Apprentice Zeenat Makes it 100 Up
23 July 2007
It’s a ton up for a ground-breaking West Midlands initiative designed to highlight the wide range of rewarding career options in public service.
Learning and Skills Council Apprentice Zeenat Mahadik, aged 19, was officially listed as the 100th young person to sign up to the innovative programme combining key aspects of administration with specific insights into the public sector and the career options it offers.
The Apprenticeship was introduced last year by the Public Service Compact – an alliance of employers and training providers working together to improve recruitment, retention and training of employees in the public sector. Nearly half the centurions have already successfully completed the programme.
The 100-strong cohort of young people are all following the pilot Apprenticeship in Public Service Administration. The programme, offering nationally recognised qualifications that open up a wide range of career pathways, is led by the LSC in partnership with Bournville, Sutton Coldfield and Solihull colleges and a consortium of private providers.
Major employers to benefit from the initiative include West Midlands Police, Birmingham and Solihull local authorities and the Learning and Skills Council.
In particular, the Public Service Compact aims to mine seams of young talent in previously neglected urban neighbourhoods.
Many public sector employees face a problem of an ageing workforce and the Apprenticeship is just one initiative designed to address that challenge.
More than two thirds (68%) of the public sector workforce in Birmingham & Solihull are aged 35 or over. By 2010, the working age population over the age of 45 will increase by 30,000 whilst there will be 31,000 fewer 25–44 year olds and 10,000 few 16 – 24 year olds.
The work of the Public Service Compact is crucial, therefore, to highlight the need for urgent action to widen the net to attract recruits from a wider range of ethnicities, ages and social backgrounds.
Zeenat Mahadik said: “I’ve really enjoyed myself since joining the LSC in February. Everyone has been really supportive and it’s been a great way to start a rewarding career in public service.
Zeenat, who attends Bournville College one day a week, has also been elected onto an employee forum, further impressing colleagues with her commitment to the organisation and her own professional development alike.
West Midlands Learning and Skills Council Director of Skills Julie Robson said: “The Public Service Compact has truly made a remarkable difference to thousands of public sector employees since its launch three years ago.
“We are delighted to have reached this milestone which provides a clear indication of the progress we are making.”
Notes
Since its launch in January 2003, the Public Service Compact has grown to a membership of 30 employers with a combined workforce of over 100,000 employees. Its remit is to bring together employers from across the public service sector in order to form a collaborative approach to addressing the key issues of recruitment, retention and staff development. Partners include Fair Cities, Building Health, Activate, Jobcentre Plus, Connexions and major employers such as Birmingham City Council, Solihull Borough Council, West Midlands Police, West Midlands Fire Service and the Learning and Skills Council.Fair Cities Birmingham is an employer driven initiative to design custom built skills solutions to meet employment opportunities in Birmingham’s expanding industry sectors. It targets unfulfilled talent pools in the City’s most disadvantaged areas, delivering employers with job ready candidates. Fair Cities Birmingham is one of three pilot projects established by the Department for Work and Pensions and aims to fill 18,500 jobs by 2010.
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