- Regional businesses encouraged to develop fresh apprenticeship talent with the help of Growth Works
- St Ives apprentice starts her digital marketing degree thanks to the initiative
Regional businesses are being encouraged to help young people get a foot on the employment skills ladder by seeking support to find fresh apprenticeship talent.
Growth Works, one of the country’s biggest economic growth initiatives, helps companies across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough find the funds they need for training to help stars of tomorrow achieve their early career goals.
With expert advisors, Growth Works helps local employers find access to levy transfer funds, to make the process of organising apprenticeship training, smooth and simple.
Celebrating their recent success story is Big Bear Creative, a branding, website, and digital marketing studio based in St Ives, Cambridgeshire.
Growth Works matched the Big Bear Creative team with Cambridge City Council and funding was provided to allow team member Izzy Yovanova, to begin her digital marketing degree apprenticeship.
For both organisations it was the first time a degree apprenticeship was funded with a levy transfer, an exciting milestone all round.
Emma Shephard, Design & Branding Director at Big Bear Creative, said: "Our team member Izzy had been with the agency for nine months. A quick learner with a can-do attitude, Izzy was keen to improve her knowledge and gain a qualification in digital marketing to expand her current job role and progress in her career.
“We were keen to support her so we had a video call to explain how Growth Works with Skills could help and what support was available to us. I knew we’d be in good hands with the Growth Works team. The whole process has been really simple. The apprenticeship and funding through the levy transfer, allowed us to retain local talent and a valued member of our team, as well as offering career progression and valuable skills for Izzy.”
Ade Gardner, Skills & Business Engagement Manager for Growth Works, said: “Our role is to make the process of taking on an apprentice as easy as possible. This is especially useful for companies who may not have had an apprentice before. We support and advise businesses across Cambridgeshire who are looking to either donate levy or receive the 5% from our donors.
“The end result is rising stars receive the boost they need to get on in their career, giving them a real chance to progress. The business in return benefits from home-grown talent with in-house knowledge of the industry.”
For Big Bear Creative, it helped them stay ahead in the digital marketing field, a fast-paced and changing landscape.
To find out how Growth Works can help your business find levy transfer funding for apprenticeships visit their website
Image: Izzy Yovanova with Emma Shepherd, Design & Branding Director at Big Bear Creative. Copyright: Big Bear Creative
