Louise Stephens is just one of those, who recently completed the Level 5 Operations/Department Manager apprenticeship with the College, and is delighted to have received a promotion.
The 44-year-old, who works for Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust in Devizes, has been a psychiatric nurse for more than 20 years, but decided she was ready for a change and wanted to move into management.
During her apprenticeship, she had the opportunity to take on a secondment as a Team Leader and was so successful, she has now secured the role permanently.
Talking about the apprenticeship and how it benefitted Louise, she said: “I learned so much, far too much to mention!
“I did enjoy all the different management styles which I found really insightful. I loved coaching and compassion focussed management and have been able to embed some of that.
“I also really enjoyed learning about change management’. As we know, the NHS is an ever-changing service and having been through lots of change myself over the years in my various nursing jobs.”
Louise studied alongside her full-time job and said she very much enjoyed learning, despite the pandemic making things very challenging at times.
She said: “I love my job as Team Manager, but also do the occasional extra bank shift within the Trust to keep my clinical skills up-to-date and because I enjoy the hands-on element of nursing too.
“I enjoy studying now my children are older and it gave me something to do during lockdown!”
All apprentices are given an assessor who supports them throughout the duration of their course.
“My assessor Sam was amazing; so patient and supportive,” Louise said.
“There were times when I thought I couldn’t do it as I didn’t understand the terminology. For a nurse, working in the NHS, the course can be quite intimidating at a glance, but Sam broke everything down to help me understand the management terminology.”
Louise's assessor, Sam, added:
'Louise has been a pleasure to work with. It has been fantastic to see her grow and develop in her new role during her apprenticeship. It's amazing that in the middle of a pandemic she passed her course with a Distinction - it was thoroughly deserved'
If you are considering a change of direction in career, progression, or simply an opportunity to gain new skills and would like to find out more about our Level 5 Operations/Department Manager apprenticeship, visit https://bit.ly/3ba528w.
