Two local businesses have been awarded by the Business Enterprise Centre at Weston College for their commitment to training.

Smurfit Kappa, based in Weston-super-Mare, and Somax, based in Backwell, both received awards at the College’s annual Celebration of Success awards last month.

Smurfit Kappa won the ‘Employer of the Year’ award due to their outstanding commitment to training, where Somax won the ‘Business Partner of the Year’ award for the second year running.

Over 100 employees from Smurfit Kappa, a world leader in corrugated packaging, have engaged in work-based training with the Centre over the last two years.

The Business Enterprise Centre is currently delivering a tailored Customer Service programme with the company. This has brought employees together from the Weston and Yate sites to aid the standardisation of the customer service approach across the organisation.

Lisa Bailey, HR Advisor at Smurfit, said: “Transformation and growth take place when employees are given the opportunity to become involved and develop through training and development. The partnership enjoyed between Weston College and Smurfit Kappa has delivered diverse opportunities for employees to receive training in areas such as Lean Manufacturing Principles, bespoke Customer Excellence Programmes and Individual Development Plans. It was a pleasure to receive the award for ‘Employer of the Year’ on behalf of Smurfit Kappa at the recent ‘Celebration of Success’.

The Business Enterprise Centre and their associates are extremely professional and have a wealth of experience in scoping and delivering training and development. I am looking forward to 2010 with great anticipation and continuing the affiliation with Weston College.”

Liz Redwood, Head of the Business Enterprise Centre, said: “Smurfit Kappa has used training extensively to support company values, continuous improvement, lean manufacturing and customer service to ensure they stand out in a very competitive sector.”

She added: “The signing of the Skills Pledge in 2008 has demonstrated the strong emphasis the company puts on training their workforce which includes development of staff Literacy Skills, Manufacturing qualifications, IT and Management NVQs as well as a range of bespoke training.”

Somax has been a partner of Weston College for two years and have become the fastest growing partnership for the College. The nationally accredited driver training organisation delivered over 400 NVQs alone last year, through the Business Enterprise Centre, with a 97% success rate - putting them at the forefront of driver training in the South West.

Somax Managing Director Simon Werkshagen said: “Somax were delighted to win the Partner of the Year award. It has been a fantastic year working with Weston College; the support received has opened new and exciting opportunities, and we look forward to developing new strategies for the coming year.”

Liz Redwood said: “Somax are dynamic, responsive and imaginative and as a company have a wealth of experience in the logistics industry. This year they will train over 2000 candidates through BTEC and NVQ qualifications. They are also pioneering logistics training for the unemployed with great applause, and for the future they continue to break new ground.”

Holiday Park Pontin’s sponsored the entire event alongside two separate awards; the Train to Gain Student of the Year Award and the Principal’s Award for Outstanding Vocational Achievement.

Brian Howe, Training Manager at Pontin’s, said: “Pontin’s were pleased to support Weston College in this event and we congratulate all the prize winners on their successes during the past year. We have been working with the College for the past two years and were impressed by their professionalism and desire to go the extra mile.”

He added: “Having seen several organisations, I chose Weston College as the best provider of training for our industry across a range of areas. Around 50% of the team at Brean Sands have already been involved in training and gained new qualifications, and the programme has had a significant impact on staff retention. Training our team is key to achieving our aims and ensuring excellent service for our guests and happy, motivated staff.”

The Business Enterprise Centre work with more than 1000 businesses and organisations across the country, offering a wide range of training programmes including Apprenticeships and NVQs. For further information please call the Business Enterprise Centre on 01934 411594 or email business.enterprise.centre@weston.ac.uk.