As we say farewell to the 13th National Apprenticeship Week, Rt Hon Sir Alan Campbell MP visited one of the region’s most well-known businesses.
Newcastle Building Society is the biggest building society in the North East and has joined forces with Learning Curve Group to showcase the efforts they have made to debunk the myths associated with apprenticeships and demonstrate the positive impact apprentices of any age can have on an organisation.
Kirsten Lightfoot, head of people development at Newcastle Building Society, said: ‘Being able to show Sir Alan around today has been a true privilege as we’re exceptionally proud of the work we’re doing to nurture talent and future-proof our business.
‘Apprenticeships are a great way to bridge skills gaps while bringing a freshness to the organisation. Learning Curve Group really took the time to understand our business needs, our values and our vision which has clearly been passed on to the assessors that now come in to guide our apprentices through their qualifications. ’
Welcoming Sir Alan to their North Tyneside head office, they led him on a guided tour of their facilities where he took the opportunity to speak to their apprentices who talked about their learning experiences and why they chose an apprenticeship route instead of college or university.
Sir Alan said of the visit: ‘Having the opportunity to visit one of the region’s largest businesses today and speak to their workforce of apprentices has been exceptionally inspirational. Their drive to continually improve by investing in their workforce is clear to see from the moment you step through the door. I’m proud to be from the North East and represent businesses like Newcastle Building Society.’
Learning Curve Group provides a number of different avenues of training for Newcastle Building Society which includes apprenticeship programmes and shorter term, flexible learning qualifications which are fully funded through the access LCG have to Government funding dedicated to lifelong learning. As the Society grows, so does their dedication to becoming a go-to employer within the region, alongside their commitment to being a great place to work and up-skilling their people by investing in their workforce.
Janeen Nevison, Head of Apprenticeships at Learning Curve Group said: ‘Learning Curve Group have been working with Newcastle Building Society for a number of years and have been on a terrific journey with them. They have continually championed apprenticeships and the value they bring to their organisation and when the Levy was introduced they embraced it with open arms and saw it as a real opportunity to impact their organisation even more.’
By utilising their Apprenticeship Levy effectively through Learning Curve Group, Newcastle Building Society has been able to provide the opportunity for its colleagues to upskill in programmes such as; business administration, customer service, data analysis, cyber security and operations – developing skills that will allow their workforce to truly thrive and future proof the business.