Bagnalls was overwhelmed at winning the 2018 Yorkshire Post Excellence in Business Awards – Apprenticeship category, sponsored by Engie. Bagnalls is a family-run business with a heritage of investing in apprentices since Victorian times.
Stephen Bagnall, Group Managing Director, said “This award means so much to me personally. My great, great grandfather Alfred, the founder of the company, was an apprentice-trained painter himself and every generation of the Bagnall family have carried on his legacy. Today is recognition of over 140 years of investment in apprentices.”
Bagnalls commitment to people has resulted in many of the company’s apprentices progressing into more senior roles including Branch Manager and Director level positions.
The company actively engages with local schools to raise awareness amongst students of the opportunities available as a painting and decorating apprentice. One teacher said “This sort of engagement from local employers is amazing for our students. It really allows them a much greater understanding of what an apprenticeship can offer and how to access it.”
Initiatives such as this has led to a record number of apprentices being recruited across its UK branches in 2018. This award is testament to its commitment to The 5% Club, which requires member companies to commit to retaining a minimum of 5% of their workforce in apprenticeship or graduate positions.
This apprenticeship win comes on the back of two other acknowledgements of the company’s pledge to apprentices as one of its apprentices was named Family Business United (FBU) Apprentice of the Year in June this year and two of its apprentices won both the junior and senior section of the Painting & Decorating Association (PDA) Apprentice Paper Hanger awards in November 2018.
The award ceremony took place in the grand surroundings of the National Railway Museum, a venue regularly painted by Bagnalls, with the awards being handed out by Broadcaster Dermot Murnagahan.
