Richard Wright

Mr Wright will assist group training manager Russell Coleman in training, mentoring and assessing Modern Apprentices employed by the association’s member companies in the Borders.

He has 39 years of technical experience across a number of multidiscipinary roles including mentoring, training assessments and management.

Mr Wright’s career began at Saint Gobain plc as an automation and control engineer. He later held training and assessment roles under EAL, training and assessing apprenctices and adults for career advancement.

He also furthered his experience in the gas transmission sector as an instrument and control systems officer at National Grid where he undertook mentoring, training and assessments of new recuits and apprentices from different regions under “Energy and Utilities Independent Assessment Services”.

Russell Coleman commented: “We are delighted to welcome Richard to BTTA. We have ambitious plans to grow the organisation this year, having rebranded and developed new branding and website. His extensive experience in training and mentoring apprentices in industry will be invaluable to the organisation.”

The Borders Engineering Training Association (BETA) was renamed Borders Technical Training Association (BTTA) in September.

Founded in 1967 by 10 local engineering companies the organisation’s purpose is to provide technical and engineering training services in the Borders. In particular BETA offers approved support, assessment and verification for Modern Apprenticeships in Engineering as well as a range of short courses in technical and business subjects.

The organisation is led by Russell Coleman who was appointed group training manager in October 2022. He originally trained as a marine and mechanical engineer with the Royal Navy. He has gone on to successfully hold senior management and training roles in various engineering training organisations both in the UK and Middle East over the past 30 years.

Mr Coleman added: “We have changed our name to reflect the fact that the training we provide is much broader than just engineering.

“There is a huge need for skilled employees in the UK and we need to encourage more young people to consider becoming apprentices. Not only do they get practical experience and pay, they gain a recognised qualification at the end of their training.

“The university route is not for everyone and we have seen how many graduates finish university with large debts and fail to get a job in their chosen field. In fact, the Prime Minster has recently said that apprenticeships are key to future economic growth.”

“We are in regular contact with local employers to see how we can support them with their apprentice recruitment and training needs.”

During the coming months BTTA will be visiting school career fairs in various Border towns to explain how apprenticeships work and how to apply.