Education | ED03 | Summer 2016

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both contribute to career development. I firmly believe that
there is little point in doing the same thing every day for a
year, as you won’t have the opportunity to take the next step
and an apprenticeship is often very varied, which is fantastic.
When an employer commits to an apprentice and takes
the time to work with the training provider to work out a
bespoke training plan, the benefits are tremendous. Due
to the rate with which an apprentice learns, and because
of the nature of their entry level employment, we’ve seen
huge differences in candidates in a matter of weeks.
From a financial perspective, apprenticeships are
cost-effective for employers due to the initial low wage.
Although this has received criticism from those who are
perhaps uninformed as to the nature of apprenticeships,
if you consider that those young people studying for
A-levels do not get paid, this serves to explain the lowertiered
wages for younger, ill-experienced apprentices.
Both parties can benefit hugely from apprenticeships, and
our extensive business roster certainly enforces this. We have
loyal businesses who continue to take apprentices from us
year in year out, and have witnessed countless success stories.
Angela Middleton, is CEO and founder of award-winning
recruitment and training provider MiddletonMurray.
Established in 2002, MiddletonMurray has now grown into a
group of companies with branches in Central London.
Case Study: Wealden Times
Phoebe Gilbert:
Design Assistant
What were you doing before
your apprenticeship?
I was a student at Cornwallis Academy
and had just finished two A-levels and
one AS. I was just about to begin my
third year of sixth form when I decided,
the night before the school year began,
that sixth form wasn’t for me any more.
What led you to look for
an apprenticeship?
The reason I started to look for an
apprenticeship was because I realised that
I was ready for a full-time job, to become
independent and make that next grownup
step in my life. I then decided that
an apprenticeship was the perfect way to
learn more and get an income at the same
time as I have always known university
was not the path I wanted to take.
How did you find out about the
Wealden Times apprenticeship?
I started my research and found the
website GOV.UK and that is when
I stumbled upon the apprenticeship
at Wealden Times. It seemed perfect
for me, so I applied straight away,
eager to hear back promptly. I then
went to a few interviews and got
offered the job. The rest is history.
What have you learnt and experienced?
In the last year and half at Wealden
Times I have probably learnt more than I
thought my brain capable of! Jokes aside,
to sum it up I have learnt a huge amount.
My colleagues (Anthony & Rob) have
been very patient and taught me an
immense number of skills and shared lots
of their knowledge. The job has helped
me thrive and discover my full potential.
In all honesty, choosing to do an
apprenticeship was the best thing I could
have done because I absolutely love my
job and could not thank the team more.
Megan Longworth:
e-Commerce Assistant
Where I was?
After studying Beauty Therapy for two
years at Mid Kent College I came to
realise that this was not an industry
I wanted to pursue a career in. I was
working in retail at the time and,
although I was improving my customer
service skills, I knew I wanted to
start learning something different.
Was it a good idea?
Yes, I would recommend doing an
apprenticeship to anyone. It is the
perfect way to start off your career,
especially when you are unsure of
what route you would like to follow.
It is also the perfect way to earn and
learn on the job, gaining a variety of
skills that may help you in the future.
How I found out?
An opportunity arose to become an
e-Commerce assistant within a local
publishing and events company. I was
fortunate enough to find out about
the apprenticeship through a friend
who had also just started one. After
leaving my job in retail and leaving
college I was unsure what it was I
wanted to do. I had never heard of
an e-Commerce assistant before, so
I thought this would be the perfect
time to gain more experience.
What have I learnt?
During my apprenticeship I had the
chance to learn all aspects of an
e-Commerce platform while
working within an office environment,
teamwork, customer service, time
management and organisation are just a
few of the skills I have learnt to perfect,
which I believe have helped me to fulfil
my potential and secure a full-time job.
www.wealdentimes.co.uk
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