Darwen’s WEC Group named large employer of the year at awards

Darwen-based WEC Group, an engineering and fabrication company, was given the The British Army award for best large employer in the North West at the National Apprenticeship Awards 2022.

This is the sixth time in eight years that WEC Group have received this award, which it says demonstrates its long term commitment to tackle the skills gap in the UK’s manufacturing industry.

WEC Group will now go on to represent the North West in the national finals which will take place on Wednesday November 30.

Now running in its 19th year, the National Apprenticeship Awards provide local businesses from a range of sectors with the opportunity to celebrate the achievements of outstanding apprentices and their employers.

The high profile event receives more than 1,000 applications every year and WEC Group was one of only a handful of companies to make the shortlist for their regional event.

This award comes on the back of a recent £3 million investment from WEC Group’s managing director Steve Hartley to build a new Engineering Academy located at Walker Park Industrial Estate in Blackburn.

WEC Group built the state-of-the-art facility between February 2020 and August 2022.

WEC Group with their large employer of the year award (Image: WEC Group)

It has 33 welding bays, two classrooms and the latest metalworking equipment from leading welding equipment manufacturer Lincoln Electric.

Steve Hartley,managing director at WEC Group, said: “We are thrilled to have been named as the North West’s Large Apprenticeship Employer of the Year 2022.

“It is a testament to our commitment to training young people and set them on a path to a very successful career in engineering.

“I’m passionate about our apprenticeship scheme as I started out as an apprentice welder myself many years ago.”

WEC Group first opened the doors of its training academy in 2006 as a response to their inability to fill skilled engineering positions at the time due to a local skills shortage.

Initially taking in 10 apprentices a year, WEC’s apprenticeship scheme has gone from strength to strength and the company’s intake of apprentices has gradually increased to more than 40 a year.

The scheme has now been expanded to other areas of the business.

Mr Hartley said: “Over 200 apprentices have come through the doors of our academy since it opened its doors in 2006 and our vision for the next 10 years is to create over 500 more apprentice positions.

“We also aim to introduce engineering to over 2,000 students through school visits and open day events.”

More than 50 per cent of the company’s welding workforce in Lancashire are now current or former apprentices trained in the WEC Engineering Academy, resulting in a much higher skills level within WEC Group’s manufacturing operations.

WEC Group are no stranger to apprenticeship success after Tyler, one of their highly skilled welding apprentices recently represented the UK at the international WorldSkills Olympics in Construction Metalwork in 2019, being ranked in the top 10 apprentice welders in the world.

Another WEC Group Apprentice has also followed in Tyler’s footsteps; Kieran has recently been selected to represent the UK at the WorldSkills Special Edition, competing at Lincoln Electric’s headquarter in Cleveland, Ohio, in October 2022.

Kris Mercer, academy manager and master welding instructor at WEC Group Ltd, added: “It is fantastic news to have won this prestigious award for the sixth time.

“Apprenticeships are at the heart of our continued success and growth and we are incredibly proud of everything we’ve achieved since we opened our Academy.

“Our new training facility in Blackburn will allow us to build on our past successes and create more opportunities for local individuals and we look forward to starting many new successful careers.”