Alex.

Lindsey Young and Sharna George collecting the award from Jan Hodges OBE (left)

Clarkson Evans champions technical,

practical and vocational skills within

its workforce.

“

“

Road to recovery

We’re delighted to have been awarded a RoSPA Gold Medal for the eighth year running – evidence that we’re continuing to maintain the high standards of health and safety management that are so important in our industry.

Photo: Production director Darren Turley (left) and health and safety manager Matthew Gilbank

We're delighted to have been crowned 'VQ Employer of the Year' at this year's national VQ Awards. Run by The Edge Foundation, a leading charity that supports practical learning, the awards are designed to celebrate vocational achievement and form part of the annual VQ Day celebrations in London.

RoSPA Gold Medal

number 8!

We’re right on VQ

July 2011 September 2014October 2011

“


Identifiable by their lilac uniform and van livery to match, our customer care electricians are all multi-skilled and they work solely in occupied houses so they know it’s vital to turn up on time, clean, smartly dressed and with the right attitude towards customers and their homes. Meanwhile in the office our administrators are on hand to provide high quality service from the moment a call comes in.

“This year we’ve made several improvements”, said Lee. “With customer care electricians now based around the country and more staff on call, there’s a quicker response time for all out-of-hours calls. We’ve also been providing more training for the administrators, with each of them going on site to learn more about the wiring process and improve the initial advice they can give to customers.”

Setting up a dedicated customer care department a couple of years ago was a major step forward for us and thanks to our ongoing improvements we get lots of positive feedback from builders. “The regular emails we get to say ‘thank you’ mean a lot to the team and they certainly give me great job satisfaction,” said Lee.

Service with a smileWe pride ourselves on providing an industry-leading customer care service. That’s why we have a dedicated team of eight electricians and seven administrators, all headed up by Customer Care Manager Lee Chivers.

With customer care electricians now

based around the country and more

staff on call, there’s a quicker response

time for all out-of-hours calls.

“

L-R: Jasna-Storm du Val, Abbie Maskell, Stacey Hipkiss, Lee Chivers, Lucy Workman, Zoe Burford and Georgina Green.

Karen Jarman

Customer care electricians Richard Wells, Robert Jones, Ian Cima, Peter Murton, Tim Greening, Gary Bradley, Wayne Phipps and Ed Howell with customer care manager Lee Chivers (centre)

“

Formerly known as our project teams, the staff pictured below have been through something of a re-brand. Now called commercial teams, their new name is more of a giveaway as they look after all commercial aspects of contract management. Meanwhile our regionally-based production managers and their local supervisors take day-to-day responsibility for what happens on site.

The commercial teams handle everything from the initial tender right through to pre-start meetings, customer extras and finally the invoicing stage. They’re also responsible for making sure our electricians have the correct information and materials they need to get the job done.

Headed up by Tim Bisp and senior commercial manager Dave Gurney, each of our five commercial teams includes a commercial manager, senior electrical QS, electrical QS and finally a trainee electrical QS. Most of them started with us as apprentices so they’ve been at the sharp end and they hold electrical qualifications. And now for those joining as trainee quantity surveyors we’re offering the opportunity to study towards BTEC QS qualifications.

Turn to page 27 to see who’s in each of the five commercial teams.

Tim Bisp is the latest addition to our board of directors - a very well deserved promotion for someone who has always given 100% and grasped every opportunity to take extra responsibility. He is now our commercial director, allowing Leigh Mason (previously technical and commercial director) to concentrate on technical matters as technical director.

Tim brings with him considerable expertise. After completing his electrical apprenticeship he joined Marriott Hotels as a maintenance supervisor and was then promoted to assistant chief engineer. Then following a couple of years spent travelling and working in New Zealand Tim returned to the UK to join a Bristol-based electrical contractor where he worked his way up to senior project manager, building an impressive list of contacts in the new homes sector. In 2009 he joined Clarkson Evans, initially as a project manager.

Tim’s first task at the company was overseeing the Barratt Homes Hanham Hall eco project in Bristol. Then after a stint as the project manager for all Barratt/David Wilson developments he was promoted to customer care manager and took responsibility for setting up our dedicated customer care department. In September 2013 he was promoted again to become commercial manager and the rest is history as they say.

Moving on up!

Introducing our commercial teams

“they look after all commercial aspects of contract management.”


You’re Hired!We’re very proud of our workforce – now nearly 600 staff. Our greatest asset is our people and we work hard to find the right staff for every role in the company rather than waiting for them to just come knocking on the door.

Ranked at number 14 in the list of Gloucestershire’s Greatest Employers, the scale of our workforce, the lengths we go to in order to recruit, and the way we look after our staff sets us apart from any other electrical contractor in the country.

Pictured here is our HR team – the ones who make it all happen. And below and right you can read more about how we recruit and what makes us different.

Left to right: Lindsey Young, Dave Barker, Hannah Sparrow and Poppy Boothroyd.

Our recruitment brochures

We’ve produced booklets to give potential applicants all the details they need. There’s one for apprentices and one for electricians, both available on our website.

Electricians who are used to being self-employed or working for any other companies are often surprised to learn how we do things. That’s why we’ve included a summary of what makes us different.


Recognise the familiar face?

Selecting the right people to put through our in-house training and become our future team leaders is a serious business. That’s why we invest time and effort in getting it right.

The final hurdle is a half-hour interview with Steve and HR & Training

Director, Lindsey Young, together with the local branch supervisor.

Only a handful of applicants make it through to this stage where

we’re looking to select the cream of the crop who’ll make the most

of the opportunity.

Inte

rvie

ws5

Our Managing Director, Steve Evans, personally sifts through around

1,000 application forms every year to decide who to shortlist. Good

GCSEs count for a lot but a strong work history and signs of wanting

a long-term career with us are also at the top of the list.

App

licat

ions3

We advertise in the local papers, on the internet

and on local radio to let people know we’re

recruiting. In a typical year we invest over

£70,000 in job adverts. Adv

erti

sing1

From this year we’ve started holding open days so potential applicants can meet existing staff and find out much more about us. We deliver presentations and offer tours, and typically there are a dozen staff involved, including several of our directors. Ope

n da

ys

2

Successful applicants attend a full week of induction at our head office before they start working on site. We teach them essential practical skills, health and safety awareness and the basics they need to know before starting on site. Indu

ctio

n

6

We hold assessment days in Gloucester with tests including English, maths and a practical assessment, plus a brief chat with Steve. We organise a minibus for applicants with further to travel. A

sses

smen

t

4

How we recruit our apprentices


Moved to first commercial premises - Unit L4 at Innsworth Technology Park

From a one-man-band in 1980 to £30m turnover and 600 staff in 2014 – we’ve taken a trip down memory lane to pick out some of the key milestones along the way.

Steve Evans began as a sole trader carrying out odd jobs and rewires

Business registered as SP Evans Electrical Contractor

1980 - 2014

Changed name to Evans Electrical

Started wiring new houses First apprentice recruited

Purchased first brand new van

Steve Clarkson joined as an appentice

Started installing alarms

Workforce increased to 10

Steve Clarkson became a partner

First version of EDS, our in-house software came into use

Moved to bigger premises - Unit G3

Moved on again to Unit G1

First company brochure produced

Darren Turley joined the

company as an electrician

1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 19971980

1st year turnover £7,700

14 connect with clarkson evansLeigh Mason and Nathan Evans

joined the company as apprentices

We begantraining in-house

Richard Evans joined the company as IT manager

Moved to Meteor Business Park

Training centre opened

First Connect magazine was published

First regional depot opened (in Newport)

We won our first award

Three new directors were appointed - Leigh Mason, Darren Turley and Richard Evans

We won a National

Training Award

Lindsey Young joined the company as training administrator

AM2 centre opened

Birmingham and Trowbridge branches opened

Julian Walker joined as financial controller

First children’s Christmas party

Our training ‘house’ comes into use

Vehicle workshop opened


First apprentice presentation evening

Overnight deliveries to regional branches began

Our first RoSPA Gold

award

Tim Bisp joined as project

manager

Oxford, Plymouth and Southampton branches opened

Staverton Electrical Supplies was launched

Lindsey Young and Nathan Evans joined the board

Exeter and Newquay branches

opened

We won our 2nd National Apprenticeship Award

Customer care team launched

Voted UK’s best electrical contractor

Bridgwater and

Crawley branches

opened

Birmingham training centre opened

Bracknell branch opened

Purchase of new head office building at Anson

National VQ award

Bristol and Milton Keynes

branches opened Purchased Meteor Business Park premises

Tim Bisp became commercial director

£10MTurnover

£5MTurnover

£20MTurnover

£30MTurnover

£1MTurnover

1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Limited company formed


We won a National Apprenticeship Award

Julian Walker became finance

director


We were delighted to be joined by Nigel Greenaway, Divisional Chief Executive at Persimmon Homes, to celebrate the success of our latest crop of home grown electricians.

Twenty-three of our former apprentices came along with their proud families. They each enjoyed their moment in the spotlight as they went up to collect their certificates, presented by Nigel – a keen supporter of apprenticeship training who himself started out as an apprentice and is now on the main board at Persimmon Homes.

Steve Evans led the celebrations and spoke of how much he looks forward to this event each year. “Inviting each former apprentice to the stage and witnessing them enjoying the moment makes me feel very proud of what they’ve achieved and excited about what they can now go on to do as they progress in the company,” said Steve.

The biggest applause of the evening went to Alex Shirra who survived a near fatal road accident in 2011 and has finally been able to complete his apprenticeship (read Alex’s story on page 9).

The event finished with some words of wisdom from Nigel: “Be positive, be polite and don’t keep watching the person above you too much. Stay focused on your role, work hard now and you’ll reap the rewards later,” he said.

Bright Sparks


Back row (standing) L-R: Mike Perrott, David Naughton, Richard Yates, George Clubley, Ollie Howick, Alex Shirra, Susan Burnikell, William Barry, David Kent, Scott Broughton, Nigel Greenaway, Danny Rich,

Luke De-Ste-Croix, Alistair Downer, Alex Exeter, Chris Roach, Peter Hobbs.Front row L-R: Ben Mason, Ben Evans, Darren Munday, Sam Preece, Liam Brookbanks, Alex Crabb, Alex Marks.


With our team of qualified lecturers and assessors, we cover day release classes, on-site assessments, functional skills training in maths, English and IT and finally the three-day AM2 practical test that everyone must pass before completing the apprenticeship.

It’s now a big operation involving 16 staff, 15 classrooms or workshop areas and nearly 200 apprentices. There are lecturers teaching in Exeter and Bracknell as well as Gloucester, and assessors on the road covering a large swathe of the country.

“Delivering the full apprenticeship in-house is the way we’ve always done it, ever since our training centre opened in 1998”, said Lindsey Young, HR & Training Director. “It’s just so unusual for a contractor to do all of this without involving a college that often people assume we only do part of it.”

“By having complete control over the way training is handled we can set term dates that suit the seasonal fluctuations in our industry, enrol new apprentices at any time of year and speed up the entire process so that more mature, determined and experienced apprentices can get qualified without wasting any time.”

In-houseTraining

We’re well known for training apprentices but did you know that we literally do it all, not sending any of our apprentices off to a college? Back row (standing) L-R: Stuart Spiers, Richard Costelloe, Mike Wilmott, Rob Smith, Dave Collins, Derek Rutter,

Front row L-R: Charlotte Swinnerton, Nigel Farmer, Jon Dicken, Lindsey Young, Dean Slee, Brian Johnston, Sharna George, Rachel Rees

It’s now a big

operation involving

16 staff, 15 classrooms or

workshop areas

and nearly 200 apprentices.

Day release training all takes place in-house

Apprentices complete the 3-day AM2 practical test at our licenced centre

Our training team, including qualified lecturers and assessors

Jamie Bryan, Lecturer

Our assessors visit apprentices on site and support them through the NVQ

Roll of Honour

Yes to SSStS!We’re now offering SSSTS (Site Supervisors’ Safety Training Scheme) courses after gaining approval from the CITB. Several of our own team leaders have already completed the two-day course and more dates will be running in 2015.

Part of the Site Safety Plus suite of qualifications, this training introduces site supervisors to their legal responsibilities regarding health and safety. As well as offering it to our own staff we’ve also added this to the ever-growing list of courses available to our training centre’s paying customers.

We don’t just deliver training - we’re also always keen to play our part in developing new qualifications. This year we’ve been working with the Building Controls Industry Association (BCIA) to create a new practical assessment that’s now the ‘end test’ to be passed by apprentices in the building controls sector.

Licenced by NET (National Electrotechnical Training), who also played a key role in the development, the new qualification was unveiled at a high profile press launch at The Shard in London, attended by our head of training, Jon Dicken.

“We’re the only centre now offering the assessment and it’s been a real privilege to be involved in its development”, said Jon.

Jon Dicken (second from right) with Stephen Plant from NET (left) and others on the development team

test Project

Charlie BaileyAustin BallWilliam BarryChris BartleDaniel BoylettLiam BrookbanksScott BroughtonSusan BurnikellJack CarterGeorge ClubleyDaniel CormackAlex CrabbLuke De-Ste-CroixAlastair DownerBen EvansAlex ExeterKyle FoatDaniel GilbertDaniel HarrisPeter HobbsAdam HowellsShaun HughesDaniel KennedyDavid KentJamie KnightDuncan LaneTyler LewisJordan Lovell

Alex MarksBen MasonDarren MundayDavid NaughtonAdam NobleRyan O’GormanGeorge PeareMike PerrottJames PowellSamuel PreeceChristian PrinceJack ProcterSafraz RanaDanny RichChris RoachJake RudmanMichael SeeleyAlex ShirraJames SinclairLee SullivanBen TarrantRicky TaylorCallum TompkinsSteve TrengoveRichard TretheweyLuke TwineyJacob WoodheadRichard Yates

Well done to everyone who completed an Advanced Apprenticeship in 2014:

Clarkson Evans employees:

And those we’ve trained for other employers:

Ben Clarke(Alder Preece Electrical)Christopher Martin(PME Services)Daniel Piesing(MI Electrical Limited)Jay Powell(Kempowell Electrical Services Ltd)Mitchell Stevens(Pennant Training Systems Limited)

In May this year it was a sad time as we had to say goodbye to Ann Gribble, our then Apprenticeship Co-ordinator, who passed away suddenly after a short illness.

Aged 65, Ann had spent eight years at Clarkson Evans and played a vital role in the day-to-day running of the training centre and in helping dozens of apprentices achieve their Key Skills qualifications. She was well known and highly regarded throughout the company and we’d like to pay tribute to her hard work, determination and the positive legacy she has left behind.

A fond farewell to Ann Gribble


We were proud sponsors of the Training Provider of the

Year category at this year's Gloucestershire Apprenticeship

Awards. As well as presenting the certificate on the night of

the ceremony, we helped with the important task of selecting

the winners.

Pictured are the judges, including Lindsey Young,

HR & Training Director (fifth from left).

Sponsors

SUPPL IES


With up to 1,500 2nd fix kits to make up and issue every month, this is no mean feat, but expanding into new premises has given the SES team the space they need to continue meeting our ever-increasing workloads. We now have SES staff based at both our Meteor and Anson Business Park sites in Gloucester, and 20,000 sq ft of warehouse space for them to work in.

SES director Richard Evans and Gloucester branch manager Mike Mumford have overseen the expansion. “It’s hard to believe we managed to operate with only a third of the space just a year ago. Taking on the new premises at Anson Business Park has allowed us to re-organise the way we work and achieve much greater efficiency. It’s also created a better working environment for the staff,” said Richard.

As the electrical wholesale arm of our business, Staverton electrical Supplies is busy handling over £13m of materials a year, bagging kits up ready and shipping them out on our five overnight delivery vans to all 14 of our branches.

MeteOr teAM

ANSON teAM

Delivering the goods

HORSING AROUNDTwo double decker buses and more than 80 train journeys is what it took to get 220 of our staff to Cheltenham Racecourse for our biggest ever annual trip to The Paddy Power Gold Cup Day. Champagne corks were popping, the Guinness was flowing, and a few of us actually watched the horse racing too. Afterwards it was into town where some celebrated their winnings but most just drowned their sorrows. These selfies say it all!


Would you run through a 12-mile obstacle course, wading through icy cold water, crawling through mud and getting electrocuted, all for the sake of a free pint of beer at the end? That’s what six of our staff did and we think they must be mad!

They all completed the Tough Mudder challenge – one of the most demanding tests of strength and stamina, with all entry fees going to the Help for Heroes charity. “It was a great team effort and really good fun,” said Chris Goodison, Area Supervisor. “I’ve already registered for next year and I’m looking forward to it.”

Caption: L-R (on ‘before’ photo) Simon Jones, Paul Watson, Matt Galpin, Dave White, Mark Moore and Chris Goodison

tOUgHWhen the going gets

AFter

BeFOre

After we donated the electrical materials and labour needed to wire up their new cookery room, Churchdown Village Junior School invited us to the official launch. Our MD Steve Evans, his wife Sue, and our technical director Leigh Mason all got to rub shoulders with none other than TV chef Tom Kerridge, himself originally from Gloucester.

“Our old cookery room was just a neglected portacabin in the school grounds”, said Mark Bacon, the school’s head teacher. “Now thanks to the support of local companies like Clarkson Evans we’ve got a facility to be proud of and it will make a real difference to our pupils. We really appreciate the kind donation.”

Cooking up support

Steve and Sue Evans of Clarkson Evans who provided the electrical materials for the new

kitchen, Tom Kerridge, Leigh Mason, also of Clarkson Evans and Mark Bacon, head teacher

We didn’t put up much of a fight when a local boxing club asked us for sponsorship to help kit out their new gym. In exchange, boxers at The Fight Factory in Gloucester will be sporting our logo for bouts coming up in 2015.

Pictured here is one of the club’s regular customers, our business development director Nathan Evans, shaking hands with the Fight Factory owner and former England boxer, Jon Pitman.

In case you’re wondering, Nathan’s the one on the right!

Pleased as PUNCH!

Commercial director Tim Bisp (AKA Pudsey Bear) planned all of the day’s events, including our very own bake-off competition, a penalty shootout, and a raffle. There was also some creative face painting by Lucy Workman, Senior Customer Care Administrator, and if you’d walked into our Anson office on the day you’d have been forgiven for thinking you’d stumbled onto the set of the latest comic book movie.

For the bake-off competition the extremely tricky challenge of sampling all 23 entries went to our MD Steve Evans. Picking the winners wasn’t easy but in the end it was (bakers’) hats off to Lisa Hope, Training Sales Administrator and Becky Wood, Sales Ledger Administrator

The penalty shootout was also a closely fought contest. With Tim in goal, the top scorer was Luke Scott-Jones, Electrical Quantity Surveyor. Dressed as Mr Incredible, Luke lived up to the name by donating his prize (the value of an extra day’s holiday) to the fundraising appeal.

Finally, the winner of a battery drill in the raffle was finance director Julian Walker, dressed as well…, Julian!

After being interviewed about our fundraising activities live on BBC Radio Gloucestershire, it was time for Tim to count the total amount raised. “I was overwhelmed with the level of support”, said Tim. “And it was all such good fun I’ve packed my Pudsey onesie away safely ready for next year.”


Our team of office staff well and truly got into the spirit of Children in Need.

The money they raised was doubled by the company to give a grand total of £1,296 to donate to the BBC appeal.

SUPerHerOeS SAve tHe DAY!

Alex Large, aged 4

(Daniel Large, Senior Electrical QS)

Evie Fritchley, aged 9(Mark Fritchley, Area Supervisor)

Skye Cook, aged 2(Craig Cook, Team Leader)

Gracie Bisp, aged 3

(Tim Bisp, Commercial Director)

Matilda Slee, aged 7

(Dean Slee, Assessor)

Isabella Slee, aged 7(Dean Slee, Assessor)

Carla Hankins, aged 5

(Clint Hankins, Delivery Driver)

Lucy Gallagher, aged 11(Mark Gallagher, Team Leader)

Leighton Goodison, aged 10(Chris Goodison, Area Supervisor)

Harry Young, aged 6(Lindsey Young, HR & Training Director)

Elsie Fritchley, aged 5(Mark Fritchley, Area Supervisor)

Brook Swords, aged 9

(Nathan Swords, Area Supervisor)

Budding young artists got their paint, crayons and glitter out for our first ever Christmas card designing competition.

We were very impressed with all of the entries but we had to pick some winners so congratulations to Lily Williams, aged 7, daughter of stores assistant Barry Williams, and Maxwell Marshall, aged 5, son of Oxford team leader Ivan Marshall.

Both of them share the great honour of having their designs used for our company Christmas cards, sent to all staff and customers.

Creative Christmas Crackers

Daisy Walker, aged 6

(Julian Walker, Finance Director)

Ella Williams, aged 10

(Barry Williams, Stores Assistant)

Alex Large, aged 4

(Daniel Large, Senior Electrical QS)

Logun Turley, aged 6(Darren Turley, Production Director)

Pixie Walker, aged 4


Carla Hankins, aged 5

(Clint Hankins, Delivery Driver)

Lucy Gallagher, aged 11(Mark Gallagher, Team Leader)

Leighton Goodison, aged 10(Chris Goodison, Area Supervisor)

Aliya Hankins, aged 6(Clint Hankins, Delivery Driver)

Jessica Young, aged 5(Lindsey Young, HR & Training Director)

Ruby Byrne, aged 7

(Hannah Byrne, Marketing Manager)

Mollie Turley, aged 11(Darren Turley, Production Director)

Poppy Walker, aged 4


Laila Chivers, aged 7

(Lee Chivers, Customer Care Manager)

Daisy Walker, aged 6

(Julian Walker, Finance Director) George Green, aged 10(Spencer Green, Team Leader)

Ellie Bisp, aged 4(Steve Bisp, Facilities Assistant)

To help our staff and customers put a face to a name here are the teams based at our Gloucester HQ. Some you’ll have spotted elsewhere in the magazine but there are also a few unsung heroes.

the Directors

Accounts

trainingvehicle Workshop

Who’s who at our head office?

Standing: Nathan Evans (Business Development), Steve Evans (MD) and Darren Turley (Production) Seated: Leigh Mason (Technical), Tim Bisp (Commercial), Lindsey Young (HR & Training), Richard Evans (Staverton Electrical Supplies) and Julian Walker (Finance)

HrLindsey Young (HR & Training Director), Dave Barker (HRManager), Hannah Sparrow and Poppy Boothroyd

ProductionRegional production managers Simon Kingwell, Matt Galpin and Mark Moore with Darren Turley (Production Director)

Shelley Phillips, Luke Hands, Nigel Rice (Fleet Manager),Vince Hawkins and Stephen Hawkins

Back row: Stuart Spiers, Richard Costelloe, Mike Wilmott, Rob Smith,Dave Collins and Derek RutterFront row: Charlotte Swinnerton, Nigel Farmer (Assistant Head of Training), Jon Dicken (Head of Training), Lindsey Young (HR & Training Director), Dean Slee, Brian Johnston, Sharna George (Apprenticeship Contracts Manager) and Rachel Rees

Tracy Jackson, Maxine Perrins, Mike Wake, Becky Merryweather, Gemma Martin, Julian Walker (Finance Director), Emma Duncombe (Accounts Manager), Becky Wood, Mandy Benzie, Olivia Hughes and Gill O’Connor


Matt Gillbank

Customer CareJasna-Storm du Val, Abbie Maskell, Stacey Hipkiss, Lee Chivers (Customer Care Manager), Lucy Workman, Zoe Burford and Georgina Green

Luke Scott-Jones, Jon Holton, Mike Allen (Commercial Manager) and Ashley Bridgman

Carl Gough, Leigh Dangerfield, Tim Arnold, Jarrod du Val (Commercial Manager) and Dan Large

Sam Mason, Tom Green, Federico Hale-Perez (Commercial Manager) and Dan Long

Richard Shortman, Ed Playford (Commercial Manager), Andy Jones and Luke Todd

Sam Probin, Joe Wakeman (Commercial Manager), Hannah Masters and Alex Shirra

Nathan Jackson, Chris Wasley (IT Manager) and Dan Chandler

Steve Bisp and Mark Taylor (Facilities Supervisor)

Julie Newman Matthew Gilbank

Tim Bisp (Commercial Director) and Dave Gurney (Senior Commercial Manager)

Sheridan Russell (Technical Manager) and Leigh Mason (Technical Director)

technical

FacilitiesIt

reception Health & SafetyBrett Brierley

Power tools

Staverton electrical Supplies

CommercialCommercial

Commercial

Commercial

Commercial

Commercial


Mike Mumford (Branch Manager), Matt King (Assistant Branch Manager) and Chris Gargan (Senior Buyer)

Meteor Business Park Cheltenham Road East Gloucester GL2 9QLweb: www.clarksonevans.co.uk email: [email protected] t: 01452 530336 f: 01452 530036

Meteor Business Park Cheltenham Road East Gloucester GL2 9QLweb: www.clarksonevans.co.uk email: [email protected] t: 01452 530336 f: 01452 530036

AREA SUPERVISORDave White07967 597640

OXFOrD

CrAWLeY

AREA SUPERVISORJustin Tyler07866 267186

BrIDgWAter

AREA SUPERVISORChris Goodison07867 454922

eXeter

AREA SUPERVISORJames Palmer07807 578559

NeWPOrt

AREA SUPERVISORScott Hayden07973 889897

AREA SUPERVISORSean Geoghegan07855 504529

AREA SUPERVISORMark Burrows07989 384945

BIrMINgHAM

Our branch network

region 3

REGIONALPRODUCTION MANAGERMatt Galpin07968 474218

REGIONALPRODUCTION MANAGERMark Moore07967 742099

region 2

REGIONALPRODUCTION MANAGERSimon Kingwell07967 623134

region 1

BrIStOL

AREA SUPERVISORStephen Evans07977 533050

BrACKNeLL

AREA SUPERVISORNeil Ledsham07811 370666

AREA SUPERVISORMark Fritchley07870 276703

AREA SUPERVISORDave Harris07891 186360

gLOUCeSter

AREA SUPERVISORJames Smith07807 578552

MILtON KeYNeS

SOUtHAMPtON

AREA SUPERVISORColin Garbutt07772 778659

AREA SUPERVISORPhil Moir07969 919609

PLYMOUtH

AREA SUPERVISORSimon Jones07813 578812

ASSISTANT AREA SUPERVISORAdam Kendrick07989 184751

trOWBrIDge

NeWQUAY

AREA SUPERVISORPhil West07880 382791

Documents

Connect Magazine - Issue 17