West of England Mayor Dan Norris visited Southmead Hospital to meet our apprentices on the NHS 73rd Birthday.
With over 400 apprentices and 21 different apprenticeship pathways at NBT, there were a lot of successes to celebrate.
Suzanne Ashwood, Senior Healthcare Worker, spoke to the Mayor about her level 3 apprenticeship.
She said: “It was a great opportunity to meet the Mayor and promote the apprenticeship scheme at NBT, which have helped me so much, personally and professionally.
Three years ago, I started at NBT as an apprentice. I remember being on induction and one of the speakers said that NBT was one of the best employers they had ever worked for. Three years later and I could not agree more. NBT will support you in your career and personal development. I genuinely look forward to coming to work and completing my studies.”
Metro Mayor Dan Norris said: “As we wish the NHS a happy 73rd birthday, it’s inspiring to hear how apprenticeships are providing a fantastic route for more people to join our NHS. It was a pleasure to meet such enthusiastic healthcare assistants who have a passion for their caring work and studies. I know that with people like this our NHS is in safe hands.”
Jacqui Marshall, Director of People and Transformation at North Bristol NHS Trust, said:
“Our apprentices are a vital part of our workforce at North Bristol NHS Trust. Each apprentice brings along new skills and a fresh perspective to our organisation which continues to make North Bristol NHS Trust a truly inspiring place to work. After a challenging year for everyone, our apprentices have continued to provide invaluable support to our organisation while continuing with their studies, always showing enthusiasm and a willingness to learn and for that, I would like to say thank you.
“We were absolutely delighted to welcome Mayor Dan Norris to Southmead Hospital today and show him the great work our apprentices do.”
Dan also heard about the collaborative work NBT is part of across Bristol, North Somerset, and South Gloucestershire to support smaller organisations recruit apprentices.
Sarah Green, Learning Academy Chair explained the work that is taking place.
She said: Healthier Together is a partnership of organisations working together to deliver health and care services across Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (BNSSG). The Learning Academy Group (LAG) is part of the BNSSG portfolio of work and leads the oversight of collaborative education of which apprenticeships are part of.
Collectively the BNSSG organisations provide a diverse array of apprenticeships offering both internal staff development pathways and attracting talent from our local communities bringing with them exciting opportunities for rewarding careers in health and social care. Apprenticeships enable employees to learn whilst they earn in both clinical and non-clinical careers, this will further enhance the experience. Working as a collaborative of organisations, along with universities and colleges, the Learning Academy has been able to provide innovative approaches to widen engagement and support clear careers routes into health and care.
If you’ve been inspired to start your apprenticeship journey, visit the BNSSG apprenticeship page.