£1.1 million employment scheme sees graduates land their dream jobs

Northumbria’s ’Graduates into Business’ project was designed to help create 30 new graduate businesses and provide graduate interns for more than 50 small businesses in the region. The University supports businesses to recruit interns by contributing up to 50% of the graduate’s salary costs.

Funded by the European Regional Development Fund, the scheme is a resounding success with many graduates offered permanent roles upon completion of their internships. Northumbria University News spoke to a number of graduates and their employers to find out how the scheme has benefited them.

Charlotte Thorpe, The Skill Mill

After graduating with a 2:1 in Crime Science, Charlotte began a six-month internship with The Skill Mill – an innovative social enterprise which finds employment opportunities for ex-young offenders aged 16-18.

“The job is incredibly varied and I’m picking up new skills all the time,” explained Charlotte, “Some of the tasks include writing funding bids, looking after accounts and updating the website. It’s a lot of responsibility but I’ve learnt so much already in the short time I’ve been here.”

The organisation, which focuses on environmental services that benefit the community, has close links with Northumbria and is planning to take more students on placement over the coming months.

Director David Parks added: “Charlotte has joined The Skill Mill at a very exciting time as we look to expand the project in locations across the UK. As such, Charlotte’s role is very challenging but absolutely vital to the work we do. We are delighted to have her on board.”

All this hard work has paid off for the team – and for Charlotte, who has found her dream job. She hopes to stay at The Skill Mill for as long as possible after the placement ends.

She said: “I love working here – it’s really exciting to be part of something like this at the very start. Last year, I even had the chance to attend an awards ceremony in London – we won the Children & Young People Now award for Youth Justice. I can’t wait to see how the organisation develops in 2015.”

Sophie Atkinson, Restaurant Design Associates

Sophie Atkinson graduated with a First Class Honours in Interior Design and found a six-month graduate internship at design and installation company Restaurant Design Associates (RDA). Now she’s over half way through her placement and hasn’t looked back.

“I feel like I’ve learnt a great deal in the three months I’ve been with RDA and have had the opportunity to work on a vast number of very different projects,” explained Sophie.

“Studying at Northumbria has really helped to prepare me for the world of work – all the projects I completed as part of my degree have helped me come into RDA more confidently and with a knowledge of this industry.”

Nick Bradley, Design Manager at RDA, said: “One big advantage of this project is that it gives employers the opportunity to experiment with the creation of new junior roles in their business with less risks. This was certainly the case for us as we didn’t necessarily want to create a new permanent role for someone without first testing the water. As it happens, Sophie is progressing very well and at this point I’m quite confident there will be a permanent position for her at the end of the internship.”

Sophie added: “It’s important that graduates understand that they do not have to move away from the North East to find their dream job. After studying in Newcastle for three years, I didn’t want to leave so taking a placement through this project was the ideal solution. Being welcomed into a family-run, growing company is a fantastic way to a start a career in something I love.” students have what’s needed to become successful entrepreneurs when provided with the right tools and I’m incredibly excited to see what the future holds for the three of them”. northumbria.ac.uk/sgenterprise

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Ben Ridgway and Jamie Cooke, iam-sold

Graduates who wish to start their own businesses can also benefit greatly from the support the Student and Graduate Enterprise team offer. Northumbria graduates, Ben Ridgway and Jamie Cooke, started property auction business, iam-sold, five years ago. The company employs 60 people from its Kingston Park office and recently announced plans for expansion after winning the prestigious Sunday Times ‘Estate Agency of the Year’ award for Best Supplier.

Company Director Ben Ridgway, who studied Estate Management at Northumbria, attributes much of this success to the support the business received from the University in the early days.

“The Graduate Enterprise team were instrumental in the startup of iam-sold,” explained Ben, “They provided us with ongoing support, access to consultants and helped to find crucial funding. Without them, the business would not be the success it is today.”

The company has taken on a number of Northumbria graduates through graduate internship schemes with great success.

Jamie Cooke, Director, added “Graduate internship schemes, like NGIB, bring real benefits to companies like ours, allowing for quicker expansion in a competitive market place. We are very excited about the expansion of iam-sold – we have a fantastic team here and it is always great to build on our successes by providing extra jobs in the region and beyond.”

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To find out more about this scheme go to: northumbria.ac.uk/graduatesintobusiness