Anyone aged from 16 to 60 can apply if they are  trying to get on the career ladder or are planning to make a career switch.

The Council is aiming to grow its own staff as well as to offer more apprenticeships this year compared to last year and is working towards a target of 63 people working towards an apprenticeship qualification in combination with Buckinghamshire Adult Learning.

Officers also hope to use funding from the Government levy to pay for training schemes for existing staff, who may want to retrain, and this will help solve some specific skills shortages across the organisation.

The Corporate Training Advisor at the Council, Caroline High, explained: ‘People tend to think of apprenticeships in terms of young people coming in at entry level, but apprenticeships are also open to unqualified staff looking for career progression.

It’s in our interests for Buckinghamshire County Council to offer more apprenticeships, as a way of recovering some of the money we are required to pay into the Government’s new national levy. For every apprentice we hire, we can apply to reclaim some of this money to fund their training.‘

Further information on becoming an apprentice at Buckinghamshire County Council and a list of vacancies can be found at : http://jobs.buckscc.gov.uk/job-areas/apprenticeships/.