This week is ‘National Apprenticeship Week’ and it seems the perfect time to take a look at Maylarch’s own experience with the scheme. Although Maylarch have been recruiting apprentices for some time, there has been a clear ambition to increase the number of our apprentices since 2011. This aspiration was led mostly by the specificities of the work we carry out.

Being a specialist contractor, Maylarch strongly relies on the skills of its workforce and an apprenticeship route provides the perfect opportunity to equip young, ambitious individuals with a set of skills that the company needs and which they will be able to use throughout their career. 

We have asked Dexter, our asbestos surveying apprentice, to tell us about his decision to choose the apprenticeship route. 

‘I decided to do an Apprenticeship because I think it is the best way to start a career. I found that I learn things a lot easier doing practical activities, rather than reading from text books, sitting in a classroom all day. I think showing that you have completed an Apprenticeship on your CV is much more effective when going for a job in your chosen career, rather than just having the qualifications for it. An Apprenticeship is definitely the right choice for me.’ 

Dexter Lancaster, 19

And this view seems to be shared by others as Maylarch currently has four apprentices; in addition to Dexter there’s Anthony Preston, Scott Fitzgerald and Ben Kneil, all demolition apprentices. As they all progress through their training we are confident that there will be further apprenticeship opportunities in the future. 

‘The experience is a real success and the accomplishment of our apprentices is going beyond our expectations’

Hatti Tweedle, HR.

One of our demolition apprentices, Anthony, 27, was in the spotlight in July 2013 when he won the Demolition Plant Operative category at the National Construction College East Apprentice Awards.

Shortly after, our asbestos surveying apprentice, Sean, 20 went beyond expectations by completing his NVQ qualification ahead of schedule and becoming a permanent member of the Surveying Department

And it looks like the scheme is also growing throughout the Construction Industry and beyond, with large national companies such as Balfour Beatty, Kier or Lovell looking to recruit more apprentices. 

On Thursday 6th March, Maylarch will attend the Oxfordshire Construction Training Group Awards, where we will have our fingers crossed for Anthony who has been nominated for a 2nd Year / NVQ 2 award. 

If you are interest in starting an apprenticeship and would like to speak to us, do not hesitate to call us on 01865 883829 or email Hatti Tweedle at recruitment@maylarch.co.uk 

To learn more about apprenticeship, you can also follow the conversation on Twitter via the hash tag #NAW2014  or go to www.apprenticeships.org.uk