A number of our team members are doing an NVQ qualification this year. Over the past 3 years we have had over 50 members of our team do similar qualifications. Development of our people is important to us and we support the talented teams to grow through a range of training opportunities. In partnership with Lewisham Council we offer apprenticeships, work experience and university supported learning. Inspiring the team of tomorrow on their lifelong learning journey.

Lewisham Apprenticeship scheme

Stanella – Business Administrator 2015/2017

At 18 I decided not to go into further education because I was keen to gain practical work experience and qualifications that were directly related to my role. So I started an 18 month NVQ Business Administration apprenticeship with Chartwells, who work in partnership with the Lewisham Local apprenticeship scheme.

I chose to work for Compass Group because of its strong reputation in business. Its large corporate size offered me more scope for development which brought me greater opportunities to learn valuable business insights compared to a small or medium sized business.

My role is to support the Human Resources team in their daily functions of recruitment, payroll, health&Safety and employee wellbeing. In this post I have developed my interpersonal skills and learnt how to communicate and conduct myself in a professional way. Interacting with Lewisham Council members and senior Compass Management has really increased my confidence in the workplace.

Because of the invaluable life experience this role has given me, I would recommend it to anyone. Ultimately it has given me a broader understanding of HR, taught me how to thrive in a busy work environment and shown me what to expect from the wider world of work.