Suffolk enterprise agency Menta is working with two skills organisations to help local employers with staff development.

Menta has teamed up with with Opportunity Workshops and Ixion to offer bespoke face-to-face and online courses in a range of subjects including Digital Media, Management, ICT, Finance and Business Services.

The free courses, supported by funds from the European Social Fund and the Skills Agency, vary from half-day workshops to fully-accredited training programmes to support lifelong learning and business growth and innovation.

Alex Till, chief executive at Menta said: “I think it’s fantastic that there is free training support available for staff of established businesses. The criteria the companies have to meet are not onerous and Opportunity Workshops project manager Sarah Rands visits each business, free of charge, to find out in detail what staff need to upskill and feel valued.

“It costs a great deal in hard cash and time to find the right full-time and part-time employees and everything that can be done to ensure staff retention is good, for both morale and the profit of a company.”

To be considered, companies must have between 10 and 250 employees and operate within the Greater Cambridge and Greater Peterborough Local Enterprise Partnership area, which includes Bury St Edmunds and Haverhill. There is no limit on the number of employees a company might consider for courses.

To find out more contact Opportunity Workshops project manager Sarah Rands – email srands@oppworks.co.uk or call 07788 508520.