John Lamont MP and Rachael Hamilton MSP recently paid a visit to major Borders employer Spark Energy, the Selkirk-based independent energy supplier to the tenant and social housing sectors.
The company is one of the biggest private sector employers in the Scottish Borders, employing over 400 staff and supplying more than 360,000 customers.
The pair were invited along to see what plans the company had for existing staff development and further growth. As well as touring the offices based in a former mill on Dunsdale Road, the local politicians paid a visit to Spark Energy’s award winning customer service training team, The Academy.
As a major employer in the Borders, with plans for expansion, John Lamont MP and Rachael Hamilton MSP both praised the emphasis Spark Energy places on staff development and welcomed future plans for further high quality jobs in the Borders.
Speaking afterwards, John Lamont MP said: “I was very happy to pay another visit to Spark Energy, as it’s one of the key employers in the Borders. Since their official opening back in 2007 this innovative company has really gone from strength to strength and it was great to see that they still have plans to improve and grow.
“The UK Government’s Borderlands Growth Deal is a really exciting opportunity to improve our infrastructure in the Borders which will benefit companies like Spark Energy and enable them to expand and provide further jobs.”
Rachael Hamilton MSP said: “I was very impressed with the set up at Spark Energy and it was great to see a local business doing so well.
“Their training facility is a great example of a company working with schools, colleges and a growing apprenticeship programme to develop new staff and improve their skills.
“With the planned creation of a South of Scotland Enterprise Agency, we will finally have a dedicated support structure to help existing businesses like Spark and also help create other high quality local jobs in the Borders.”
Spark Energy CEO, Chris Gauld added: “As a Scottish Borders-based company, we were pleased to welcome our local MSP, Rachael Hamilton, and local MP, John Lamont, to Spark HQ for a visit last Friday. It was great to be able to show them The Academy, talk about the investment we’re making in our people and discuss our plans for further growth.”