Airedale NHS Foundation Trust’s Apprentices About to Start Work

Airedale NHS Foundation Trust’s first group of apprentice health care support workers will start working in clinical areas from next week and are raring to go following their induction training. The 12 month apprenticeships will involve the new recruits delivering care to patients whilst working alongside and being supervised by experienced staff; the apprentices will also receive classroom-based education delivered by Keighley College’s Health & Social Care Team from the Airedale Hospital site, following a partnership agreement between to the two local organisations. At the end of the 12 months the apprentices will have a diploma level qualification in health and social care and the guarantee of a permanent job.

Ian Hargreaves, Assistant Director at the Trust said, “We are delighted to have recruited our first group of apprentice health care support workers, they can’t wait to start working in earnest, they are desperate to make a positive difference for patients and keen to learn; we have been overwhelmed by their enthusiasm, their desire to work at Airedale and help care for our patients. We are thrilled to be working in partnership with Keighley College; their teaching and assessing expertise will be a critical part of the apprenticeship programme; we will be recruiting a second group of apprentices to start work at the end of February and a third group later in the spring”.