KEYBURY FIRE AND SECURITY HAS ANNOUNCED THE APPOINTMENT OF TWO NEW BOARD MEMBERS.

Jon Kendall, 50, of Bradford, has been appointed engineering director and Philip Marsh, 31, from East Morton, fire division director, increasing the Keybury board to seven-strong, as the company marks its 35th year in business and reports continuing growth in all sectors across its West and North Yorkshire heartlands.

Keybury Fire and Security’s joint managing director Frank Gee is pictured centre with new board members, Philip Marsh, left, and Jon Kendall.

Keybury Fire and Security’s joint managing director Frank Gee is pictured centre with new board members, Philip Marsh, left, and Jon Kendall.

Jon, who was raised in Gargrave and Skipton, and educated at the town’s Aireville Secondary School, began his career as an audio and television engineer with Slaters in Skipton, before moving into the security sector.

He joined Keybury in 1999 as a service engineer, progressing through the ranks to become installation, service, then engineering manager. He is also closely involved in training, as the company continues to develop its own in-house training academy to pass on skills and experience to younger employees.

Outside work, Jon is an accomplished guitarist, holding a Diploma in Contemporary Music Performance from the London Guitar Institute. He enjoys jazz, rock and blues music, and is also a licensed radio amateur.

Philip previously worked in an administrative capacity for the Highways Agency in Leeds, before becoming a retained firefighter in Haworth. “You could say this sparked my interest in the industry sector!” he noted.

He joined Keybury early in 2011 as a fire risk assessor, moving up to become fire division manager, having played a key role in the development of this standalone arm of the company.

His partner is Keybury’s human resources director Karen Gee and the couple has a two-year-old daughter. Philip is a keen runner and season ticket holder at Bradford City FC.

“Jon and Philip have proved integral to our progress and have earned their place on the board,” said Keybury’s Frank Gee, who founded the company with his wife Tricia in 1982. Both now act as joint managing directors.

Keybury remains one of the region’s longest-established independent family-run fire and security firms, with a pedigree of year-on-year growth across all three of its core intruder and fire alarm, and CCTV divisions, covering both commercial and residential.

Significant expansion has been seen since Keybury relocated to new, larger head office premises on Keighley’s Worth Enterprise Park in Valley Road three years ago, with annual turnover now in excess of £2m and a local workforce of over 40 staff.

Mr Gee said: “Business continues to be buoyant as we enter our 35thanniversary year. CCTV remains a significant growth area for us, in particular the latest high definition cameras equipped with internet protocol technology, while our intruder alarm market has also expanded, boosted by the introduction of a new app that allows alarms to be controlled from mobile phones.

“Our fire division is also experiencing strong growth, here again assisted by a new fire risk assessment app that enables customers to access their own risk assessments online. This gives them the capability to continually review and update their own assessments, as actions are completed to ensure the information recorded is up to date.”

Keybury Fire and Security also operates a network of regional offices in Bradford, Leeds, Skipton, Ilkley, Harrogate and York.