This National Apprenticeship Week we are celebrating our amazing apprentices and promoting the diverse apprenticeships and career pathways we offer within the multi-utilities industry.
At Aptus, we have been proactively growing our workforce through apprenticeships since 2012. Starting out during a recession in an industry with a poor record of training, we knew we had to take matters into our own hands and set out ambitious plans to train the next generation, recruiting our first business apprentice in 2012 and launching our bespoke craft apprenticeships in 2015.
In addressing the specialist recruitment needs of our industry we have continued to put our apprentices front and centre. Our commitment to developing our workforce has included an investment of over £500,000 on our award-winning multi-utility training scheme and seen more than 70 apprentices join the business on a diverse range of training programmes.
The launch of Aptus Academy in the autumn of 2022 formalised our commitment, which was further cemented by achieving The 5% Club Gold Membership status – which we gained by having more than 5% percent of our workforce on graduate training schemes or student placements within five years of signing their charter.
The success of our apprenticeships and training has earned Aptus several awards, which is a great advert that we hope will encourage more young people to seek out opportunities with us. More important though is that these recognise the invaluable contribution apprentices are making to our business, not only through their enthusiasm and fresh approach, but often through offering innovative ways of thinking and advancing our skills and expertise.
One of the key challenges in attracting young people to the industry is overcoming its poor image, yet at Aptus we are proud of the work we do to support housebuilders and developers to build sustainable new communities, helping to develop and implement innovative utility solutions – and the many varied and skilled roles it takes to achieve this.
We have continued to develop our apprenticeships to provide more routes to those looking to get started in the industry, by offering training programmes in multi-utility, jointing, warehousing, finance and business administration – and most recently we welcomed our first students on T Level Industry Placements.
At Aptus we have a strong retention rate; many apprentices who have graduated have gone on to be a key asset, occupying leadership roles across the business where they continue the cycle by developing our future talent.
“There’s a skills shortage in the utilities industry, particularly with multi-utility, so being able to ‘grow our own’ by putting them through our bespoke apprenticeship programme has really helped us to grow our business.”
She added: “Past apprentices have further developed into various roles within the business including project management, administration management, estimating and technical roles.”
“We’ve seen apprentices pass driving tests, gain further qualifications, buy houses, get married and start families – all things we’re delighted to celebrate with them while they continue on their career journey with Aptus.”
You can read more of Natasha’s comments in the February issue of Insider Media’s North West Business Insider publication.
“The construction industry offers a wider scope of career opportunities and more flexibility than ever before. With growing labour shortages, we need to keep working to improve the industry’s perception and prove that it is about so much more than hi-vis jackets and hard hats.”
You can read more of our managing director Lisa Kerford’s views in the recent edition of our industry publication Aptus Connections.
The skills crisis in construction is unlikely to be resolved any time soon, so it’s vitally important that we continue to be visible and vocal on this topic and showcase the exciting job opportunities Construction and Utilities has to offer, as well as encouraging people from all backgrounds to consider a career in the sector.
As National Apprenticeship Week gets underway, we will be catching up with our apprentices and graduates – keep an eye on our social feeds to learn more about their stories. For more information on our apprenticeships visit Aptus Academy, or get in touch with any questions by emailing us at careers@aptusutilities.co.uk
