TACS training targets triple growth following company buyout

New owners of a training and apprenticeship provider have announced ambitious plans to triple the number of learners it supports into careers.

TACS, based at Novus Business Centre in Peterlee, was recently bought out by business owner Neil Armstrong and son-in-law Daniel Cooper.

The company was launched 14 years ago to support the manufacturing and engineering sectors and grew to support around 60 apprentices per year working with employers across the north.

In December 2020 Daniel and Neil – with the support of TACS’ existing employees –  took the helm and quickly restructured the management team. Adrian Joyce was appointed to head up the Housing and Property apprenticeship programmes, a new venture for the business; Rob Dignen remained Head of Manufacturing and Engineering; whilst operationally Daniel is overseeing the Trade and Wholesale department.

After undertaking a comprehensive review of the business, its clients and the potential to grow, Daniel has revealed TACS’ management team is planning to increase the number of apprentices it supports by around 200 per year and add to the company’s internal headcount with at least four new recruits across its new departments, taking the workforce to 14.

Expansion has already started with the appointment of three new members of staff and the internal promotion of Phillipa Walker to manage Support Services.

Daniel said: “The buyout of TACS was opportune really. I was already delivering apprenticeships within the Trade and Wholesale industry which unfortunately came to an unexpected end when the whole department was made redundant in March 2020.

“When I spoke to owner Rick Nicholson, it was clear he was in the market to sell, so I spoke to my father-in-law and we decided it was the perfect fit. The buyout was completed in December and now we’ve got to grips with the business, we have mapped out how we want it to grow over the coming years.

“The transfer of my existing apprentices and appointment of Adrian in Housing & Property allowed us to become a national provider overnight and we are now delivering apprenticeships for clients  right down the country to the South Coast.

“Our future plans include initially tripling the number of apprentices we have on our books, from 60 to around 180, and strengthening our team with at least four new people from their respective industries, which we can then train to be trainers – individuals who share our ambition to really establish TACS as one of the leading training and apprenticeship providers in our sectors.”

TACS offers bespoke learning and development solutions, tailored specifically to meet the individual needs of every client regardless of their size, whether they’re in the manufacturing, engineering, housing or trade and wholesale sectors.

Daniel added: “We are hugely passionate about what we do and want to position TACS at the heart of our clients’ growth plans.

“We really believe we can take this business to the next level and are confident that we can achieve the rightly ambitious plans that Neil, Adrian, Rob and I put in place when setting out our growth strategy. We will achieve these plans whilst maintaining quality of education and positive destinations for our apprentices, despite the challenges that the coronavirus pandemic has presented.”