Sponsored content: Here Jane Tunnicliff, NSCG’s Group Head of Employer Engagement & Training talks to AR Brown MacFarlane to get their view on hiring apprentices.
Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group have worked with AR Brown MacFarlane for a number of years for their apprenticeship requirements and currently have 7 apprentices working for them.
AR Brown McFarlane is one of the world’s leading specialist steel plate distributors, processors and traders based in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent.
As a company, AR Brown McFarlane have been instrumental in future-proofing their workforce through apprenticeships for many, many years, not only in engineering but across the other departments, ie professional services areas. Learning and development is at the heart of everything they undertake with the young adults they recruit, always providing outstanding mentoring.
They have created a rotational development programme that enables all young apprentices to experience the whole of the business. The inductions are thorough, the exposure to new knowledge and skills is exceptional, the additional training and on the job experiences makes for a highly skilled workforce.
The whole team at AR Brown McFarlane are actively engaged in learning and skills and this has seen a very high retention of staff and all apprentices continuing in full-time employment with them and having exposure to further study. For these reasons AR Brown McFarlane were awarded the Employer Award for Learning and Skills Development 2024 in our annual Celebration Awards.
We spoke to Linda Miller, HR Manager at Brown MacFarlane to get her view on how employing apprentices helps to shape the business.
Linda said “We have been taking on apprentices for a number of years now and it is a great way to bring young talent into the business and watch them progress into really good roles whilst earning a qualification along the way”
What were your reasons for using NSCG to recruit an apprentice?
Linda said: “We have a good relationship with the college and Jane Tunnicliff has been a massive support to me and the company from Day 1.”
What are your experiences of using NSCG and their Apprenticeship Hub Team?
Linda said: “The hub team have always helped me to get some really good apprentices into our business. A great team.”
Would you recommend an apprenticeship through NSCG to others?
Linda said: “I would definitely recommend the college to other businesses, they help and support both the apprentices and the company.”
How are your apprentices doing at the moment?
Linda said: “They are all doing well, and we have our own Special Projects Manager helping and supporting them. Our Managing Director likes to take on 2/3 apprentices per year so we will always be in contact with the Hub to get the right people into our business and watch them progress.
In conclusion rotating apprenticeships across various business departments is a strategic approach to developing a versatile, skilled, and adaptable workforce. This method not only benefits apprentices by providing them with a comprehensive understanding of business operations and a diverse skill set but also benefits employers by fostering innovation, improving employee retention, and building a pipeline of well-rounded future leaders.
As the business landscape continues to evolve, rotational apprenticeship programs offer a sustainable solution for nurturing talent and maintaining competitive advantage
For more information on how hiring an apprentice can benefit your business contact the Apprenticeship Hub team on 01782 254287 (Newcastle) or 01785 275660 (Stafford) or click here to complete a contact form https://nscg.ac.uk/nscg-apprenticeships and a member of the Hub Team will be in touch.
