Training opportunities for school leavers in Strokestown.
Strokestown in County Roscommon lies outside the gates of Strokestown House and has one of the widest main streets in the country. Bawn Street was planned by the Mahon family in the nineteenth century to be,
As grand as Sackville Street in Dublin.
One business venture based in the town is the Sliabh Bán Co-Operative Handcraft Market, which manufactures crafts for the export market. It is also a training centre, where coppersmith John Cassin has four young apprentices who are learning the skills of copper smithing.
Westward Garage is a much lager operation and one of Strokestown's biggest employers. Managing director Jim Callery does not see recent technological advancements in the automobile industry as an impediment to Irish workers.
He maintains that the right type of training in this field will place young people here on the same professional level as their counterparts overseas, enabling a company to
Produce equally well in any part of rural Ireland, Strokestown, what they can produce in Germany.
The company also facilitates a motor apprenticeship scheme. Local teenager John recently started here as a mechanic’s apprentice and is enjoying the work. He has always been,
Interested in the machines at home, if they’d break down.
While he did study metalwork in school, his second level education did not teach subjects that appealed to him,
There was no teaching on trades like mechanics or bricklaying.
This episode of 'Youngline’ was broadcast on 8 November 1979. The presenter is Ultan Guilfoyle.
'Youngline' was a once weekly, half-hour magazine show for younger viewers. The first programme was broadcast on Tuesday, 23 November 1976 from 5.30 to 6.00pm. 'Youngline' continued until May 1984.
