This week marks the 16th National Apprenticeship Week, an annual event which aims to showcase the positive impact apprenticeships make to individuals, businesses, and the economy.
As part of the week-long campaign, Esh Group is showcasing the benefits of choosing an apprenticeship route by celebrating the achievements of both current apprentices and former apprentices.
Securing an apprenticeship can mark the start of a career that comes with countless opportunities for those who have the determination to learn, work hard and succeed. This prospect was quickly recognised by Managing Quantity Surveyor and former apprentice, Sean Gardiner, who speaks about his apprenticeship journey and how this has led to him managing his own apprentices.
It was 2010 and Sean had opted to study at sixth form before realising that this wasn’t the route for him, instead he searched for apprenticeship opportunities and secured a role at Esh as a Business Administration Apprentice.
The years that followed saw Sean progress into engineering, then quantity surveying, while studying one-day per week at college and then university. Now aged 31, Sean has completed a degree and secured three promotions to become a Manging Quantity Surveyor within Esh’s housing infrastructure division, Lumsden & Carroll Civil Engineering.
What made you want to work in the construction industry?
I knew people that worked in the industry which gave me an insight into the different roles that are available in construction. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been aware of the number of opportunities besides the usual ‘hands on’ site-based roles that people typically think of when it comes to construction.
I initially went to sixth form when I left school, however it wasn’t something I enjoyed and instead wanted to learn on the job while earning a wage, which is why I chose to apply for the apprenticeship.
Can you explain how you have progressed in the 13 years since you first started as an apprentice?
I joined Esh as a Business Administration Apprentice 13 years ago where my role was to monitor tracking systems to ensure efficient working practices where being followed, such as fuel use and fuel reports. I was then approached to transfer onto an engineering apprenticeship route, and through college and on the job experience, I was able to progress from Apprentice Engineer to Engineer. Once I was an Engineer, I was able to recruit apprentices of my own.
A different reason to most saw me move into quantity surveying, I suffered a knee injury and as a result couldn’t visit building sites for an extended period. However, the team were really supportive and offered me an alternative to being off work by transferring into quantity surveying. While I really enjoyed engineering, the quantity surveying route is something I quickly excelled at, and due to my performance, I was asked to become a full-time quantity surveyor before progressing to Senior and then my most recent promotion to Managing Quantity Surveyor.
Throughout the changes within my role, I studied one-day per week at New College Durham. My first subject was an NVQ Level 3 in Business Administration, before moving onto the engineering pathway which saw me complete an ONC, HNC and HND in Civil Engineering and an NVQ Level 3 in Site Supervision. This took me five years before I enrolled at Northumbria University to study a BSc (Hons) in Project Management and achieved a First-Class Honours degree in 2019. I was also awarded a Certificate of Excellence Prize by the Chartered Institute of Building.
You mentor apprentices as part of your role, what have you taken from your days as an apprentice into this?
Being given the chance to mentor young apprentices is a privilege, I use the knowledge I have gained, best practices and methods which helped me develop and pass these on to those I work with. This includes understanding better learning methods and what information and knowledge the apprentices will require to develop themselves at an efficient pace.
Can you see any changes in the apprentice pathway from when you did yours to how it is now?
There are different routes available now, such as the degree apprenticeship which allows people to study in a university setting from the outset. I think that the benefits of an apprentice to the organisation are recognised much more now too, and there are more people within the company that want to help develop apprentices by offering them support to progress and achieve.
What would you say to another young person who was considering a career in construction?
Don’t assume the jobs and roles are what are typically associated with construction or what you may see on the TV, there are hundreds of different roles and pathways where you can develop yourself. I would encourage anyone who hasn’t previously considered a role in construction to research the careers available when planning for life after school or college.
I think that the benefits of an apprentice to the organisation are recognised much more now too, and there are more people within the company that want to help develop apprentices by offering them support to progress and achieve. Being given the chance to mentor young apprentices is a privilege, I use the knowledge I have gained, best practices and methods which helped me develop and pass these on to those I work with.”
