Rolls Royce Apprentice Intake

This is the Rolls Royce Apprentice Intake of 1955. Bill Duncan has kindly shared this photo and the following information.

1955 Rolls Royce Snowdrops !!

Bill is on the bottom left. My own Uncle John Duncan in the tall chap in the front middle.

Bill told me, “1955 was the year John and I started our working life. Successfully meeting Rolls Royce requirements by passing their Entrance Exam, we duly reported to Burnbank School of Engineering at 9.00 am on Monday the 22nd of August to start a full time Pre-Apprentice training program prior to in plant training in the East Kilbride Plant in 1956. At Burnbank RR apprentices were consider the elite by virtue of the status the company had within ‘Engineering’ but it often led to conflict with apprentices from other local companies and they dubbed us with the collective nickname “Snowdrops” on account of the white overalls we had to wear.  The white overalls were fine to us but horrors when we found out that the Training Department had chosen ‘pink overalls’ for our in plant training.

For the next four years it was the Chieftain bus up to Nerston, East Kilbride, over the General’s Bridge via Stainymeadow. 

For the final year of my apprenticeship I was assigned to the High Blantyre Plant, handy for me as in 1957 I had moved from Stonefield Road to Waverley Terrace, which is within walking distance of the Plant.”

Bill has also attached the end result, his certificate of apprenticeship!

What are your memories of Rolls Royce in Blantyre?

On social media:

Ann Crossar My dad John Higgins worked at Rolls Royce and was an apprentice at Blantyre Factory where they sent him to Stow College to do his engineering diploma and he then went on to work at RR EK as senior project manager. He travelled all over the world with RR and after spending a few months in Manila, Philipines in 1978 – RR sent me, my brother and mum over for fortnight holiday to be with him – fantastic memories of staying in Hyatt Hotel in Manila and getting picked up for airport in chauffeur driven limousine!