“Apprenticeships are very important as they help to provide opportunities for young people and also develop a skilled workforce for the future.”
C&P Plastering is the South West’s leading independent installer of external wall rendering and façade specialists. The team enjoys lasting relationships with their clients, through providing exceptional customer service and product performance. We caught up with Danielle Bentley, the company’s Administrator who directly oversees apprentices, to discuss the benefits of apprenticeships to the business.
“C&P is a great place for apprentices to start out their career as we have a very supportive ethos. All of our office staff have completed a Mental Health Awareness Course, and I will be completing a Mental Health Champion course in September. This means that I will be trained to look out for signs that someone is struggling with their mental health, and help make it easier for them to access support. We have a “Positivity Box” in the office on Fridays where we write down aspects of work that have gone well or champion colleagues’ achievements and then we read them out on Monday. This means that we start the week feeling good about ourselves and our successes!
“It is great to see the development within our apprentices and help them achieve their career goals. One of our apprentices, Courtney Creese, has only been here for 3 weeks and her progress is already noticeable – she is becoming more and more confident in all aspects of her work. Another of our apprentices, Kiera Sandford, has now completed her Business Administration Level 2 apprenticeship and has progressed onto Level 3, and she is helping to train Courtney.
“Our apprentices are involved in a huge range of tasks, which operate and enable the smooth running of the business. They provide clerical support, as well as various other tasks to assist senior members of the team. The apprentices are also involved with team meetings where they are able to speak openly on their views and have open discussions with all members of the team.
“When we recruit apprentices, we like to go and visit the provider and see the training facilities they offer – we were impressed with Skills Group’s provisions. We also of course interview the prospective apprentices and offer a trial period; this way we get to know them properly.”