Voice Communications Celebrates National Apprenticeship Week with its Top Tips for Hiring an Apprentice

Monday 5 March to Friday 11 March marks the 11th National Apprenticeship Week (NAW) held in the UK. Here at Voice Communications, we are dedicated to offering apprenticeships to young talent within Essex. Since being established in 2006, Voice has trained four apprentices, two of whom still work in the company and a fifth who is currently in training. To celebrate this achievement and NAW 2018 Voice is reflecting on the journey of its apprentices so far.
Megan House from Colchester began her career with Voice in 2015 as an apprentice studying for a Level 3 diploma in Social Media and Digital Marketing and has since been promoted to Senior Account Executive. Megan comments: “Apprenticeships are an amazing way to get your foot in the door of a company and take the first step on a career ladder. Whether it is IT, Sport, Marketing or Law there are a variety of apprenticeships out there waiting to be found.”
Sophie Willcock from Goldhanger also recently completed a Level 4 Diploma in Public Relations with the PRCA and was successfully promoted to an Account Executive at Voice. Sophie comments on her experience: “My apprenticeship lasted 15 months and when reflecting on my first day at Voice, I cannot believe how much I have progressed and the number of job-specific skills I have gained. I would recommend an apprenticeship to anyone who has a desire to jump straight into working life as you’re not only gaining the practical experience required for your future career, but also gaining a valuable qualification.”
Voice Communications’ newest team member and apprentice, Josh Brooks, from Chelmsford, is also studying with the PRCA to gain a Level 4 Diploma in Public Relations. Josh studied Media at the University of Essex for one year before deciding it was not the type of education he wanted to pursue. Still wanting the benefits of learning and gaining a qualification, Josh began looking for apprenticeships. After a trial with Voice in Summer 2017 the team realised Josh’s potential. Josh comments “I have always enjoyed Media, whether working on video development, writing content or checking out social media - it is definitely something that sparks my interest.”
Josh is an amazing asset to the Voice Communications team and has enhanced the company’s video development offering even further with his experience and abilities in content creation, film work and editing.
Voice Communications’ top tips for hiring an apprentice are:
Spend time looking for the right person. Many young people will be attracted to your position, but it is crucial to find someone who reflects your values as a business and who will hopefully stay on after qualifying.
Carry out research - you will need to identify a suitable institution to enable your apprentice to gain a qualification and it is important to choose the right one for your company.
Finally, ensure you have the support of your staff behind you. Some apprentices arrive straight from school and will need guiding, so it is important for team members to have the necessary time and skill to support their learning.
Nichola Cain, Managing Director at Voice Communications comments: “Our apprentices have added invaluable energy and skill to our team at Voice. Offering apprenticeships enables us to attract some of the best young talent in the area and harness their abilities to suit our needs as a business. As a values led company, we understand the need to help increase the number of young people in employment and present opportunities to those who do not wish to pursue university.”