Apprentices are the future of our organisation. With every new apprenticeship cohort we benefit from fresh perspectives and new ideas that help us to continuously improve and innovate. We offer training in new technologies and our apprentices are often involved in major capital expenditure projects that represent the latest R&D in the industry. As a result, they develop skills that are future proofed and highly relevant to today’s market.

We currently have 19 apprentices on new qualifications and 16 apprentices on up-skilling courses. In the past three years, we have delivered apprenticeships across:

• Mechanical / Electrical Engineering (including Industry 4.0)
• CNC Operations
• Sewing Machinists
• Upholstery
• Finance
• Business Management

We deliver our apprenticeships in partnership with proven local providers including Burnley College, Blackburn College and North Lancs Training Group.

At The Senator Group it is not just about completing qualifications, we want our apprentices to gain the experience that will help them to grow and develop a true passion for their role. To achieve that, we develop realistic progression plans which combine on the job experience with mentorships, theoretical learning and peer group support.

Two years ago, Bethany joined The Senator Group as a Maintenance Apprentice, studying Engineering Technician Level 3 – Mechatronics, and has been heavily involved in our Industry 4.0 rollout out at our Altham site.

Making a big impression on the business since she joined the Senator Family, Bethany won the Apprentice of the Year category at our annual Inspire Awards in 2021. Flying the flag for Senator externally, Bethany has recently been awarded the Themis Innovation Awards and has also been nominated for The Enginuity Award.

We don’t just deliver existing apprenticeship schemes we help to develop new ones too. Constantly identifying new opportunities, via the UK Fashion and Textiles Association (UKFT) we joined a working group to establish a new apprenticeship course that would directly address a need for ‘cutting’ staff. Through this working group we created a syllabus that could be used across the textiles industry, and will are hoping to deliver our first apprenticeship in this area this year, in partnership with North Lancs Training Group.

Now that the Covid restrictions of 2020 and 2021 have been lifted, we are delighted to announce that our apprenticeship assessment dates are due to return in May 2022 – details of this will be published on our website.