Apprentice Name: Jack Winfield
Host employer Name: Environment Agency
Trade: Environmental Conservation
Qualification: Level 2 Environmental Conservation (Rivers, Coast, Waterways)
Location: Owston Ferry/Gainsborough
Date started: 30/03/2017
Date completed: Will complete by September 2018
Previous circumstances prior to starting apprenticeship:
Jack went to college as soon as he left school but he bounced around a lot. He did A-Levels for 3 weeks but decided it wasn’t for him. He then tried a media course for about 6 months but decided that wasn’t for him either. He went to join the Army and got to the pre-selection stage but changed his mind at the last minute as he wasn’t 100% sure about it and knew it was too big a decision not to feel sure of.
He took a month out to try and figure out what he wanted to do with himself and started looking for apprenticeships.
He was initially torn between a few but the one with EN:Able Futures and the Environment Agency stood out for him and so he applied.
Brief description of duties:
Jack has been really fortunate, and the Environment Agency has put him on a number of courses which he completed successfully.
On a more day-to-day basis Jack would do a lot of grass cutting, tree-work i.e. chainsawing and wood-chipping.
What difference has doing the apprenticeship made to your life?
He feels that doing this Apprenticeship and working at the Environment Agency has helped him to mature. He worked at McDonalds for a while and though it was alright, the people were all so young, even the managers. Being surrounded by a more varied age range of people has helped him grow up and mature in his work and as a person.
He feels that all experience is good experience. Showing he has completed all these courses and gotten these tickets may not be relevant to his next venture but it shoes he can complete something and can put his mind to a task successfully.
What are your aims for your future career?
Jack is starting an Access to Higher Education course in September. He will be studying Business and Law at West Nottinghamshire College with the aim of applying to study Business at university afterwards.
His experience on this Apprenticeship has opened his eyes to more opportunities and he knows he can see something through to the end be successful