This week (6-12 February) is National Apprenticeship Week, a week that brings together businesses and apprentices across the country to shine a light on the positive impact that apprenticeships make to individuals, businesses and the wider economy.
To mark the occasion, Radii Planet Group (RPG) has caught up with our apprentices across the company to find out more about their experiences, their day-to-day lives and their highlights from their time with us.
For the final entry in our series we are talking to Josh Clarke, a former apprentice working in our group accounts department who is now working full-time with RPG as a Management Accountant.
What were you doing before working with RPG?
I first started at Radii Planet Group in Jan 2018 when I came and spent two weeks working in the accounts team on work experience. Prior to this I had been self-studying a different course for a few months after I finished sixth form college in Sept 2017. After the work experience, I was offered an apprenticeship and I started in April.
What attracted you to do an apprenticeship?
I decided to go with an apprenticeship as I think I am more of an on-the-job learner, having a mix of education and actual experience has no negatives. Time management gets a bit difficult at times but knowing that I am building experience and working towards a qualification helps me to keep going.
Can you tell us when you started your apprenticeship, how and what you were studying alongside it?
I started my apprenticeship in April 2018 with Planet Contracting Ltd and it would go on to take just over three and a half years to complete.
I did a Level 7 Accounting or Taxation Professional apprenticeship with Kaplan Financial; this was split into two parts, with one being the technical knowledge section and the other being the applied skills.
The technical knowledge was done by completing the modules within the ACCA’s (Association of Certified Chartered Accountants) qualification, Of which there were thirteen individual modules and exams covering technical areas within the accounting profession.
The applied skills portion fell under a report I had to complete at the end of my apprenticeship. Within this I had to outline how I progressed with certain professional skills and behaviours and demonstrate them within the workplace, thus highlighting my professional development as an apprentice.
What attracted you to do an apprenticeship? And what made you choose to do it at RPG?
One key element that attracted me to apprenticeship is the possibility of gaining professional level qualifications (Level 7 qualification is equivalent to a master’s degree) without having to gain considerable amounts of debt. I’ve been able to ‘earn while I learn’ and gain key skills around working in an office environment. There are also opportunities after my apprenticeship to do some extra work and gain an actual degree from Oxford Brookes University. It’s opened a lot of doors for me and my own professional development.
What were your main responsibilities as an apprentice?
My main responsibility as an apprentice was to assist in the running of the finance function within the business. I was taught all aspects of the department and was expected to understand and assist in all aspects.
What does a typical day in the office look like for you?
Working as a Management Accountant within this company I don’t tend to have a typical day. I’m constantly working on new finance projects, creating financial reports, or preparing key financial figures for the Board and individual divisions. However, there is some repetition with month end reporting being similar each month. Each one brings its own challenges!
How did you find the balance between working and studying?
It wasn’t easy. On average I had five days a month spent up in London for whole day lectures, which were often very long days. On top of this I had to work a full-time job, so at times it was hard having to switch over from a day of lectures to a day of working. I also regularly had to spend evenings and weekends studying for upcoming exams as they all had considerable amounts of content. However, I found spending time in a classroom with other students participating in the same qualification to be really rewarding. Kaplan Financial also provided outstanding resources to help study. Whether it was mock exams marked by an actual marker or additional videos on topics we learnt about in class, they were all really useful and made it a lot more interesting than only reading the textbook.
How did the apprenticeship help you develop and grow as an individual?
The apprenticeship gave me a unique experience that allowed me to develop my professional skills in the work environment but still allowing me to progress in my studies for qualifications. From working at Radii Planet Group I believe my confidence and people skills have greatly improved and this has translated to outside of work as well.
What advice would you give to future apprentices joining RPG?
My advice would be to just keep the end goal in sight at all times. Apprenticeships like mine can be tough — there are so many in-depth exams that I had to study for on a quarterly rotation as well as increased responsibilities at work. At times it can seem like too much, but I put in the effort and made the sacrifice, and I am much better off for it.
Thank you to Josh for answering our questions about his experience undertaking an apprenticeship with RPG.
Read about our other two apprentice interviews here:
- Foyzur Rahman, Apprentice Contracts Manager at Radii Partitioning Ltd
- Tom Peake, Apprentice Construction Site Supervisor at Planet Partitioning Ltd
