Midlands Enterprise Awards 2020

9 | Midlands Enterprise Awards 2020 Quality education and career opportunities are vital in making a positive contribution to society and providing accessible education to everyone is paramount. Leading the way in this field is Acacia Training Ltd, founded over 20 years ago the company provides apprenticeships, short courses and government-funded qualifications for the health and well-being sector. We learn more about the firm to find out how they support their clients. In 2000, Acacia Training Limited was founded by Victoria Sylvester and her mother Anne Littleton. As owners of a care home the pair became frustrated at the lack of high-quality training available and decided to create their own training company, dedicated to the health and social care sector. Over the last two decades, the company has continued to grow and now employs 80 staff and trains 3,500 learners across the UK each year, with approximately 85% of those being SMEs. With their personal experience and passion for the healthcare sector, the mother and daughter duo have an exceptional advantage in this field and are proud to deliver training differently compared to the more conventional training providers. In order to change people’s lives through education, Acacia actively encourages their team to help embrace their vision to the fullest and celebrate their contribution to the success of the clients they work with. The internal culture of the business is of huge importance Victoria highlights “Acacia has a family culture. We are modern, open-minded and we encourage the development of our people, which pushes us to grow and create opportunities for the team.” One of their biggest accomplishments to date was during the first phase of Covid-19, after it became apparent that there was a huge gap in staffing in the social care sector. Acacia Training Ltd delivered an astonishing £125,000 of intensive training, funded by Skills for Care, to ensure the increase of staff in care homes. Free training was also provided for infection control, safeguarding and mental first aid, just a selection of topics high on the agenda throughout the pandemic. Located in the heart of the UK, the Midlands provides Acacia with a strong business community and invaluable access to the rest of the country. As a proactive and forward-thinking region, the Midlands community has responded well to the Best Health & Social Care Training Provider – UK pandemic and Acacia are currently supporting priority groups who have been disproportionately impacted by Covid-19. In 2017, Acacia Training Ltd also became one of the first UK companies to achieve Disability Confident Leader status and continue to champion the contribution of disabled people in the workplace. With an appetite to expand into other markets and sectors, Acacia will also be launching their new business school in January 2021, allowing them to extend their training programmes internationally and online. They also successfully won a £750K growth in Learner Loans and have just launched an interest free finance scheme giving learners a wide range of funding options for their education. No one is more deserving of recognition than Acacia Training Limited and the future looks bright for this remarkable training provider. With a strong reputation for social responsibility, Acacia is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to supporting both its staff and its clients as the firm continues to further cement its reputation for being the Best Health & Social Care Training Provider in the UK. Company: Acacia Training Ltd Web Address: www.acaciatraining.co.uk “Equality and wellbeing are integral to our organisation” Sep20369