Derby student goes from stables to start-up garage
Reminiscing how it all started, Ms Rogers-Davies said as a child she used to sit by the living room window, watching her dad work on cars."In particular his Renault 5 Turbo, that was one of my favourites," she added.Her dad, Simon, worked as an electrician on the London Underground but would also help friends fix their cars.A few years went by and he let his daughter help with his work.Ms Rogers-Davies, from Mackworth, Derby, said: "I would say I was fascinated with how parts of a car are put together and to me it looked like a jigsaw puzzle."Let's say putting brakes on a car, you have to follow certain steps the same as you would a jigsaw."When I left Toyota I thought I want to learn more and see how far I can take this."
Ms Rogers-Davies then enrolled on a level two light vehicle maintenance and repair course at Derby College.After completing the next level of the course, she went on to setting up her own business - Platinum Garage - where she is servicing cars from her home.Her training also came into play when her uncle Donald called her after he got a puncture on the A38, that she went out to and fixed."I still watch horse racing and I see the big change I have made, but I am proud of the change because it is going to help people in the future," she added.Ms Rogers-Davies said her dad would be surprised and also "more than proud" of her career change."I feel like my future is much much clearer now compared to when I left school," she said.
Ms Rogers-Davies's tutor at Derby College, Paul Etherington, said her passion for automotives has "certainly helped" her get through the course following the career change."Its always a big step to make a career change," said Mr Etherington."I was a mechanic for 20 years and it was very nerve-wracking for me to go into teaching because I didn't know if I would enjoy it, but I've never looked back."I think as long as you change careers for something you enjoy, you won't look back either."
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