We are delighted to announce that at the start of 2020 we officially started our Foundation Apprenticeship here at Browns Food Group. We were initially approached by Dumfries and Galloway council to take this on and give students in secondary school the opportunity to learn and complete a Foundation Apprenticeship with us.
As we had limited space available, in order to find the right candidates our Training Co-Ordinator Sarah Britton organised a day for pupils interested to come over to the factory. They were taught about the company’s background and how we’ve grown over the years to become the company we are today. They then had the chance to go into the factory on a tour to see how production operates. We found it important to show how our existing staff have progressed their careers and grown within Browns, and so six of our staff members shared their journey with the pupils. After this process we successfully found our three candidates who started their work experience with us in November to begin their journey. In January, they officially started their Foundation Apprenticeship in Food and Drink Technology!
The Foundation Apprenticeship is split between being on site at Browns and their schools. Over the course of their Apprenticeship alongside their assessors the pupils gather evidence from their time here at Browns to show their progression and what they have learned throughout their time with the company. To complete their apprenticeship, they will have a written question assessment to test their knowledge and an assessor will observe their work.
Sarah Britton and Lloyd Jermond are our two assessors helping the pupils through their journey. They created a timetable of tasks that will help towards the qualification. This includes spending time in all areas of the factory: Low Risk, High Risk and Despatch. This past week the pupils took part in a workshop with our New Product Development Manager, Joyce Fox to learn the ins and outs of creating a new product and were given the opportunity to create their own product.
We’re very excited to see the growth of the pupils and how they are enjoying their time here at Browns. The progress the pupils have made so far is spectacular! It’s very rewarding for us to support their success.
Check out Skills Development Scotland’s case study on our Apprentice Astrid to see how she’s getting on so far with her apprenticeship: http://bit.ly/AstridCaseStudy.