30 March 2020

Apprenticeship success story – Pete Jones

Everyone needs to improve their skills - whether it's a young person just starting out or an old hand with many years' experience, and that's exactly what Pete Jones, a highly respected and able printer, from De La Rue did. Pete who left education 45 years ago with minimal qualifications, now in his late 50s took on an apprenticeship.

Pete says, "When I asked if I could do an NVQ, I was really happy when the company I work for said yes. When I first met Greg my trainer from BPIF I was a bit nervous, having not done anything like this since I left school over 40 years ago I didn't know what to except.

"However, Greg explained what the course would be like and what would be expected of me, which made me feel a bit more relaxed, until he told me I'd have to re-sit my Maths and English exams, having left school over 40 years ago, it felt a bit daunting. However Greg sat and explained the process to me and was there to walk me through each module one step at a time, which was great. If you did have a problem, I could text or email him and would always get a reply.

"As part of the qualification I was asked to do reports on the machine I wanted to work on and the different processes it could, this could take a bit of time to do as there were so many on the machine I wanted to work, but as I was doing the report I realised just how much I was learning. However, the best part for me was when I did an exam and passed and would then receive a certificate, it filled me with a great sense of achievement.

"I would like to thank Greg for all the help I received from him and BPIF for such an excellent course. If I can do it anybody can, even after leaving school over 40 years ago!"

To find out more on how an apprenticeship could help you click here.