No limits to Babcock’s support for Scottish Apprenticeship Week 2020

Babcock International Group, the aerospace and defence company, is supporting this year’s Scottish Apprenticeship Week from 2-6 March. The campaign theme is ‘Talent Without Limits’ and Babcock is fully behind the message that there are no limits to where an apprenticeship can take you.  In Babcock’s Energy and Marine business, we are highlighting the achievements of our apprentices and celebrating with them throughout the week. Across the four-year programme, there are currently 74 individuals working towards their apprenticeship at Rosyth.   Luke Day, 29, who has been fascinated by all things electrical since he was a young boy, started as an Electrical Modern Apprentice for Babcock in September 2019. Fast-forward six months and the former James Young High School pupil is having the time of his life. Luke, who lives in Livingston, said: “I knew that Babcock was a really good company to work for, so I decided to apply for the apprenticeship while studying for an HND in Electrical Technology at the City of Glasgow College. “The apprenticeship has been absolutely brilliant so far; I couldn’t fault it.” The father-of-one, who also studied Electrical Engineering at West Lothian College, is currently splitting his working week between the classroom and workshop at Fife College, which is located on Babcock’s Rosyth site. Luke plans to complete his HNC in Electrical Engineering during his four-year apprenticeship with Babcock, and is looking forward to spending some more time working on-site in the summer. He added: “I spent my first week working on-site recently, helping the Facilities team to maintain the yard. We tested fire alarms and carried out maintenance on the generators. It was brilliant and I absolutely loved it – it was good experience.  “Working on-site has definitely been the highlight of my time here so far. The skills that people have at Rosyth are unbelievable and the level of engineering which went into building the site itself is phenomenal.” And when it comes to his hopes and dreams for the future, Luke is certainly aiming high: “I would love to be the Managing Director of the site one day. Our current Managing Director, Sean Donaldson, started as an Apprentice Electrical Fitter at Rosyth, so you never know.”  Joining Luke as a new apprentice at Babcock’s Rosyth site is 18-year-old Caitlin Thomson, who is an Electrical Technical Design Apprentice. By the time Caitlin started primary school 13 years ago, there was no doubt in her mind that she wanted to be an engineer. The former Balwearie High School pupil is now following in the footsteps of her dad, Gordon, and uncle, Kevin, who both started as apprentices at the Rosyth site, where they work today. Caitlin, who lives in Kirkcaldy, said: “I did a Foundation Apprenticeship in Manufacturing Engineering when I was in fifth year at high school and, as part of this, I completed three weeks of work experience at Rosyth, which was very interesting and informative.  “The Foundation Apprenticeship has really helped with my current Modern Apprenticeship, as it gave me a much better idea of what engineering entails. I applied for the Modern Apprenticeship straight after completing the Foundation Apprenticeship – I always wanted to do an apprenticeship after school. “I was so excited when I found out that I had a place on the Babcock scheme.” Luke and Caitlin were among 480 new apprentices and graduates to be welcomed to Babcock’s UK teams in 2019.  Sean Donaldson, Babcock’s Managing Director of Energy & Marine and the Rosyth site, said: “Caitlin and Luke were among 10 new apprentices who started at Rosyth in September 2019, with roles ranging from Design Technicians to Mechanical and Electrical Fitters.  “I’m looking forward to welcoming a further 10 apprentices to our Rosyth business later this year, with the new additions further underlining Babcock’s commitment to future talent through our apprentice and graduate programmes.”  The Apprenticeship Programme at Rosyth is currently recruiting for 2020. Further information on all the available opportunities can be found here: www.babcockinternational.com/careers/apprenticeships/marine/rosyth