COMMENT
The power of an apprenticeship Aimee Brown, Governance and Policy Officer, whg
Three years ago I was working in a salon as a stylist and barber. Confused and anxious I knew deep down I was doing something I didn’t want to do – I felt like I was having a midlife crisis at the age of 19. In an effort to find a new career I stumbled upon a job advert for an apprenticeship at a place called whg. The job included admin work to support the governance structure with a qualification thrown in. It sounded like a fantastic opportunity and a few months later, after a successful interview, I started my career at whg as a governance and compliance apprentice. During my training I was able to try my hand at a whole range of work including organising board and committee events, internal audit facilitation and data protection. The role gave me a fantastic overview of governance from the ground up and helped to rapidly increase my knowledge and skills. I was able to gain an incredible amount of experience into how housing associations operate at both strategic and operational levels. It’s so important housing associations invest in the communities in which they operate, and for whg this was recently made even more apparent. The majority of whg’s homes are in Walsall, one of the 55 areas identified in the government’s Levelling Up White Paper where school outcomes are weak. Apprenticeships are a great way for whg to support young people to get the skills they need to secure exciting careers and ensures no one misses out on opportunities simply because of their background. My apprenticeship helped my career immensely; it gave me an outlet to continue learning while working, which
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for me was the perfect combination. I was delighted to secure a permanent contract at the end of it, but even if that hadn’t been the case I’d have gained a qualification which would carry me through the rest of my career. Organisations should have a huge appetite to include apprentices. Apprentices are people who are open to being trained and moulded into exactly what the organisation wants, enabling organisations to grow their own talent. They provide fresh ideas and enthusiasm which can have a knock-on effect on existing colleagues. Apprentices learn whilst on the job and are learning how the world works today, which provides organisations with a resource to effectively prepare for the future. Apprentices aren’t always school leavers – they’re often people looking for a second chance, like me. And without my apprenticeship, I wouldn’t be in the career I am today.
