Ahead of International Women’s Day this week (8 March) Petit Forestier continues to support change and promote diversity and equality in the cold chain industry and beyond.
Naomh Singleton, has defied conventional stereotypes and embarked on an inspiring journey into Heavy Good Vehicle (HGV) mechanics with Petit Forestier, driven by her childhood passion.
Growing up, Naomh’s dad had always been interested in mechanics alongside his role as a coach driver, so she grew up surrounded by spanners and tools and decided early on it was something she wanted to go into.
Inspired by her father’s work, Naomh decided to turn her childhood fascination into a profession. Despite societal norms and expectations, she pursued an apprenticeship in HGV mechanics with Petit Forestier in their Leeds depot, breaking barriers in a male-dominated field.
Now in her second year, Naomh, explained: “When I was young, I used to watch my dad tinker with cars, and I was fascinated by the way he could solve problems. I always knew it was something I wanted to go into, but I never thought it would be for HGV’s. I originally started my training on cars, but I got bored and found myself more interested in the trucks and thought I would give it a go, I have not looked back since.”
Petit Forestier runs various apprenticeship schemes for young people looking to join the cold chain industry from mechanics through to refrigeration engineering.
Naomh continued: “I did a year doing HGV mechanics at college before finding the apprenticeship with Petit, refrigerated trucks was not something I thought about but after the interview, it all fell into place. The apprenticeship has been great, I have done more than I ever expected to do, and I feel supported. The fact that I am a girl has not affected anything, I am the only girl on my course, but no one has made a point to treat me differently, which I love. There is no need to, and it is exactly what I wanted when I made my way into this career field.”
Mairead O’Reilly, Depot Manager (Leeds), added: “It is brilliant for the industry to have more young and diverse talent coming through. They all have such a clear interest in what they are doing, and it is great for Petit to have this talent on board.”