Training centre rescued
BUSINESSES STEPPED IN AS ASSETS WERE BEGINNING TO BE AUCTIONED OFF
AN APPRENTICE training centre was saved just days before its assets were about to be sold at a fraction of their value.
Directors of Brighouse based Kirkdale Industrial Training Services (KITS) announced they were shutting the facility at the end of June, blaming the coronavirus crisis.
The closure raised eyebrows among some, as KITS had at least £2m in the bank.
A group of concerned local business chiefs have now scuppered the bid to sell off hundreds of thousands of pounds of high end manufacturing equipment and tools and have agreed to resurrect the training centre as soon as possible.
As reported, the auction of KITS’ assets had already begun taking bids when a small group of Kirklees and Calderdale business leaders stepped in and threatened legal action against KITS’ directors.
That group can now be revealed as being led by Andrew Denford, chief executive of nearby machine making firm Denford Ltd.
Mr Denford said KITS’ previous board of directors had all resigned “en masse” after his bid to save KITS succeeded at the “eleventh hour and 59th minute”.
Mr Denford, who is acting as caretaker chairman, said the contract of former chief executive David Todhunter had been terminated.
He said it was lucky that he noticed activity at the Armytage Road site and realised it was being cleared of equipment to be auctioned off.
“I was suspicious when I saw four of five cars parked there,” he said.
“Thankfully we managed to stop the auction because it would have been carnage if that had gone ahead.
“They would have sold all the machinery at a tenth of its value.
“The trustees all thought KITS was dead in the water and it would have been if we hadn’t stopped the auction.
“The majority of people I spoke to were distraught that there would be no apprenticeship provision in this area,” he added.
Mr Denford said his and other member companies that acted as trustees to KITS were now seeking to re-launch, and probably rename, the training and business conferencing facility. He added: “We’ve now got a clean sheet of paper and we’re now putting everything back in place.
“We hope to get a new intake of apprentices next spring or summer and the conferencing facilities will re-open sooner.
“We want local businesses to understand that KITS isn’t dead and any member companies will have a big part to play going forward.
“KITS has been successful but this time we need to make sure we involve member companies and make sure they get what they need.”