SARAH’S STORY

Apprenticeship Recruitment Team Leader Sarah Allen gives her latest insight into the world of apprenticeship recruitment and a summary of what the Team have been up to over the last few months.

National Apprenticeship Week (6th – 12th February) has soon come around, and I have to share that this is one of my favourite times of the year.

The Apprenticeship Recruitment Team are working hard, booking in presentations and events to help spread the word about how fantastic apprenticeships are. On Wednesday 8th February, we will be hosting our apprenticeships open event at Frontier House. This is an excellent opportunity for those interested in undertaking an apprenticeship to learn more about the benefits of completing an apprenticeship, speak with our assessors to discover more about their chosen career and take away some top tips from our Recruitment Team about applying for apprenticeships.

We will also be hosting our Annual Apprenticeship Awards. This amazing event recognises our outstanding apprentices and our fantastic employers for their contribution to supporting apprentices to succeed. It is always wonderful to hear about the differences our apprentices are making and celebrate their outstanding achievements.

The theme for this year’s National Apprenticeship Week is #SkillsForLife. This theme resonates with the work undertaken by Apprenticeships at Salford City College and the incredible employers we work with, as we are all passionate about supporting our apprentices to develop new skills that they will use in their day-to-day life. All of our apprentices have access to an array of online resources with monthly themes (as detailed on page 11) to further support them in developing their skills. In addition to these resources, the experience of working within a company alongside experienced professionals brings a wide range of skills and knowledge for apprentices to apply both inside and outside the workplace, developing new #SkillsForLife

Salford City College Group is an employer that supports apprentices in areas including Business Administration, IT and Finance. One of these apprentices works in my Recruitment Team. Sheyla is our business administration apprentice, whose job title is Apprentice Resourcer. Her role includes managing our general enquiry inbox, contacting candidates, handling telephone enquiries, supporting the apprentice application journey through attending events, and undertaking recruitment duties.

Sheyla completed a Level 3 qualification in Health and Social Care at Eccles Sixth Form College before exploring an apprenticeship as her next step.

In one of our recent review meetings, Sheyla told me that “before my apprenticeship, I would never have answered a call from an unknown number, and I was nervous about making calls to my doctor. However, my apprenticeship and training from Sarah, my assessor and the Recruitment Team has given me the confidence to do this now.” This is a prime example of how are developing #SkillsForLife.

Sheyla is an excellent addition to our team, and I enjoy supporting her through her development. Sheyla is always on hand to share ideas, implement plans and support the recruitment team where necessary. It is great to see her knowledge of the company and our message grow stronger daily; Sheyla can now offer excellent advice and guidance to our applicants.

Being an employer or line manager of an apprentice is incredibly rewarding. Through training, shadowing and one-to-ones, you observe so much growth in the individual, who in turn values the time you spend with them and the investment you put into them.

If you are considering an apprentice for a role in your company, please don’t hesitate to contact me at sarah.allen@salfordcc.ac.uk or on 0161 631 5555.

APPRENTICESHIP RECRUITMENT & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT TEAM LEADER

0161 631 5555

SARAH ALLEN sarah.allen@salfordcc.ac.uk

0161 631 5338

07803 496150 www.salfordcc.ac.uk

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