A leading manufacturer of park homes and lodges, Pathfinder Homes, welcomed a very special guest to its factory, build complex and Selection Studio recently.
Mel Stride, Member of Parliament for the Central Devon constituency and Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Minister of State John Hayes, visited Pathfinder Homes for a tour around the premises, to meet the team and see the success and growth of the Devon company.
Mel’s first visit to Pathfinder was to discuss the possible damaging implications to the park home and holiday lodge industry from the proposed 20 per cent VAT levy on the homes and lodges.
During his visit, Mel saw the expansion going on at Pathfinder and the growing sales and success which increased local economy and employment. The Central Devon MP was originally for the VAT stamp, however after his visit to Pathfinder, Mel reversed his vote and voted against the bill which was revoked and was not passed.
After this close communication with the Member of Parliament, Pathfinder has seen a significant increase in demand for the Park Homes and Holiday Lodges resulting in the need to increase the workforce and employ more local members of the community and 10 new apprentices.
When the MP heard about this, he came back to Pathfinder for another visit to witness the further success and growth of the company and to meet the apprenticeship workers that have been employed.
Following the MP’s tour of the factory and new build complex, he met with all the apprentices in the Selection Studio for a Q&A session to find out about their courses, their work experiences and their views on the path they had chosen. The apprentices also gave their opinions on how the MP could affect more change in Government on Further Education and Apprenticeships.
