Northern Foods to build on skills pedigree
Having completed its second year, the Northern Foods operations academy has focused on production line and operations functions and trained 1,533 staff to NVQ Level 2 and 3. It has also supported apprenticeships, focusing on production line and operations functions and awarded university foundation awards.
Corporate social responsibility director Paula Widdowson said the intention was to ratchet these efforts up a gear. "There are plans with the Grimsby Institute to create a Northern Foods academy, covering everything from Masters in Business Administration to adult apprenticeships and training for all job roles from HR to operations personnel."
Widdowson said initially the intention was to launch the academy in 2011, although that schedule had now been delayed. It would be introduced gradually, starting as an internal resource only, incorporating the operations academy and providing leadership training.
"We're pulling together a prototype to understand how it will work.Once we know what we're doing, and where we're not dealing with sensitive commercial information, we will then start to open it up to outside students.
"In some instances the Grimsby Institute will be delivering the training, in some cases it will be online and in some cases it will be on site [at Northern Foods factories]. But it will be delivered by the Northern Foods academy."
