Apprenticeships open the door to a new career
Shearline welcomes government support for adult apprenticeships
Shearline, the advanced manufacturing company, welcomes a recent government commitment of £150 million aimed at increasing the number of adult apprenticeship places. The additional funding is enabling the company to offer higher-level apprenticeships to older staff and to encourage its engineers to progress into higher education, which will help keep the company at the leading-edge of its industry.
When launching the programme, John Hayes, Minister for Further Education, Skills and Lifelong Learning, said: “I have put apprenticeships at the heart of our skills strategy because they encourage ambition and enterprise, and help drive economic and social progress. These awards offer a great platform for young people and employers to gain recognition not just for excelling in their chosen field, but for playing a leading part in that vital process.”
Charles Maltby is Technical and Commercial Director at Shearline, which has been offering Engineering and Technology apprenticeships for the last 17 years. He says:
“Our apprentices are invaluable to us; a quarter of our employees have come through our apprenticeship scheme. So we are really pleased to see government provide funding that will enable us to expand our programme beyond school leavers to offer new opportunities for skills development to longer-serving employees.”
The cutting-edge company currently employs six apprentices, with two more ready to start later this year.
“We know that many people leave school with little idea of what they want to do, and a few years of work can help them decide. So we’re very happy to take on people who have spent time doing something else and are looking for a career change, or school leavers who want an alternative to university.
“What we look for is someone with a hands-on attitude and a love of solving problems. How old they are or what they’re doing at the moment is less important.”
Shearline prides itself in nurturing apprentices with a range of transferable skills and producing a dynamic programme to meet the unique demands of the competitive engineering and manufacturing industry. Shearline apprentices develop diverse skills, from welding to CAD, and the opportunity to use lathes, milling machines, brake presses and laser cutters.
But training doesn’t finish at the end of an apprenticeship. Wayne Harrison, Shearline’s Training Officer, says: “We are constantly investing in new technology and looking at ways to develop our manufacturing process. This means machinists are learning throughout their careers.
“We’re dedicated to investing in staff training so have applied for government funding to help boost our post-apprenticeship scheme. Our apprentices are the kind of people who are always taking opportunities, and we’re pleased that one of the apprentices set to complete their 4 year programme this year is heading on to do a BTEC.”
An apprenticeship allows workers to embark upon an exciting career with broad employment opportunities. Wayne says: “Anyone who has completed an apprenticeship is highly employable, and we really value their skills.
“My advice to anyone who is out of work or who just finds their job uninspiring is to think of alternatives. It’s not too late to retrain, and there are exciting opportunities to learn different skills and get in to whole new fields.”
Shearline are currently recruiting skilled machinists to work in their ShearXL division, which manufactures large parts for aircraft, performance cars and wind turbines.
The company is participating in the WorldSkills, where young people compete to be the best of the best in their vocational skill. Skills range from hair dressing to cabinet making and Shearline will enter the CNC milling and turning category.
