Apprenticeship Toolkit – How To Build Your Career

By Ellie Boyle

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The 10th National Apprenticeship Week takes place this week and is celebrating a decade’s worth of successful apprenticeship schemes. Apprenticeships are for those looking to fast-track their career by getting hands on experience, earning money and gaining qualifications all at the same time. This toolkit outlines the benefits of starting an apprenticeship and how it can build your career.

  1. Lay the foundations

Apprenticeships are available in 1,500 job roles, covering more than 170 industries anywhere from IT and financing, to beauty and construction. They offer an opportunity to gain experience and lay the foundations for a successful career. A great way to get an apprenticeship is to learn practical skills first. Afaque Haider Qureshi recently started a plumbing apprenticeship by a job he found through Workplace, Newham Council’s job brokerage service. He was successful in applying for the multi-skills course funded via the Lloyds Bank Construction Skills Centre which allowed him to gain some practical experience and build up his skills. After completing the course Afaque jumped on the chance to undertake a plumbing apprenticeship and is now developing his career with his employer HE Simm & Son Ltd.

  1. Earn while you learn

An apprenticeship offers paid experience whilst working towards a qualification that incurs no heavy debts or tuition fees. National minimum wage is offered to those first starting out, with some employers offering more. As you grow and your skills develop this wage steadily increases. After completing your apprenticeship you can be brokered into employment and earn a higher salary as a skilled craftsman.

  1. Climb the career ladder

Apprenticeships get you onto the first rung of the career ladder and provide relevant and practical training. If you’re stuck staring at a blank page for your CV an apprenticeship offers you a chance to learn some practical skills and gain qualifications. They are especially beneficial to those new to an industry to build up experience and start their career.

  1. Pillars of support

Apprenticeships offer high levels of support and guidance, and it is this support which is always one of the most celebrated parts of the schemes. Apprentice plumber Afaque enjoys being part of the team, helping out with general labouring and deliveries. The support offered by on-site colleagues is invaluable as a key way to develop as mentors on apprenticeships share their expertise and experience.

  1. Engineer your skillset

An apprenticeship offers you a chance to solidify your skills and expertise in an industry and go straight into employment. On average, seven in ten apprentices stay with the same employer after finishing an apprenticeship. After participating in a multi-skills course funded via the Lloyds Bank Construction Skills Centre at International Quarter London, Alfie Brown is now pursuing a career in the construction industry and is currently being brokered into an apprenticeship with his employer (Repairs and Maintenance Service Newham Council). An apprenticeship offers him a way to continue his development and pursue a successful career in the construction industry. 

  1. Cement your future

The Government is introducing a new apprenticeship levy this spring 2017, which will mean more employers will be looking to hire apprentices. There are already up to 28,000 apprenticeship vacancies available online at any one time, and with the introduction of this new levy that number looks set to rise. In 2016, Lloyds Banking Group created more than 1,000 new apprenticeship places, with a third of them being offered to candidates from the UK’s most disadvantaged areas and creating 8,000 internal apprenticeship positions within the Group with permanent employment by 2020.

 

 

 About the Author: Lloyds Bank, the London Borough of Newham and Lendlease are woking in partnership on a construction skills initiative to commission bespoke training for residents and support the development of construction skills and experience to promote accsess to highly skilled jobs.

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