Apprentice Review

Going on placements with different teams to gain more knowledge of the railway and so that tasks can be lead and written about as part of NVQ. Going out with the gang to learn the basics of the job and gain experience in that sector so that it will come in handy at the end of the apprenticeship

Yes, we were sent down to HMS Sultan to get more tickets for the railway that enabled us to do different jobs which opened up opportunities for us I also learned new skills on placements with different teams. I seemed to use my own initiative a lot more often too.

I enjoy the type of work manual work that we do and enjoy the available job positions I could end up in, however I feel there is some unnecessary written parts to the apprenticeship such as the daily diary as the point in completing it is to show you learn something new everyday. This is unrealistic as you don't learn something new everyday, especially at works delivery as jobs are repetitive.

The apprenticeship programme is run well in the first year. The 2nd and 3rd years were a bit all over the place. I was finding out information at the end of the apprenticeship that I should've been told at the start for example, end of apprenticeship interview where all work was to be brought with you when a lot of apprentices didn't hold onto their work after it was submitted. I was also put in a works delivery unit when all tasks linked to the apprenticeship are maintenance tasks which also creates a lot of hassle chasing people you don't know up and not having much knowledge of tasks that they carry out

Personally I haven't received a lot of support from my line manager at depot as one went off sick for 6 months twice and my stand in manager doesn't know much about the apprenticeship itself as he came from an SPM position. The guys that take the courses down at HMS Sultan provide advice when struggling

I received great support from who took our courses at HMS Sultan. They covered everything we had to know to make us competent so that we could gain more tickets. The Benchmark Training guys employed through Babcock were also very helpful on the ILM course and ensured we knew enough to pass ILM level 3.

The qualification at the end of the apprenticeship opens up a lot of doors. The leadership qualification supplied through Babcock (benchmark training) will open up doors to leadership or management roles. The other qualifications open up doors to different jobs throughout the company such as 053/054 tickets where you could join the inspection team.

Only in the first year of the apprenticeship at Westwood where we were put into houses to compete for the house cup over a range of different activities. There isn' t so much activities at the depot although, you are allowed a day off if you are completing a charity event.

Yes

Great company to work for when out of apprenticeship, however if it was myself, I don't feel like I could complete the apprenticeship again due to it being so unorganized at times and being mis-informed. Although this is an issue, its a way to get a foot in the door and know you will have a great career.

Make sure you know absolutely everything about a task you are suppose to be carrying out. Ask to join a maintenance team as the Works Delivery Track department isn't practical with the apprenticeship. Always keep your work as you may need to bring it to the interview at the end of your apprenticeship