Date: 1st June, 2018
A Shaftesbury company has been honoured as Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service’s On-Call Employer of the Year.
Mako Boardsports, based at Chaldicott Barns in Semley, only has a workforce of 17 people but still allows two of its employees to provide fire cover during the day.
Adam Collins and Richard Bromley have been supported by Mako throughout their training and development; they are given time off to complete essential courses, and colleagues within the company enable them to fulfil their Fire and Rescue Service commitments.
Watch Manager Matt Scott, who was one of the people to nominate Mako for the award, said: “There are many companies that support Shaftesbury fire station, and we are hugely grateful to them all, but Sam Wedgwood and his team at Mako have gone the extra mile by supporting two firefighters in differing stages of their development. For such a small company in a remote location on the Wiltshire/Dorset border, this support is really important to us and enables us to keep both of our fire engines available throughout the day. I’m delighted that they have received this award.”
The presentation was made at the Service’s annual awards ceremony, held at the Guildhall in Salisbury on Thursday 24 May, by Chief Fire Officer Ben Ansell and Oliver North, Managing Director of Rosenbauer UK, one of the event’s sponsors.
Sam Wedgwood, managing director at Mako Boardsports, said: “The ethos behind our company is that we always look for a win-win, and to be able to have two members of the Fire and Rescue Service creates just that! We are privileged to have Rich and Adam as part of our team but also to be able to give back to the community around us. Let’s not forget that, with a young and adventurous set of employees, it may well be one of us that needs rescuing in the future! We are grateful for the recognition but, more importantly, thank you to our firefighters for their service.”