Bespoke furniture company, NEJ Stevenson, welcomed a group of year 10 design technology students from The Avon Valley School and Performing Arts College. The visit was organised subsequent to a career’s talk that Fiona Stevenson, Finance Director, did through the Inspiring the Future Programme at the school in February.
During their visit the students were taken through the various stages of creating bespoke pieces of furniture. Josh Cosh Hall (cabinetmaker) guided them through the process of preparing, treating and crafting raw MDF substrate to produce a finished piece depicting the school’s shield. The students were visibly intrigued and engaged to the point that a few have requested to come back in the summer for an internship.
Neil Stevenson, Owner and Managing Director of the business, was thrilled that the students were taking an active interest in skilled trades and crafts, in his personal experience “government policy has done very little to help encourage people into the design and manufacturing world” and as such feels strongly about raising awareness for cabinetry and woodwork.
Careers Leader, Lisa Owen, said “Visiting NEJ Stevenson has been a brilliant opportunity for our students to see where their qualification in design technology might take them. Being able to see the craftsmanship involved in making pieces of furniture worth tens of thousands of pounds has really inspired our students and a number of them now want to pursue this type of career.”
Headteacher, Alison Davies, said “As a school we commit a lot of time and energy into our careers education programme and we are very grateful to NEJ Stevenson for allowing our students to visit their facilities and see the world of work for themselves. We are delighted with the shield presented to us by the company and this will soon be displayed within the school.”