Headway West Midlands is a charity supporting people affected by brain injury and is working in conjunction with Bournville College to offer two apprenticeship vacancies in business administration and health and social care in the charity’s branch in Rubery.

Helen Bourke, ABI Deputy Manager, reveals that the scheme had been initiated by the Chief Executive of Headway Sue Tyler, showing just how highly the apprenticeship scheme is thought of.

She said: “Our chief executive felt that apprenticeships were something that our organisation could benefit from and at the same we could show that even a small charity can be at the forefront of investing in people with potential. We have found that setting up the apprenticeship scheme in our charity was a straightforward process, thanks to having Bournville College on our side. In addition, we have been very happy with the calibre of people we have chosen for the roles and they both fitted in really well with our existing staff.”

Alison Caines, 20, from Northfield, currently works as personnel assistant on the Level 3 Apprenticeship in Business Administration. After deciding that university wasn’t for her, Alison decided to gain experience and qualification at the same time. “I knew that the university route wasn’t for me and that I wanted the chance to gain experience and to learn all at the same time. The apprenticeship with Headway has definitely been a worthwhile step in the right direction and I would recommend apprenticeships to others,” said Alison.