This week, Balfour Beatty marked National Apprenticeship Week by launching over 240 Apprenticeship vacancies across both STEM and non-STEM roles across the UK.
With a firm belief in the need to attract and retain the best talent from all backgrounds in order to build a high-performance culture, and to help invest in and inspire future generations into the workforce to address the skills gap, the company recruited 119 Apprentices in 2019, taking the total number of Apprentices across the Group at the beginning of 2020 to 280.
To further promote the benefits of an Apprenticeship, and the wide-ranging opportunities available to those who choose a career in infrastructure and construction, Balfour Beatty’s Apprentices have been delivering a range of engagement activities in local education establishments across the country throughout National Apprenticeship Week.
Activities include teambuilding through the Balfour Beatty Brathay Apprentice Challenge and career talks to school children including a Learn Live event, in collaboration with EDF at Hinkley Point C on February 5; a live streamed broadcast for school children, aiming to inspire them by exploring firsthand the fantastic apprenticeship opportunities available.
As a member of The 5% Club, founded by Group Chief Executive Leo Quinn in 2013, the company has also celebrated a notable achievement on its Manchester Engineering Campus Development (MECD) project at The University of Manchester, which welcomed its 103rd Apprentice employed across the project’s supply chain.
Jo Volk, Director of Talent & Development at Balfour Beatty said, “National Apprentice Week is vital for attracting young people into the industry for long term, exciting and rewarding careers, which will not only help to address the skills gap but will improve the diversity of our business.
“Apprentices at Balfour Beatty benefit not only from their occupational apprenticeship but also through broader developmental training; including health and safety, project management, communication, teamwork, leadership and networking; ultimately helping to equip them with the skills required to further their careers”
Providing a personal insight on the experience of an Apprentice, Bethany Welsh, a Civil Engineering Apprentice at Balfour Beatty said: “I believe there are so many benefits of undergoing an apprenticeship at Balfour Beatty. Everyone can gain qualifications at the same time as getting valuable, real work experience.
“Throughout my apprenticeship at Balfour Beatty I have been commended for my communication skills which I believe flourished due to the scheme. National Apprenticeship Week is a celebration and recognition of all the hard work we as Apprentices put into the business.”
Further information about Balfour Beatty’s Apprenticeship scheme can be found on Balfour Beatty’s social media channels, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. To register interest in Balfour Beatty’s apprenticeship scheme, please visit the Balfour Beatty Careers website.
ENDS
Media enquiries to:
Poppy Watters
Balfour Beatty
+44 (0)207 963 2150
poppy.watters@balfourbeatty.com
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All non-media related enquiries should be directed to +44 (0)20 7216 6800 or info@balfourbeatty.com
Notes to editors:
- Balfour Beatty (balfourbeatty.com) is a leading international infrastructure group. With 26,000 employees, we provide innovative and efficient infrastructure that underpins our daily lives, supports communities and enables economic growth. We finance, develop, build and maintain complex infrastructure such as transportation, power and utility systems, social and commercial buildings.
- Our main geographies are the UK, US and Hong Kong. Over the last 110 years we have created iconic buildings and infrastructure all over the world including the London Olympics’ Aquatic Centre, Hong Kong’s first Zero Carbon building, the National Museum of the Marine Corps in the US and the Channel Tunnel Rail Link.
- The 5% Club is a dynamic movement of employers committed to earn & learn as part of building and developing the workforce they need as part of a socially mobile, prosperous and cohesive nation. The Club exists to help its members and all employers increase further the number, quality and range of earn & learn opportunities across the UK.
- The 5% Club consists of more than 450 businesses from 22 sectors of the economy. It includes large and small private and public sector employers. Almost half of its members are small and medium sized enterprises.
- By joining The 5% Club, members aspire to reach 5% of their workforce in ‘earn and learn’ positions, including apprenticeships, sponsored student schemes and graduate training, within five years of joining.
- The 5% Club is a charity and is free for businesses of all sizes and sectors to join. Find out more at https://www.5percentclub.org.uk/
