BBC Royal Correspondent Nicholas Witchell commends TowerSkills

On Thursday 2 February a launch event was hosted to commend the work of Tower Hamlets College’s employer service team, and celebrate the service’s rebranding as TowerSkills.
 
Nicholas Witchell, compere and guest speaker for the launch event, was impressed by the experiences clients have had.
Mr Witchell said: “It is clear that TowerSkills is all it claims to be. This evening I have heard from clients that have proved TowerSkills is a service that listens to an employer’s needs and provides a service in-tune with what they want. The service is tailor-made, flexible and professional.”
 
The event, which was hosted by HSBC at their headquarters in Canary Wharf, demonstrated the benefits of using TowerSkills for training and recruitment needs, even in a difficult economic climate.
 
Melanie Taylor, NVQ Manager at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Trust, was one such client who spoke of the successful and professional service that TowerSkills provide. She initially approached TowerSkills to develop their staff on Team Leading courses.
 
She said: “Our employees weren’t able to attend regular training sessions between a normal 9 – 5 day, so TowerSkills fitted the entire programme around our needs. Having been so impressed with the service, we decided to employ TowerSkills apprentices too, and develop our workforce even further.”
 
The event included an award presentation to three apprentices who have been exemplary in the workplace. Aqsa Kassum, who is training on an IT Specialist Application User apprenticeship at Maitland, was one such winner.
 
Aqsa spoke to Mr Witchell about her experience, stating: “The apprenticeship scheme with TowerSkills has opened doors for me. The training at TowerSkills is so transferable in my job role, and equally, what I learn at work enriches my studies on the apprenticeship scheme.”
 
Gerry McDonald, Vice Principal of Tower Hamlets College, spoke of some examples of benefits to employers: “We have helped companies across a range of business sectors to reduce staff absences, increase net profits and reduce recruitment costs for clients.”
 
Michael Farley, Principal of Tower Hamlets College, described TowerSkills’ commitment in his closing words: “I am always pleased to hear such positive feedback from our clients. However, we will not rest on our success stories and become complacent. We will always strive to be better and continue to provide a professional service for current and future business clients.”