Apprenticeships: An excellent way to grow your own employees.

East Riding College has been working with food supplement business Club Vits on the company’s workforce development for four years. 
During that time, five employees have completed Intermediate or Advanced Apprenticeships in Business Administration, and all have gone on to secure permanent positions, with three still working there today and a new member of staff just beginning their apprenticeship.

Director Chris Burrows said: “The greatest benefit to the apprentice is to break the “Catch 22”  situation of being unable to get a job because they have no experience. Although there is no guarantee of a permanent job we have always been able to provide a full time permanent position to the apprentices once they have completed their training and hope we can continue to do so. 

“It has been very gratifying to see the apprentices grow in confidence and know that they are doing a worthwhile job. Since they are trusted and shown respect from an early point in their career they have been quick to develop and were soon able to take on more responsibilities.”

 

He added: “The apprentices are keen to learn and we try and created a nurturing environment so that they feel they are doing a worthwhile job. From day one we ensure they have done something useful and every day after that they earn their wages. From an organisation’s point of view it is a low cost method of getting staff, training and assessing them and if they fit into the team and can meet the ongoing requirements of the business it’s easy to make them permanent employees.”

 

Mr Burrows said there were a number of advantages to apprenticeships as a method of recruitment and training.

He said: “Training is what you make it but I honestly believe that the more the company puts into it the more we get out. Of course, East Riding College provide an excellent training course (both in College and in the business) and there is plenty of support from the tutors for both the apprentice and the employer.

“The apprentices who we have managed to retain are all currently doing further education courses in subjects as diverse as customer service, first aid, accountancy, mathematics and business administration.” 

 

Rachael Owen, the College’s business development manager, said: “Club Vits is an excellent example of how apprenticeships can help grow a business and their approach shows how an employer can support learning in the workplace and at the College. 

“It also shows the opportunities available to apprentices, with the incentive of promotion on completion of the apprenticeship if performance is good.”