After spending, most of his life working as a builder, Mehmet Bekir knew the career that had once served him well for 25 years was certainly not going to be the best vocation of choice in later years.
In his forties, Mehmet had started to feel the physical demands more than ever, due to his roles as a builder. So, after talking it through with his family he decided to look at a change of career.
Mehmet who is dyslexic, knew that his options may be limited, if not almost impossible under the circumstances to find a role which was less physical but still allowed him to earn a reasonable wage to support his family. It was then, a friend encouraged him to look at the possibilities of becoming a Locksmith. His family helped, researching the qualifications he needed and the courses he needed to take. This is when they came across MPL’s Specialist Locksmith Training website.
The Wakefield-based organisation offers a range of specialised Locksmith courses for all backgrounds and abilities wishing to progress in a career as a Locksmith.
Mehmet comments: “MPL’s website stood out more than other training providers for the same subject because of the testimonials from people in similar situations as me wishing to make a career change in their lives.”
“Obviously, I had added complications because of my dyslexia, but my family encouraged me to get in touch with MPL and at least enquire to see if I had a chance of being able to attend the course. After several ongoing conversations with Nicky England, Operations Director at MPL,” Mehmet added, “he convinced me their 5 Day Ultimate Locksmith Training course would be an ideal solution to help me, not only to gain the skills I needed to get a NCFE Level 3 accredited industry qualification, but by completing the course, I would also be awarded City & Guilds accredited Programme Status; a certification recognised Worldwide.”
Mehmet, alongside several other delegates attended the 5-day course in 2015, covering a range practical assessments as well as the standard entry and exit multiple choice type assessments. To overcome Mehmet’s disadvantage with written assignments, Nicky sat side-by-side with him, reading out each question and writing down his answer word for word.
Nicky advised: “Our Locksmith courses are tailored to take on individuals of all abilities and not just from a Locksmith background. Many of our delegates have very little knowledge or skills of the role prior to attending, so we strive to give every student our full support, during and after their training.”
“The courses are designed to give delegates practical skills, using the latest equipment, methods and technologies, relevant to all locks on the market. We also train our students in methods of how to market their new skills and business, as a self-employed Locksmith.”
“Albeit, Mehmet’s situation was not a typical, we did not see it has an obstacle to stop him from achieving the qualification and skills he needed. After attending the course, Mehmet took onboard all the advice and training we instill on our courses to the students, and after leaving us he set about working closely with the local authorities in Enfield, servicing their needs of securing commercial and domestic properties on a regular basis.” Nicky added.
Mehmet has returned to MPL since attending the course in 2015 on a refresher course as new locks continue to be introduced, and often utilises the 24/7 technical supported offered by the business. He is also, a regularly customers of MPL’s lock and ironmongery division, where students benefit from discounts when purchasing from the trade retail outlet, after they qualify from a MPL training course.
Nicky often calls Mehmet to catch up with his progress and see if he or MPL can assist: “Mehmet is an inspiration to others who want to do something different in their lives. Living by the principles he was trained by – he now has a great career, his own profitable business which earns him a very good wage and more time to spend with his family.”
“Mehmet’s initial worries of not being able to change his vocation in life because of certain challenges were unwarranted and I would encourage anyone looking for a career change or to add new skills to their existing role, to contact us and see how we could assist.”
Mehmet concluded: “Taking the course with MPL has to be one of the best things I have ever done. I’m earning a lot more money than ever before and I get to spend time with my family more. Following MPL’s advice during the training regarding marketing my business, has enabled me to not have to worry about the phone not ringing, I am always busy! In my first trading year, I was over the moon and never imaged that things would take off as quickly as they did. The support I have received from MPL since setting up has been fantastic and knowing they are always on-hand whenever I need technical advice is a great comfort.” Mehmet concludes.
