Portsmouth training provider celebrates quarter of a century in business with tree planting partnership

Aspire Training Team, an apprenticeship training provider with training facilities based in Portsmouth, celebrated 25 years of training with a number of celebratory activities throughout April.

The provider was founded by Cheryl Hadland in 1997 and started with just a handful of apprentices, one of which is now the current director of audit and quality for Aspire, Kelly Medley.

Over the years Aspire has grown from an initial three learners to beyond 3,000 having now successfully achieved their apprenticeships.

Cheryl said: ‘When I started Aspire with three apprentices in one nursery, Tops Day Nurseries Parkstone, I did not imagine that 25 years later we would have around 350 learners every year.

‘We are very proud to be making such a huge contribution to early years education and care in our areas across the South West.’

Aspire is one of the only B.Corp training providers in the country, and among the company’s celebratory activities is a partnership with fellow B Corp accredited company Ecologi to plant thickets of trees.

Ecologi is a company dedicated to ending the climate crisis by planting trees to keep our temperatures from rising above 1.5C.

The whole training team gathered face to face and planted a tree in the communal garden at their head office to commemorate 25 years of training.

Aspire has planted 25 trees for every employer that works with them and pledges to plant 25 trees for all future employers that join them.