Malith Makes a Change – From Groceries to Gas

He lives near the Logic4training centre in Northolt and prior to retraining, would drive past it every day on his way home from work and wonder what life would be like if he had a career in building services.  Malith explains:

“I’d always fancied being a skilled worker, running my own business and earning the kind of salary that comes with it, but stepping away from a good job with a regular paycheque is a difficult thing to do. The truth is I was bored and eventually I hit a wall. One day after five years of driving past Logic’s training centre, dreaming about what a new career would be like, I stopped the car and went inside. 

“I was blown away by the centre and the possibilities that training would give me. Initially I wanted to just train as a gas engineer, but the advice the people at Logic4training gave me helped me see that if I trained as a plumber first, I’d have a better foundation for learning gas – and I’d end up with two qualifications and the potential to tackle both jobs. 

“You know, I’d no experience in any of it, but that wasn’t a problem. Logic4training offers a range of packages aimed at people like me who are new to the trades. They start with the most basic plumbing qualification – the Bronze Package and build from there with further training and higher qualifications. It’s a very flexible system designed to suit everyone’s needs. I chose to do the Platinum Package – the Rolls Royce of packages if you like!

“With The Platinum Package, I get full training in plumbing, gas engineering and a couple of bolt-on qualifications in safety and water regs. There are also benefits, such as a year’s subscription to Checkatrade, which will be useful in the future.  

“Admittedly, it’s not cheap, but it’s money well spent, and Logic4training were helpful with payment plans and such. The best thing is they run weekend courses so, with the support of my amazing wife, who really is my backbone, I was able to keep working at my existing employer, Costco, and train at the weekends for the first part. I began my plumbing course in June and qualified at the end of October.

“Costco wanted me to stay and offered me a promotion and a generous pay rise, but now I had a plumbing qualification, I was keen to move into building services. Glen, Ricky and Rachel, the trainers at Logic4training, were incredibly supportive throughout the course and have helped me find work. It was challenging at first, as I had no experience to speak of, but I was persistent and now I’m working as an Improver Plumber, with the T Brown Group, which has contracts with Hounslow and Ealing Borough Councils. I am shadowing senior engineers on commercial jobs and learning so much – building on the foundations that I learnt at Logic4training.

“In January, I’ll be starting my gas qualification and I feel so much more confident. I’ll be training at weekends again, which is tough, especially as we have a new baby son, but my enthusiasm for the work is higher than ever and I can’t wait to make a start!  At the end of March, the training will be complete, and I then must concentrate on putting a portfolio of practical work together before I can sit my ACS and become Gas Safe registered. 

“Although money is tight and losing a good income has been challenging, I am so looking forward to building a future of my own. Eventually I’d like to have my own company to make my wife and new son proud. I realise, now that everything is falling into place, that I had been sitting on the fence too long and wish I’d made the switch years ago!

If, like Malith, you’ve always dreamt of a career in building services, come and talk to us and we’ll help you plan your future. Otherwise you can explore your options looking at the various training packages we have designed for new entrants.