National Apprenticeship Week 2024
National Apprenticeships Week celebrates all things apprenticeships, education while working, and skills building. This year’s theme is ‘Skills for Life’, here at Inspired Villages we like to encourage lifelong learning and development, with many of our team members making the most of on-the-job training and studying, to develop their careers. Not everybody’s career pathway is the same, as a business we have a mixture of interns, apprentices, and those on career pathways.
We spoke to some of our team members who have taken a different route to their career development and education, to ask them how they feel Inspired Villages has prepared them to succeed.
Zenniah Vasconcelos
Role: Data Analyst
What made you want to join our internship programme?
Ideally, I didn’t want to continue down a fully educational route, I really wanted to get hands-on experience in an actual workplace and putting learnings into practice!
Why Inspired Villages?
I’d done work experience last summer with Inspired Villages and over that period of time, I really got to see how lovely everyone was and just the overall experience of working there. It is a great environment to be in and it has several aspects that are different from standard jobs, like being able to travel for work really tops it off!
What do you enjoy the most about working with us?
How friendly and helpful everyone is. It’s great fun being in the office, and nobody ever fails to make you laugh!
Where do you see your career in the next 5 years?
Honestly, I’m not 100% sure, but I hope to keep progressing further into luxury real estate.
Chris Dando
Role: Estates Technical Manager
Tell us about your career path:
I joined Inspired Villages in November 2019 after spending 13 years in the Royal Marines. Initially, I worked in the Construction Team as an Assistant Project Manager, and then I moved to Estates in Dec 2021 in my new (and current) role as an Estates Technical Manager.
What type of Apprenticeship are you on now?
I started an online (distance learning) 4.5-year apprenticeship course at UCEM (University College of Estate Management) in Sept 22. The course is called ‘Chartered Surveyor Degree Apprenticeship in Project Management’. The full amount of the course is being funded by Inspired Villages & the Levi Funding GOV initiative, for which I’m really grateful.
What qualifications will you have at the end?
On completion of the course, I’ll have a bachelor’s degree in ‘Construction Management’ and an APC (Chartership) in Project Manager with the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
Millie McGread
Role: Intern
What attracted you to our internship programme?
I just wasn't ready for university and felt as though I’d learn better through actual work. I was also interested in the company’s focus on Sustainability and Net Zero.
How are you finding it?
What struck me was how lovely everyone is, really one big family. And how happy everyone is to help me learn and the patience they have. I’m enjoying being treated like an actual employee (and not looked upon as a child who doesn't know anything).
Where do you see yourself in the next few years?
Hopefully still here, getting on my feet, managing my own projects and sites. And if all goes well then I’d love to do an apprenticeship through Inspired Villages.
You can also find out all about Theo's experience here:
Please check out all of our current roles here.
You can also read more about Apprenticeships here
