It's been a year since the implementation of the Apprenticeship Levy. It is an exciting opportunity to celebrate apprenticeships and how they benefit people, businesses, communities and our economy.
At Total Facilities Recruitment Limited, we began a programme of employing apprentices in 2016. We have always operated a culture of development and training and extending this to employing apprentices felt like a natural progression.
As a business, it offers us the opportunity to employ people who are truly invested in a career with us, as well as having been trained in the services, practices and standards we offer to our clients. Alongside this we also have the chance to offer young people an introduction to recruitment that may otherwise not be open to them, especially with some of the larger agencies only offering graduate training schemes.
Commenting on the role of apprenticeships, John Longworth, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce, said:
"Apprenticeships are good for business and good for individuals. They are an important way of improving the UK's skills base, and giving young people opportunities beyond the classroom, particularly in the face of record youth unemployment. But for firms too they bring benefits, providing them with the skills they need to grow and build a successful business.
Apprenticeships are good for business, and good for Britain. They provide individuals with the first step on a career and businesses with future employees and growth, in turn bolstering the economy."
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Taken from House of Commons Briefing Paper: Number 06113, 25 January 2018 Apprenticeship Statistics: England[/caption]
From a business perspective, there is also a case for a ‘use it or lose it’ perspective for companies, like Total Facilities Recruitment, who are paying the Apprenticeship Levy.. We are providing funding for apprenticeships, so not taking the opportunity to invest in apprentices means that, as an organisation, we aren’t benefitting from the levy that we have paid.
People have historically seen apprenticeships as only open to those looking to work in traditional trades roles, but in recent years a number of new schemes and training programmes have made this a practice open to a much wider sphere of careers. Engineering and construction now account for a far smaller percentage of overall apprenticeships.
In 2016/17, 54% of apprenticeships starts were women. The number of women starting apprenticeships in England has been higher than men every year since 2010/11.
Following on from this trend, we have asked our fantastic female apprentices to write a few words about both why they have chosen to undertake an apprenticeship as their route forward in their careers and what they feel it has offered them.
I’d always wanted to begin an apprenticeship. Once I left school, I went to college and then received the opportunityto work with Total Facilities Recruitment as a resourcer.. The reason I chose to do an apprenticeship with TFR was to build my knowledge and my experience in an office environment and, most of all, in recruitment! Doing an apprenticeship has taught me lots of new skills. I have had training in how to be a successful resourcer, and how to manage a consultant’s desk. I hope to pursue a successful career as a recruitment consultant as a result of my training. I think this was the best road for me as I have always wanted to work in recruitment, in a busy, communication-orientated and involved role. I have learnt how to handle a busy desk from my colleagues and it has taught me a lot about working in the recruitment environment. I am now working towards my NVQ Business Administration course, which will also teach me a lot of things within a business environment and I really do look forward to applying my new skills to a future in recruitment.
The reason I chose to do an apprenticeship instead of staying at sixth form or going to college is because I feel that it has a lot more benefits. One major advantage is that I get to experience a completely different environment to school or college and am treated like an adult. My job consists of sourcing candidates and also calling and emailing candidates to see if they are interested in any of the roles we have available. I would definitely recommend taking the apprenticeship route to any of my friends or anybody that wasn’t sure what to do, as it is such a good way to learn whilst doing something you enjoy but also it’s a brilliant way to be independent.
I am currently a resourcer at TFR, having been promoted following my apprenticeship.
I first chose to start an apprenticeship because I felt university wasn’t much of an option for me and I would be putting my skills to better use by going straight into work. As apprenticeships involve studying towards a qualification alongside working, I knew that I would gain a year of experience and a great qualification as a result. I have successfully completed my apprenticeship, recently earning an REC Level 2 NVQ Certificate in Recruitment Resourcing and a permanent role at TFR. Starting my apprenticeship here was the best decision and I would fully recommend an apprenticeship to young people who are eager to work and alongside studying.
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If you would be interested in an apprenticeship with Total Facilities or if you are a consultant interested in a company invested in training and developing their staff, please do get in touch via Louise.walsh@tfrecruitment.co.uk or 02074425911.
