This means they are now accredited by the National Federation of Property Professionals (NFoPP).
Saltaire’s Branch Manager James Roper, Ripon and Thirsk’s Branch Manager Andrew Skelton, Knaresborough’s Sales Negotiator Joe Blackey, Wetherby’s Senior Sales Negotiator Elaine Hainsworth and Saltaire’s Sales Negotiator James Landall have all passed the NFoPP Level 3 Technical Award in the Sale of Residential Property.
The qualification involves both coursework and four exams covering a variety of industry related topics including health & safety, general law, legal issues, general practice relating to property, property management and property appraisals.
Joe Blakey, who grew up in Starbeck and has worked for Dacres for three years, says: “From a young age I wanted to work in property. My father is a Chartered Quantity Surveyor, which is where I think my interest in property stems from. Joining Dacres was a great opportunity and I was delighted when I was given the chance to work towards this qualification. I really enjoyed it because it covered a huge range of subject areas relating to my day to day work and I definitely think it’s having a positive impact on my knowledge base and therefore the service I can offer our clients.”
Elaine Hainsworth joined the Wetherby team five years ago and now has over 10 years’ experience in the local residential sales and lettings market. She says: “I have a real passion for customer service and always strive to achieve the best result for our clients. I have risen to the position of Senior Sales Negotiator during my time at Dacres and last year won the Purely Mortgages Award in recognition of my outstanding contribution to the firm’s financial services division. This qualification is the next step in my career progression and I am delighted to have passed it.”
Head of Customer Service, Kate Sutcliffe, says: “I have been in charge of running this training programme for the past 13 months and organise regular six weekly training courses via an external company. Staff are given support locally at branch level, as well as extra time to complete the evidence needed to support the NVQ element of the course. The NFOPP examinations allow the team to put into action the best practices they have learnt through the training course and we are big believers in the power of professional training here at Dacres. We are continually promoting superior aligned processes across our whole team of 164 people who are based across 20 offices, so that the customer experience is the same no matter what branch they walk into. We have made this the Dacres way, and as such, we encourage all staff to enrol in these excellent qualifications.
“We currently have a further four staff completing the NFoPP Level 3 Technical Award in the Sale of Residential Property exams and two more completing the NFoPP Level 3 Technical Award in Residential Letting & Property Management. All six are on track to complete their qualifications this summer.
“We are also planning the next phases of training and development following a series of personal development plans for those who have recently passed, so that they can continue to progress and further their careers within the firm.”
Patrick McCutcheon, Head of Residential Sales at says: “Completing these types of professional qualifications is of huge benefit to our staff, our business and our clients, and we always pride ourselves on supporting the development of our people at Dacres.”
With 20 offices and 164 members of staff across North and West Yorkshire, we are Yorkshire's largest independent estate agent.
