Placements and Opportunities

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  Apprenticeships
  
  

  An Apprenticeship is a form of vocational training based on a mixture of work-based and theoretical learning.

  Apprentices are a fundamental investment for the organisation and will assist Hampshire County Council to ‘grow our own’ and ensure talent, knowledge and skills we already have is utilised and passed on.

  A skilled workforce is vital to meet the challenges of the global economy, especially in these uncertain times. More than 130,000 companies are now using Apprenticeships to help them succeed in business. The Government is determined that the public sector should join and lead this trend by offering more Apprenticeship places – at present the sector accounts for less than 10 percent of all apprentices.

  As a first step during 2009, Hampshire County Council introduced an Apprenticeship Pilot Scheme placing 22 apprentices, aged between 16 and 24, across a number of areas of the organisation and this has now expanded to 89 including professional apprentices and internship +. The support of departmental managers, mentors and the partners from outside of the organisation such as the National Apprenticeship Service was critical to the implementation and subsequent success of this initiative.
  
  

   

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  Internships Plus
  
  

  Internships Plus is a specially supported apprenticeship aimed principally at 16 - 18 year old care leavers who are likely to find themselves NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training).

  The council already has a rich and multifaceted approach to supporting young people through the work of its Children’s Services Department. This new initiative is designed to feed into the Council’s Apprenticeship programme and is offered as a key component of the Council’s ability as a major employer in Hampshire to bring about positive employment outcomes locally.

  National unemployment figures to end December 2010 showed that almost one million 16 – 24 year olds were out of work and that youth unemployment had risen to 20.5%. The figures for care leavers were even bleaker, with 33% of 19 year old looked after children not in education, training or employment.

  This blue ribbon scheme has been created in partnership with the University of Winchester and Catch 22 (Training providers experienced in working with Care Leavers).
  
  

   

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  Work Experience
  
  

  The aims of Hampshire County Council's Work Experience programme are to demonstrate the diversity of roles and opportunities within the Council, encourage young people to consider a vocation within local authority and support schools by offering work experience/work placements to young people that are exciting, interesting, and challenging.

  Work experience is an opportunity to spend a period of time outside the classroom, learning about a particular job or area of work. During a placement, the student will be able to find out what skills employers want when they're looking for someone to fill a job vacancy, grow their self-confidence and develop communication skills.