Councillors and business leaders were at Xplore in Wrexham Monday, October 18, to celebrate the extended stay of the Tenstar simulator in Wrexham until March 2022.
The simulator, which is used as a training tool for fork-lift truck, HGV and large excavator driving and operating, has been based in Xplore and used by local businesses, schools and Wrexham residents showing interested in exploring these as future careers.
The funding has been secured via the Welsh Governments’ Communities for Work Plus programme and it is hoped that it will be successful in closing the skills gaps experienced by local companies in logistics and warehousing. It may also encourage people to think about a career path that they hadn’t considered before and encourage women into an industry that is seen as one dominated by men. This innovative project has been a collaboration between Wrexham Council, employment projects, training providers and local business.
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Present at the event from the council was Cllr Mark Pritchard, Leader of Wrexham Council who said: “It was a very enjoyable and interesting visit and I would like to thank everyone at XPlore for their time in showing me just what this means to those looking for work in Wrexham and for employers to upskill their workforce.
“It’s a fantastic addition to the training resources available in this sector and I know there’s been a lot of interest in the simulator, which has already helped people into employment. I look forward to hearing more about the success of the project and how it has helped both those looking for work and employers alike.”
Also, in attendance from the council were Cllr Terry Evans, Cllr David A Bithell, Cllr Sonia Benbow Jones and Cllr Hugh Jones.
Others who attended and have been instrumental in the simulator being based in Wrexham, were Julian Hughes from Gatewen Training Ltd, Katie Williams representing Xplore, Jon Sankey, Community Employment Programmes Manager at Wrexham County Borough Council and Simon Hogg from Tenstar Simulation.
Wrexham Communities for Work Plus team have already used the simulator for taster days and there will be others in the near future.
Anyone who is interested in working in this area and trying out the simulator can contact Wrexham Communities for Work by texting C4W to 66777 or calling 07976200413/07976200414, or email cfw@wrexham.gov.uk.
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