Ben Cardy is Thatcham’s new head of the Automotive Academy.

Cardy was appointed as part of the continuing expansion of ithe company's training provision.

He joined the company in 2004 as a quality manager and played a key role in the development of PAS125.

Cardy also co-ordinated the opening of Thatcham’s Automotive Technician Accreditation (ATA) testing unit in Nuneaton.

As head of the Automotve Academy, Cardy will combine the running of the Technical and Apprentice training operations with ATA testing and forge links with other training companies.