Former Derby Telegraph offices turned into digital hub

An East Midlands training and apprenticeship provider has invested £75,000 to give Derby’s former newspaper offices a new lease of life – as a digital hub.

EMA Training has created three floors of collaborative working space, break-out areas, exam suites and networking facilities inside its new Siddals Road headquarters, which was home to the Derby Telegraph until last year.

It has taken just two months for EMA Training to renovate the offices, which cover almost 9,000 sqft, ahead of a big push to promote apprenticeships and staff training.

EMA Training chief executive officer, Tracey Mosley, said “The expansion into this building is extremely exciting for us. The city has so much to offer our learners and we want to keep local talent in Derby.

“The support we have had from the employers we work with; our external stakeholders and our team has been incredible. Our people are the core of everything we do, and it has been great to see their involvement in each phase come to life.

“All the local businesses who helped renovate the previously empty office have done a fantastic job, in a really quick time. Together we have turned the building into a collaborative, innovative working space that supports the new hybrid way of working.”

The move into the new office, which is due to be officially opened by businesswomen Eileen Richards MBE, comes after EMA Training expanded from 10 members of staff to 30 in the last two years.

Mosely added: “This is such an exciting time for EMA Training and our new prominent position in the heart of the city means we will be able to bring our ground-breaking and exceptional expertise to even more young people and employers.

“We pride ourselves in having access to brilliant subject specialist speakers to inspire our apprentices to achieve their potential. And with our high staff retention – an impressive 100% since January 2021 – our apprentices and employers can rely on consistency.

“EMA training has gone from strength to strength in the last three years and as the city builds back better we hope that we will be an important part of this recovery.”

Richards said: “I am delighted to have been given the honour to officially open EMA’s new training hub.

“The East Midlands is renowned for their entrepreneurial and business spirit which is why it is fantastic that EMA are providing a place for emerging and existing talent to be upskilled through apprenticeships and training programmes to continue to add value and expertise within our region.”