National Apprenticeship Week 2018
Fairfields are proud to be supporting the government’s National Apprenticeship Week 2018 #GetInGoFar campaign, promoting apprenticeships nationwide.
74% of small businesses report that apprentices help to increase productivity and win new business. We would agree, and this is proven by the fact that apprentices have been a mainstay for Fairfields since 2000. With just over 50 staff, our work requires a team of highly-skilled engineers. Apprenticeships are key to maintaining and developing this expertise, with 30% of Fairfields’ workforce made up of those who have undertaken an apprenticeship.
Fairfields take on up to three apprentices per year. These future engineers embark on an extensive three-year Higher Apprenticeship programme. Following successful completion of their Apprenticeship, we continue to support them through sponsorship of a part-time top up degree for a further two years. Apprentices spend the three year programme rotating around each department, spending roughly six months in each area to get a thorough understanding of the business. Apprentices are then employed on a full-time and permanent basis in their preferred specialism, alongside studying for their degree, all of which enable young people to earn while they learn and avoid the burden of student debt.
Oliver Mangham, Applications Director and former apprentice at Fairfields says:
Apprenticeships help us identify and nurture young talent – they are part of our future. Good, well-rounded engineers are hard to come by and, as a small business, apprenticeships give us a competitive edge by providing the valuable opportunity to train young people the way we want them to be trained from the beginning!
In order to recruit good quality, enthusiastic apprentices, we regularly attend open days, engineering and recruitment fairs and frequently present at local schools and colleges. We also offer summer placements to students in order to give them an insight into the business before applying to the apprenticeship programme.
Click to find out more about how an apprentice could benefit your business.
Alfie Hinton, Apprentice Engineer at Fairfields says:
The Apprenticeship has offered me the chance to spend time within different areas of the business to understand how the company operates and gain practical hands-on experience.

Alfie National Apprenticeship Week 2018
Read more about Alfie’s apprenticeship story: Apprentice Case Study – Alfie Hinton
Billy Hanner, Apprentice Engineer at Fairfields says:
I was fascinated by some of the projects Fairfields had worked on. All my life I have always had an interest in how things work. With my Apprenticeship, and hopefully future career, I can focus that interest on engineering.

Billy National Apprenticeship Week 2018
Read more about Billy’s apprenticeship story: Apprentice Case Study – Billy Hanner
To find out more about Apprenticeships or to get involved with the National Apprenticeship Week #GetInGoFar campaign visit: http://www.getingofar.gov.uk/