Apprenticeships and work experience

Josh

Before starting his apprenticeship with us, Josh had had various temporary roles including casual work at Washington and Freeman's Quay Leisure Centres. He also worked with young people from other countries teaching them English.

Josh decided that rather than go to university, an apprenticeship would suit his career goals best and looked at the local opportunities available. He was particularly impressed with our apprenticeship programme and the range of apprenticeships available so applied for several posts and was appointed as an apprentice accountancy technician.

Josh started his three year apprenticeship in September 2019, based at County Hall, and is studying AAT qualifications on day release at New College Durham. As he lives locally, Josh can walk or cycle to work and college.

Josh said, 'I'm excited to start my career in accountancy and I'm looking forward to meeting new people and receiving a regular wage'.

Callum

Callum Etherington joined us in September 2020 as a business admin apprentice in Bereavement Services studying for a Level 3 qualification in business admin which will take up to two years to complete.

Callum is really enjoying his apprenticeship which involves arranging interments, memorial applications, deed transfers and liaising with funeral directors and the general public.

Callum said, 'Starting my apprenticeship during the pandemic has meant that I am working from home, but it's been surprisingly straight forward. My colleagues, line manager and college tutor are very supportive making sure there's a balance between working on the job and my course work'.

Although Callum is working from home, using Microsoft Teams means Callum can stay in touch with the Apprenticeship Team and with other apprentices and this online support has really helped him settle in.

Callum chose an apprenticeship rather than continuing his education as he thought an apprenticeship would offer him the opportunity to gain a qualification and work experience at the same time.

He chose to apply for an apprenticeship with us because of the large range of services we offer and the opportunities for career development.

Callum said, 'My apprenticeship has helped me develop new skills and gain valuable work experience. I would recommend an apprenticeship as the first step on the career ladder,'

Callum has recently been appointed to a permanent role in the team and will continue studying for his qualification.

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Daniel

Twenty-three your old Daniel Stoddart joined us in 2019 as a system support apprentice studying a NVQ Level 3 in Business Administration.

He had just finished a bachelor's degree in computing with networking at New College Durham, which included an internship in Malta for three months. 

Daniel said, 'I had already completed a degree and felt that an apprenticeship, while helping improve my CV, would also help me experience a proper work environment and get used to what it is like and what is expected of me when actually having a job. It was kind of a way to put my foot through the door in the IT sector'.

His apprenticeship involved on the job training and weekly half day sessions with a tutor. Daniel said, 'I enjoyed the job role I was undertaking, it felt very much like I was a full-time employee which is what I wanted, it gave me a real sense of what was expected of me. Everyone was extremely helpful when I needed assistance and I felt like I belonged in the team'.

Daniel has recently completed his apprenticeship and has been appointed as a CRM System Support Officer. He said, 'I'm doing a lot of the same things I did when I was an apprentice but with more responsibilities. I am responsible for creating new online projects for the various service areas within the council and maintaining the online services currently in place. We basically function around the council's DoItOnline service'.

Daniel is really enjoying his job and looking forward to a career in IT!

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Jess

Jess

16 year old Jess Ball started her Level 3 business administration apprenticeship with us in April after transferring from a solicitors firm. She is now based in the health and safety team on a two-year apprenticeship.

Jess said: 'I knew I didn't want to go to college so an apprenticeship seemed like the perfect option. I'll finish my apprenticeship with the same qualification as if I had been at college full-time but I am being paid to complete it and gaining great experience.

'It was really nerve-racking to start a new job working from home but the team has been so helpful. They couldn't have done more to help me settle in and support me in the new role and I am so pleased that this is the route I have taken.'

Luke

Luke

Luke Bromley started a civil engineering degree apprenticeship in 2019. The 19 year old from Spennymoor works four days a week in his role with us and spends one day a week at Teesside University.

Luke's role involves installing traffic signals and refurbishing signals at sites across the county, as well as designing new installations. Although his normal place of work would be County Hall, he has been working from home for the past year through the Coronavirus pandemic.

Luke said: 'I did think about going to university but wasn't sure it was right for me full time and the work experience that I'm currently getting is invaluable. I've had fantastic support from everyone in the team, being made to fit in straight away, and I would love to stay in this role long-term.

"I love getting up every day to do what I do. I am being given more responsibility all the time and thanks to monthly reviews that I have at university, I can see how much progress I'm making so it has been brilliant to see how far I have come already. By designing and installing new signals or helping to repair them, we are helping to keep drivers safe across the county, and it feels really good to know that you have a role in that."

Liam

Apprentice Liam Robson is working in a local school coordinating and delivering school sport and motivating children to perform to the very best of their abilities.

As part of his L3 Supporting physical education in Schools apprenticeship Liam spends 4 days in a school and 1 day in college learning the skills needed to plan, deliver, assess and evaluate out-of-school activities, lunchtime and playtime activities and curriculum physical education/physical activity.

Since beginning his apprenticeship Liam has taken part in lots of useful training including first aid, safeguarding and restorative approaches to behaviour management.

Liam has set up sports competitions and activities that run during breaktimes and supported staff on school trips and residential visits. He assists in training pupils for sporting events and supports children in class with their learning.

Liam said, 'My dream job is to work with children and maybe go into teaching. An apprenticeship seemed like the ideal starting point".

Connor

Apprentice Connor Thompson works at the Gala Theatre, providing technical support for a variety of events. He has a passion for theatre and has had a lot of great opportunities since his apprenticeship began in July 2018.

Connor's supports the operation of the stage's lighting and sound, generally working with the stage crew as a supporting member of the team. In addition to his work at Gala, he trains at the Sage Gateshead twice a month. Here, he learns knowledge and background of the theatre industry.

Connor believes one of the biggest skills he has learnt so far is effective communication; Learning how to adapt to working with a large team of people and interacting with a variety of people at different shows and other corporate events, both indoor and outdoor. 

Connor says "I get to interact with people in the industry and have already worked with numerous companies and individuals. Once the apprenticeship is over I will have done countless different jobs and will have worked alongside enough people to open future job opportunities".