Since the scheme began in 2014, a total of 89 apprentices have been recruited across a variety of areas, ranging from Adult Social Care to Communications and Marketing. Of those who have completed their course, over 70% are now employed.
And now, four sport and leisure apprentices, who began their courses back in December 2014, have completed their qualifications and been appointed as permanent Leisure Assistants within the council’s four centres.
Working towards their National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) in ‘Sport and Leisure Operations’ at TyneMet College, the young people have developed skills such as customer facing interaction and communication, obtained their RLSS Pool lifeguard qualification and gain experience in a variety of different job roles within the leisure industry.
North Tyneside’s Elected Mayor, Norma Redfearn, said: “I’m absolutely delighted that our leisure apprentices have earned permanent contracts with the council.
“When I was elected as Mayor, I promised to create more opportunities for young people to get into work and I’m glad to see this coming to fruition within our organisation and around the whole borough.
“Apprentices bring such bright ideas and enthusiasm into a workplace and with the right support; they can be very valuable assets to any business.”
Jake Greener, 20-year- old of Hadrian Leisure Centre, is one of the newly- employed Leisure Assistants. He said: “The apprenticeship has been great and I’ve really enjoyed it. Everyone I’ve worked with has been amazing and I’m looking forward to continuing my work here.”
Also earning a permanent contract was 20-year- old Callum Davidson, who works at Waves. He added: “Working at all the different leisure centres has been fantastic. You learn so much and get so much experience from it that you just couldn’t get anywhere else.”
For more information on North Tyneside Council’s apprenticeship scheme, contact Tina Adams on tina.adams@northtyneside.gov.uk or call (0191) 643 4326.
If you are an employer and want to found out about how apprentices can make a difference in your business, call (0191) 643 6424 or email employability.skills@northtyneside.gov.uk.
You can also find further details by searching ‘apprenticeships’ at www.northtyneside.gov.uk.