APPRECIATING OUR APPRENTICES

September heralds the start of a new academic year for all, including those starting their journey with Caerdav to become the next generation of aviation engineers. This month we welcome our third cohort of apprentices onto our now award-winning Aerospace Apprenticeship Programme – another exciting step forwards for the scheme.

Since launching the programme in 2020, we’ve welcomed 26 eager young people through our doors, with 16 more poised and ready to get started this year. Working with two colleges, Coleg y Cymoedd and later Cardiff and Vale College and the International Centre for Aerospace Training (ICAT), we have honed the course, ensuring it provides the best possible platform for new talent to flourish in our industry.

It was fantastic to see that hard work recognised at the recent Aviation Industry Awards, where Caerdav picked up the Apprenticeship Programme Award. Sponsored by The Sunday Times, it was the inaugural ceremony for what will certainly become a mainstay for the industry, and we were delighted to pip Global ATS, GT Engine Services and Marshall to the crown.

The judges cited the close relationship we have built with our local education providers, alongside the work the course is doing to tackle an industry-wide skills shortage, as major contributing factors to our success.

Working closely with the college tutors and assessors, we developed a course with a clear objective in mind, one that pushes every apprentice hard, but in the right direction. We wanted every student to gain a recognised qualification that will help them secure a career moving forwards.

This summer saw our first intake graduate from the three-year course, with Caerdav offering each a full-time contract, something that will hopefully be repeated with every subsequent class. It has been fantastic to see how eager every apprentice is to learn, but also how invested our team is in teaching them.

As one of our 3rd year apprentices, Sam Merriott, says: “Everyone at Caerdav is always looking out for each other, if you have a problem you know you can ask anyone and you’ll get a clear and informative response. Of course, I have a lot to learn, but everyone is willing to help.

“I joined when I was 16, but right from the start I’m proud to have always been seen as one of the team and treated as an adult.”

Winning the Aviation Industry award was a fantastic achievement – and a huge thanks must go out to all involved, which of course includes the apprentices themselves – but really we see it as just the start, as the business continues to make its mark on the global MRO market.