Why did you decide to employ an apprentice/apprentices?
The Apprentice & Graduate programmes Colas Rail run are equally as important to closing the skills gap facing the industry.
Describe your Experience/Highlight
At first setting up an apprenticeship programme as an employee provider was hard work, there is a lot of information to take in but slowly and surely, GOV.UK has become our best friend. I feel like I now fully understand how to run an apprenticeship programme from recruitment to day 1 and during their journey!
We have already undertaken our first SFA audit and I’m please to say we passed this! It wasn’t as stressful as I thought it was going to be, having an online E Portfolio system really helps as all information is in one place, from joining paperwork to assessments, registers etc. and makes the auditors life so much easier.
Please describe the benefits of apprentices in your business
It’s a great way to develop skills in both new and existing staff. They have the chance to gain a professional qualification that they can have for life which is also linked to a professional membership which will add all apprentice’s through their journey.
What do you feel are the advantages of offering an apprentice programme over other training or education?
Developing people is key to Colas Rail’s operational success and we believe that the investment made in training and development is vital to maintaining competitive advantage.
At Colas Rail, we believe the investment made in training and development is vital to maintaining competitive advantage and we are committed to utilising training and development to ensure that every possible opportunity is available to our staff.