What apprenticeship have you recently completed?
I recently completed a Level 5 apprenticeship in Operational Management. It took me 17 months to complete, from June 2024 to November 2025.
What attracted you to this apprenticeship?
At the start of my apprenticeship journey, I was feeling very settled and comfortable in my job role.
I was up to date with all the mandatory training required by my employer, and I had recently completed Level 2 courses in Team Leadership and Retail Operations to help me develop and improve my skills.
However I was keen to continue my learning and started to look for a new challenge.
I was attracted to the apprenticeship option as it offered the opportunity to combine my existing work experience with classroom learning and gain a formal qualification at the same time.
What was your experience like?
My experience was very positive.
The apprenticeship training was very well structured, with excellent resources. There was a lot of support available from my tutor and also from the other students in my cohort.
Although there was a lot of work involved, the course was well-paced and broken down into clear sections with manageable deadlines. At times, I did need to juggle my apprenticeship commitments with my regular workload and this was probably the most challenging aspect of the process. However I had great support from my manager throughout.
I learned a lot through the apprenticeship, including developing skills which are useful both inside and outside work, such as time management, communication and project management. I was encouraged to apply my learning to real life situations, and to spend time reflecting on the impact of different approaches on myself and those around me.
I grew in confidence, and overall I feel the process helped me become a more effective leader and manager.
What would you say to someone who is thinking of doing an apprenticeship?
Go for it – it won’t always be easy, but doing an apprenticeship is a great opportunity.
Pam is operations and events manager at Locomotion. You can find her on LinkedIn