Ten new apprentices have started their careers with Nexus.
Nexus, the public body which owns and manages Metro, has taken on the new trainees following an extensive recruitment campaign earlier this year.
The latest recruits, aged from 16-20, will be training in a variety of roles, including track and signalling engineers, project management, bus services and contracts and commercial services.
Some will learn the skills needed to look after the 77km network of tracks and other key pieces of infrastructure, while others will be working within key business units behind the scenes in Nexus.
Alfie Gascoigne, 16, has started his apprenticeship in Bus Services. He said: “This was the perfect opportunity for me, and I’ve started as soon as I left school. I’ve always been interested in transport, and it’s been great so far, I’m learning so much.”
Another new starter, Maxamed Mudhir, age 19, started an apprenticeship in signalling. He said: “I applied for the apprenticeship thinking it looked interesting, and I’m glad I did. The team have been great, they are really experienced so it’s good to be able to learn from them.”
Nexus has a successful track record in recruiting apprentices, with 90% them progressing on to permanent full-time employment or higher level training after serving their time as trainees.
Head of Learning at Nexus, Heather Blevins, said: “Apprenticeships are vital for the long-term future of the Nexus.
“We have an ageing workforce, so apprenticeships are an ideal route both for us and the apprentice. They learn bespoke skills with a good chance of getting a permanent job at the end of the apprenticeship, and we gain skilled and motivated employees.
“They get first class training, opening the door to a brilliant career in the railway and public transport industry. It is vital that we invest in training and development to ensure that we continue to deliver the essential services to our customers for many more years to come.”
The apprentices get training on the job, at Nexus Learning Centre and via external training providers.