Why hire an apprentice?
An apprenticeship can help individuals develop the skills and knowledge required for a rewarding career and employers to develop a workforce with future ready skills. Become part of the heart of the government’s mission to boost skills and extend the ladder of opportunity to all.
You can employ apprentices at different levels, from school leavers and university graduates, to people who want to further or change their career direction and you can even hire existing employees.
Billy Burton is a brilliant example of how far you can come thanks to the apprentice programme. Billy joined the Trust over a decade ago as an administrator apprenticeship for the IT training team.
Billy applied to join the BCHC apprenticeship team following sixth form, as he explains: “Before I got my apprenticeship in 2012, I was unfortunately unemployed and really wanted to kickstart my career. The job centre informed me about apprenticeships within the NHS and I managed to get a role within the IT Training team as a Level 2 Admin Apprentice.
“During my first year as an apprentice, I started by shadowing my colleagues during training sessions. Eventually, I got the chance to facilitate my own sessions, which was a brilliant opportunity because I got to develop my skillset and interact with a diverse group of people across the NHS. I also had the privilege of working closely with the apprenticeship manager Alexandra Kustas, overseeing the work experience students which was a valuable experience. As I always had a passion for finance, I managed to secure a Level 3 Admin apprenticeship within department with mainly Admin duties and then progressed into doing more finance related tasks. Since then, I have worked my way up the ranks within BCHC finance department now as an Assistant Directorate Accountant.
“My apprenticeships gave me hands on experience, I met many people who have helped me develop my skills. I was able to earn, learn and I think it is a great route to take to get the experience needed for a career. An apprenticeship gives you a platform, it is the start of your path and really helps develop you. If you put the effort in, it will be worth it – experience is key.”
Another employee who joined as an apprentice is senior HR Advisor, Momina Kassam who began her apprenticeship journey in 2014 and is now a Band 6. Momina was planning on going to university but began looking at different options when her sister saw that BCHC had some vacancies, she applied at the last minute and was appointed a week and a half later.
Momina joined the apprenticeship programme by chance as she explains: “I wasn’t sure what human resources was, only that it was a good career path. My apprenticeship was quite varied, and I was trained in all aspects of HR having had six months with HR and six months with recruitment which was brilliant for my progression.
“The teams I worked with really made my experience, we were all very close and I used to bring snacks in for everyone as we got to know each other, now they can’t get rid of me. Upon finishing my apprenticeship, the opportunity arose for me to apply, I got a fixed term role and a month later, I was made permanent.
“I would recommend an apprenticeship going by mine and others experiences, who have also achieved lots and been accepted for higher roles. Not many know of this route, and you can be any age, it is a fantastic way to build a career and there are so many options both clinical and non-clinical.”
If you are a manager and would like to hire your own apprentice, please contact:
- Clinical apprenticeships: stephen.mcglen1@nhs.net
- Non-clinical apprenticeships: alexandra.kustas@nhs.net
- General queries: bchc.apprenticeships@nhs.net