Leading specialist engineering business Spencer Group has staged a series of workshops to inspire Hull College students to become their next intake of young talent.
Aaron McIver, Training Manager for Hull-based Spencer, has delivered workshops to 75 full and part-time engineering and construction students at the College, as the company prepares for a new wave of apprentice recruitment.
Last July Spencer forged a partnership with Hull College to hire 12 apprentices, the most in the company’s history. The recruits all started on the same day after Spencer and the College worked together to create bespoke training programmes to develop the next generation of local talent for the company.
Spencer says it hopes to take on up to 10 more young people this summer, in apprentice engineering and quantity surveyor roles, and has already begun working with Hull College to identify the most suitable candidates.
During the interactive workshops Mr McIver briefed potential recruits about Spencer’s business and the excellent opportunities available within the company and wider industry, as well as discussing the students’ own career objectives.
Mr McIver said: “This is an excellent partnership, which works really well for the students, the College and for us, as we are able to identify, at an early stage, the students that are best suited to our business.
“We are working to ensure Spencer Group and Hull College are so closely aligned that we create a conveyor belt of young talent with a smooth transition into employment.
“I’m really impressed with the quality of students being produced by Hull College. The students have a great attitude and are really keen to get on. These workshops are a great way of building for the future and selling our business to the next generation of employees.”
Hull College Principal Graham Towse said the partnership with Spencer was an excellent example of the Talent Ambassadors initiative, under which the College works with employers to shape the curriculum and ensure students for are work-ready for jobs with local companies.
He said: “These workshops are great way of promoting optimism amongst students and demonstrating that they can have a prosperous career in local industry, providing they work hard, demonstrate their potential and have the correct attitude.
“We work very hard at the College to provide a first-rate education to these students and relationships with growing companies like Spencer Group are invaluable.
“We’re following the progress of our current 12 apprentice recruits closely and are delighted to report that they are all making fantastic progress within their roles. The fact we are now working with Spencer Group on delivering the next batch of recruits is testament to the success of the first group of apprentices”.
More than half of the students who attended the workshops have expressed interest in apprentice opportunities with Spencer and the company will provide support and advice during the remainder of the College year, as well as offering work placements.
Mr McIver said the company had been encouraged by the attitude, performance and progress of the apprentices who joined the business last summer and was confident of repeating that success.
He added: “All 12 apprentices are still with the business, which we are very proud of. They are gaining a wide range of experience, from the feasibility of projects through to handing back the keys upon project completion and everything in between. They get a really good understanding of a project life cycle.
“All the apprentices have shown a great attitude. They are very punctual and are meeting deadlines, interacting well with people and they’re having fun, which is important to us at Spencer. They are certainly adding value to the business.
“2015 is going to be a very exciting year for us and we’re looking forward to working with Hull College to offer yet more apprenticeships in engineering and construction.”
For information about apprenticeships or traineeships with Hull College visit www.hull-college.ac.uk or call 01482 598744.
