Celebrating National Apprenticeship Week at Connexus
Growing skills, building futures, and investing in people
This National Apprenticeship Week, we’re shining a spotlight on the contribution apprentices make across Connexus and the impact our apprenticeship programme continues to have for our colleagues and customers.
Apprenticeships are a vital part of how we support our communities too - creating accessible, accredited routes for people to develop the skills and behaviours needed both now and for the future. They also play an important role in ensuring we have the right capabilities across the organisation to meet customer expectations and deliver great services.
Our apprentices
We’re proud to have 38 apprentices currently learning, growing and contributing across the organisation. Many of our apprenticeships (22 out of the 38) are brand‑new recruits, with a further 16 existing Connexus colleagues being supported in their career growth and development.
The skills we’re growing
Our apprenticeships span a wide range of valuable skill areas, including:
• Business Administration
• Carpentry & Joinery
• Construction Site Supervision
• Electrical Installation & Maintenance
• Plumbing & Heating
• Property Maintenance
• Data Technician
The average apprenticeship length for new recruits is three years, with office-based ones typically being 18 months and specialist gas, electrical or Chartered Surveyor apprenticeships being up to five years. This gives us time to shape confident and capable professionals.
We’ve already seen great success too, with six of the apprentices who completed in the last 12 months remaining in permanent roles with us, strengthening our teams and nurturing long-term careers. We’ve also supported several other apprenticeship completers who have gone on to secure roles within our wider community - a fantastic reflection of the skills, confidence and experience they gained during their time with us.
What the numbers tell us
Our current apprenticeship landscape reflects a healthy mix of learning levels and disciplines, with new recruits most often learning at levels 2-4, and development apprentices progressing up to level 7.
Our apprenticeship community is diverse and continues to grow, reflecting a healthy mix of talent across both new recruits and developing colleagues.
Much of this success comes from our partnerships with providers like Hereford and Ludlow College, Shrewsbury College, and Multiverse, who help bring our learning programmes to life.
Why apprentices are a brilliant investment for us
Apprentices aren’t just learners, they’re future colleagues who bring fresh energy, new ideas and real value from day one. Because they train within our teams, using our systems and ways of working, they quickly become confident, capable contributors who understand how Connexus operates.
One of the biggest advantages of apprenticeships is that learning happens on the job. Apprentices build skills through real work, which means many begin adding meaningful capacity to their teams early in their programme. This blend of learning and doing not only boosts productivity but also brings fresh perspectives into everyday challenges.
And in areas where skills are increasingly hard to find, such as trades, technical roles and digital capability, apprenticeships give us a reliable way to develop the expertise we need. It’s a proactive approach that reduces recruitment pressures and strengthens our long‑term talent pipeline.