Whilst many financial services firms have shunned apprenticeship, they’ve certainly worked for Healthy Investment. 

Many apprenticeships are now being offered by organisations who have previously not considered this avenue as being a viable option for their employees, however financial services firms are slow on the uptake.

A recent survey of adviser firms undertaken by Healthy Investment found that of all the advisers recommending their products only one firm had recently recruited an apprentice.

Many firms thought they didn’t have the resources to support an apprentice or that they wouldn’t come with the core skills needed.

Peter Green, Chief Executive of Healthy Investment explained, ‘we think financial advisers are missing out. We have a long tradition of using apprentices and some of our best staff have come through the scheme and are still working for us. The apprenticeship approach has long been associated with the trades such as electricians, plumbers and the construction industry but also has the potential to be successfully employed by businesses such as ourselves.’

Sam Williams, who started his apprenticeship in November 2011, currently looks after our financial advisers who recommend the Investment Bonds, ISAs and Savings Plans we provide to their clients. This is a fairly technical role which demonstrates how Sam has built up his expertise of With-profits investments and the wider financial services sector. Continuing to study has been the key to success for Sam, who has completed a wide range of the Chartered Insurance Institute’s financial services exams and is now well on his way to completing these exams.

Khadija Ahmed who also started her career at Healthy Investment as an apprentice works within the membership team and is often the first person an investor or adviser speaks to when they call.

Jerrol Ainsworth joined Healthy Investment in January 2010, as an administrative apprentice. Jerrol has recently been promoted to Membership Manager at Healthy Investment. The search is now on to find the next apprentice to kick start their financial services career and Jerrol has actually been tasked with finding this new apprentice to join the growing team. A further demonstration of the belief that Healthy Investment place in apprenticeships.

Peter added ‘It’s been so rewarding to see how the apprentices we have recruited have been transformed from nervous school and college leavers into financial services professionals who are confident and knowledgeable in dealing with both investors and financial advisers. We’ve also seen them grow up and transition into home owning, responsible adults – most of the time.’

All of the apprentices joined Healthy Investment through the apprenticeship scheme run through our local college, Bury College, and all have become trusted and valued members of staff who are key to the continued success of the organisation.

During the year 2018/2019 over 393,000 new apprenticeships commenced nationally. The previously held view that apprenticeships were the poor relation to the college and university option of further learning now seems to have ended and apprenticeships are now offered across an ever increasing range of business and employment sectors.

The ever increasing number of sectors for apprenticeships now encompass business, administration, law, retail, engineering and manufacturing in addition to commercial, construction, agriculture, the arts, media, science health, public service and care.

In 2015 the Government announced its intention to create 3 million new apprenticeships by 2020 and in 2017 introduced the Apprenticeship Levy whereby all UK employers with a pay bill of over £3 million per year pay an apprenticeship levy. The levy is set at 0.5% of the value of the employer’s pay bill, minus an apprenticeship levy allowance of £15,000 per financial year. The funds generated by the levy have to be spent on apprenticeship training costs. The government tops ups the funds paid by the employer by 10%.