Banham Academy, a London-based technical training provider for the Level 3 Fire, Emergency and Security Systems (FESS) Apprenticeship, and NSI (National Security Inspectorate), the UK’s UKAS Accredited certification body for the security and fire sector are offering introductory three-day Fire and Security Systems Technician training; exclusively for potential women apprentices.
It’s to run from Monday to Friday, June 13 to 17, at the Banham Academy in Earlsfield, SW18, this free training programme will provide women aged 16 and over with an insight into the requirements of the FESS Apprenticeship standard. Attendees will gain a basic understanding of the functions of Fire, CCTV, Intruder Alarms and Access Control systems and the role of the systems technician. By the end of the course, attendees will have learnt how to take-over a system, diagnose and rectify faults.
Women are significantly under-represented within the security and fire sector; hence Banham Academy and NSI are seeking to help bridge the industry’s gender gap and attract new talent. Those who complete the course can meet with a number of security and fire safety companies on the Friday. These employers will be looking to diversify their workforces with skilled female technicians, providing trainees with opportunities for apprenticeships.
Kevin Faulkner, Head of the Banham Academy said: ‘Banham Academy and NSI are committed to start to address the gender gap in our industry and we are delighted to officially launch this women’s-focused programme at our training centre. We have successfully trained several young women through our Academy, so we know there is an appetite, but we all have a duty to ensure that such training programmes are easily accessible to all genders. I, along with everyone at Banham, are really excited to see what raw talent is nurtured through this programme and to see these skilled women embark on rewarding careers within the sector.’
Richard Jenkins, NSI Chief Executive added: “We are delighted to be launching this introductory training programme with Banham Academy to help drive change and encourage more women into our sector. As a founding stakeholder of the well-respected ‘Engineers of Tomorrow’ competition, NSI has made a longstanding commitment to apprenticeships and is keen to further build on this success and help bridge the gender gap.
“There are no barriers to women becoming security or fire systems technicians, but changing perceptions is often the hardest thing. We’re confident those women who participate in this new training programme will be well-placed to take advantage of the many and varied opportunities available to them and very much hope they will be motivated to apply their skills and become an apprentice within our sector.”
Those interested in attending the training programme and finding out about the apprenticeship, or security and fire safety companies wishing to employ a female apprentice should email [email protected].
Photo by Mark Rowe (from 2016): Kevin Faulkner outside the Academy, based at Banham’s head office.
