Housing group Incommunities highlights its apprenticeship program, with high job retention rates.
Incommunities provides trade learning chances, and apprentices often get jobs within the company. For 20 years, they trained over 125 trade apprentices. Ninety-five percent of them still work there.
Kelly Hodgson, age 43, studies Property Maintenance. She said she wanted a career change, enjoying some DIY courses at college. She heard about the Incommunities apprenticeships.
Kelly was worried about her age at first, but her worries soon disappeared. Everyone was friendly and positive, and her age became a positive asset. She learns many skills at college and work.
Liam Robinson, age 39, is training to be a mechanic. He learned about the apprenticeships online and had experience in a motor shop. He always liked working with cars.
Liam also worried about his age, as it meant a pay cut at first. However, he is thinking about his future skills and says he is generally happier now.
Lilly Fenton-Brown, age 19, is painting and decorating. She first applied last year but failed. So she finished her A-levels and tried again, and this time, she succeeded.
Lilly likes hands-on work and DIY, and she enjoys the work variety. She is also happy about the work-life balance and is glad she tried again.