A time to celebrate the achievements of apprentices around the country and the positive impact they make to communities, businesses, and the wider economy.
We wanted to take this opportunity to share the personal stories from our very own apprentices, past and present, who work with the facilities management team here on site at Lakeside.
First up was Rahim Ahmed, who having started at Lakeside as an apprentice in April 2014, worked his way up the ranks and is now our Assistant Facilities Manager, a key member of the team.
We asked him why he choose to be become an apprentice…
Being a young person at the time, it was difficult to find full time employment. I knew, one thing for sure and that was College/University was not for me, I wanted to make a living at the same time as learning new skills.
And what were the results,
I thankfully achieved a level 2 in business administration, which gave me the foundational skills in business operation and allowed me to put these skills into practice when my job changed.
The role itself was in hospitality and events, something I had never done before, but it was great running events from start to finish. With my role in facilities, I can contribute to this aspect of the business knowing it’s something I’m trained in and have undertaken myself.
Having had first-hand experience of starting as an apprentice, Rahim is able to understand and share learnings from this training, to help with the development of other colleagues in the business.
Would he recommend it to others, most definitely, he’s grateful for the experience because it allowed new pathways to open up to him. At the start of his journey he never expected to be in the position he is in now. He’s also hoping to move on to one day take on the responsibility for overall site management.
Next up was Fabiha Hussain, our Facilities Co-ordinator, who recently celebrated her five year work anniversary at Lakeside. Fabiha started as an apprentice in 2018 completing her business admin programme in 2019 going on to win Best in Business Apprentice of the year, at the annual PETA Training and Consultancy Awards.
We asked her how it felt and she said…
The apprenticeship programme and recognition of my achievements gave me confidence, providing a fantastic opportunity to do something I enjoy and I now take great pride in my work.
And would Fabiha recommend this route to others…
Yes indeed , as this gives young people an opportunity to start working and studying without having to go to university, to get a qualification and most importantly a job at the end of the apprenticeship.
Lastly we spoke with Poppy Stokes, who is our current apprentice on site and has really embraced the opportunity to learn on the job, already proving herself to be a valuable member of the team.
Poppy became an apprentice nearly a year ago because she believed this was the best way to gain work experience, plus a qualification whilst obtaining essential skills and knowledge.
In her words she stated,
I would 100% recommend an apprenticeship, as it doesn’t just teach you about work experience, it also helps you gain confidence and resilience to forge a career path built on strong foundations.
All three of our amazing apprentices, Rahim, Fabiha and Poppy, perform essential roles making a valuable contribution to our team and the business community here at Lakeside.
Image shows from left Poppy, Fabiha, Ian Cox (Estate Manager), Stephanie Arnold (Facilities Administrator) and Rahim.