PE takes a trip up to Riverside College in Cheshire to meet a couple of electricians-turned-lecturers who are keeping it in the family and learning from one another.
“When you teach your son, you teach your son’s son.”
It’s not often we’ll start an article in this publication with a quote from Talmud, but this one seems fitting for the father and son duo of Chris and Matthew Horne, both Electrical Installation Tutors at Riverside College – Widnes & Runcorn.
Despite being at completely different ends of their teaching journeys and careers, the pair are believed to be currently the UK’s only father/son double act to work in FE electrical teaching, who are both employed by the same college.
Similar career paths
The physical and character similarities are apparent when we meet them both on-campus at Riverside College and, interestingly, their paths from the job-site to the classroom have also been remarkably alike.
Chris started his electrical career in 1979, having been informed by his father that a local spark, Harry Vernon, was looking to take on a new, young upstart. After a few pints in the local pub and a short trial period, Chris was given the opportunity to undertake his apprenticeship and ended up remaining with the firm for seven years.
At this point, Warrington-based Braithwaite & Leslies beckoned for Chris, where he served as an electrician and was tasked with supporting the company’s light retailing business by providing fitting, installation and maintenance services to clients and companies.
He recalls: “It was during this time that I met and married my wife, Christine, and we soon had our eldest son, Michael, before Matthew arrived a few years later. After working for Braithwaite & Leslies for 14 years, I decided that now was the time to start my own business, as it would provide me with the flexibility that I needed to help with bringing up a young family.
“My Dad always wanted me to have my name on the van and pull up in front of the house – that was one of his dreams. So that was another factor in it all, and I think it made him proud.”
After a decade of running a successful business, Chris was hit by the recession, which decimated so many other firms at the time.
“My accountant advised me to look into a change of direction with my career, but still utilising the knowledge I’d accrued, so I put my CV forward for a job in teaching at Hopwood Hall College and was given an opportunity.
“I feel like I was in exactly the same seat as Matthew is now. As a rookie tutor, you know you’re perfectly capable of being out there and doing the work yourself, but it’s a different kettle of fish having to stand up in front of a group of people and teach in a way that’s going to engage them.”
Learning the ropes
After cutting his teeth at Hopwood Hall, Chris’ next stop saw him head to Warrington Collegiate (ironically, the college that Chris attended during his apprenticeship) where he would be able to learn the ropes for another five years. This period is one that likely changed Chris’ perspective on life forever, having suffered serious health issues that meant he had to step away from teaching in order to make a full recovery.
He says: “I was considering calling it a day, but once I was on the mend I received the opportunity to come and work here. I’ve been here for seven years now, and have really enjoyed the whole experience so far.”
In 2013, Matthew managed to dispel the myth of the lazy school leaver sitting in his pants for weeks on end by completing his schooling on a Friday and starting his apprenticeship the following Tuesday.
The company in question had approached Chris and Warrington Collegiate about potentially taking on apprentices, so Matthew put his name forward before his academic school year had concluded and landed the job. Though the role was initially on a trial basis, which saw Matthew working through his first summer holidays as a school leaver, he was kept on and began his apprenticeship with the firm, working primarily in council houses around the St Helens area carrying out re-wires and undertaking tasks like chasing out walls and working in lofts.
After a two-year stint, Matthew moved on to a company in Warrington, where he would complete his apprenticeship and gain experience working mainly in new build properties.
He says: “At this stage, I’d been getting some overtures from a lad at college whose Dad owns a company in Runcorn and was keen to take me on. I’d just had my first child and the hours and role offered me greater flexibility in my life, so I took them up on the offer.
“Another appealing element of the work is that it was mainly commercial, which meant we were doing lighting and power installs in places like supermarkets. I was getting a good spread of experience across a number of different working environments which, when I look back now as a teacher, has proved really useful.”
After a few years Matthew started to suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome in his hands, which was extremely painful and would require surgery in both to alleviate the problem. During Matthew’s first operation, his doctor shared some advice:
“He asked about whether I’d thought of laying off the tools and trying to find a different role in the industry that didn’t involve so much manual work”, he explains.
“I’d always really enjoyed the camaraderie of the site, and the lads I worked with, so it was not an easy thing to process or decision to make. I didn’t want to be something like a Site Supervisor, and obviously I had an HNC in electrical engineering under my belt, so decided to take a closer look at what my Dad was doing, and teaching in general.”
Invaluable experience
At the time of writing, Matthew will be completing his first full year at the college, having joined in June of last year where he was given the opportunity to have an early taster of teaching ahead of a new full school year starting in the September.
Matthew says: “They’ve been brilliant to me here, and having the opportunity to come in and start working and learning a few months ahead of this current school year was an invaluable experience to help me prepare for what was in store.
“I personally thought I was too young to teach at the time, and obviously that can affect your confidence at first. That said, when I think about the work that I’ve done over the time I was on the tools, and the different environments I’ve been exposed to, I had far more experience than I’d given myself credit for.”
Matthew’s first year has involved him teaching three groups of Level 2 practical students and, with his qualifications, he’s also able to tutor a group of first year apprentices. Alongside this, he’s undertaking teaching qualifications, which will help to equip him with the skills to progress further in the future.
When asked about his experience so far, he responds: “Nothing really prepares you for speaking in front of a class of people, who all might have a variety of needs and will learn in different ways.
“I’ve found that enthusiasm makes a huge difference and, because I’m reasonably close in age to the students, when they find out what I’ve done previously, and that I’ve genuinely been out working on-site, it generates respect.
“I like opening things up to the group and posing questions to them, but with absolutely no negative connotations on anyone who is brave enough to offer an answer, whether it be right or wrong. We’ll then cover it as a group discussion after.”
Supplier donations and contributions
Chris, who teaches part-time and acts as a mentor not just to Matthew, but to a number of other newbie lecturers, has been able to hone his craft over a near 20-year period, and is only too happy to share his wisdom with the future generation of lecturers alike.
He regularly organises trade fairs at the college and manufacturing site visits for the students, involving brands like TIS, Selectric, Luceco and IDEAL, and donations from these and many more suppliers has helped Chris and his colleagues to transform the college’s facilities into a bustling, creative environment for students to practically learn with modern equipment that they’re likely to be using and installing out in the real world.
He’s also gaining growing infamy for the way that he’s able to create quirky practical demonstrations and aids for learners.
He says: “When I first started at Hopwood Hall, I had a mentor called Terry Collier and he really taught me some of the tricks of the trade. I’ve also had help and support from people like John Purdie and Gary Hayers, who have been so generous with their time, so I feel it’s my duty to also pass on what I know.
“I’ve never claimed to be the best tutor in the world, but I’m always prepared to try different things that can help people to better understand what’s being taught. Electricity is something we can’t see. All we can see is its effect. So my view is that we need to show people this. I don’t expect you to just believe everything I’m saying, so I’ll show you as well.”
The pair have also been able to bask in each other’s glory recently after Chris landed the eFIXX Lecturer of the Year award for 2023, with Matthew following suit in the 30 Under 30 awards earlier this year. The father and son dynamic, in any business type or professional environment, can be one that has mixed results if the respect levels and expectations of both parties aren’t aligned. This is something that Chris and Matthew need not worry about, as the appreciation for one another – as family and work colleagues – is clear for all to see.
“Dad’s been absolutely amazing for me, and all the family,” says Matthew. “Even on a Saturday or Sunday, if I go round with the kids, we’ll talk about work and he’ll give me some bits of advice. That said, he’ll never enforce his way or style of teaching on me, it’s just encouragement and support.
“My hope is that when he’s ready to finish, Dad can have a good rest and enjoy his life with a fishing rod in hand, or out on the bowling green. He’s certainly deserved it!”
Chris responds: “I know Matthew will do really well in the future and I think that he can work his way up the ladder if he wants to. When I first saw him in the workshop showing some apprentices how to do some testing, I realised that he could be really suited to this.
“I then saw him with the full timers and in amongst it all, showing them how to connect a ceiling rose or a one-way switch, and it was brilliant. Some of the feedback that senior management have given about him has also been wonderful to hear.”
He concludes: “Matthew’s done such a lot for himself, but he knows that if he needs any help, I’ll always be there for him.”
Find more of the latest industry feature articles here
