ATLAS launch new
Apprenticeship programme
B
lackpool-based BFW Management Ltd (Atlas) are bridging the gap between on the job training and work experience by launching two new apprenticeship opportunities in partnership with Blackpool and the Fylde College.
Experts in property and facilities management Atlas are seeking to recruit an Electrician and Mechanical Engineering apprentice through their new programme.
Apprenticeships are a key driver to bridging the skills gap here in the North West. We have no doubt that this new partnership with Blackpool and the Fylde College will help us attract stronger candidates to our programme.
Being able to recruit skilled trades people locally has been challenging, by providing our own apprenticeships, we can invest in the local workforce for the future. Our apprenticeship programme is a great opportunity for those wishing to pursue a career in the facilities management industry. We will provide essential on the job training and work experience with an acute healthcare setting.
On Friday 12th October Blackpool and the Fylde College will be holding an invitation only apprentice open day. Attendees to the event will learn about Atlas and the B&FC apprentice scheme. During their visit potential candidates for the scheme will complete an assessment and interview in the hope that they secure one of the opportunities on offer.
The apprenticeships are open to all ages and will be delivered as part of a three-year programme, with one day being spent a Blackpool and the Fylde College’s Bispham campus. The rest of the time the apprentices will be developing on the job training at Blackpool NHS Teaching Hospitals.
Claire Jameson, Director of Business Development at B&FC for Business, the commercial arm of Blackpool and The Fylde College, said: “We are delighted to be working with Atlas to offer high quality apprenticeships which will lead to rewarding and sustainable careers.
“At B&FC for Business, we strongly believe that apprenticeships can offer the best of both worlds for employers and the candidate”.
The new programmes will be funded from the UK’s apprenticeship levy, a pot of money that companies and public sector bodies with payrolls greater than £3m have set aside for government-approved workplace training schemes.
In September government figures showed that there was a 28 per cent decline in new apprenticeship starts in the year to June. In 2015 the government set a target of creating three million additional apprenticeships by 2020.
Atlas recognise the importance of providing apprenticeships, especially in Blackpool and the North West. They provide key training while allowing students to earn while they learn. By investing in the local workforce Atlas can ensure that they are contributing to bridging the skills gap in the North and long-term creating new opportunities that will benefit the local economy for the future.