A group of three of CalMac’s current 19 apprentices, came together as part of Scottish Apprenticeship Week on 7th March 2017 to celebrate a year of notable milestones for the company’s training programmes.
The students were joined at the company’s Gourock headquarters by Inverclyde MSP Stuart McMillan, as well as CalMac managing director Martin Dorchester, and representatives from the company, Skills Development Scotland and City of Glasgow College. Manging Director Martin Dorchester spoke about the value that apprentices bring to CalMac: “I am extremely proud of the young people who have come up through our apprenticeship training; they are a genuinely strong addition to our teams across the network and have been welcomed by our crews.”
CalMac weren’t only celebrating the success of their apprentices but also their new partnership with City of Glasgow College (COGC) which marks a landmark in the apprenticeship programme as it brings all elements of the apprenticeship programme to Scotland for the first time as previously apprentices would have to study at South Shields on Tyneside. Former engineering apprentice Megan MacDonald spoke about the new partnership with COGC:
“Bringing the classroom element of the courses to Scotland for the first time has been a long-held goal of ours and I’m delighted the partnership with City of Glasgow College has successfully brought this to fruition”
Talking about the partnership City of Glasgow College Principal and CEO, Paul Little said; “We’re delighted to be working in partnership with Caledonian MacBrayne. City of Glasgow Colleges very much values the important role employers play in shaping our educational system to create a talent pool for recruiting the workforce of the future. By linking directly with the maritime industry our college offers a rich blend of personalised learning which not only focuses on the individual needs of our students but in turn makes a vital contribution to our nation’s economy.”
Scottish Apprenticeship Week celebrates and highlights achievements and opportunities for young people around the country, as well as recognising employers who enable the training and the benefits such commitment makes to the economy in the short and longer term.
Since 2013, 40 apprentices have been part of CalMac apprenticeships – 90 per cent of those who have qualified have been employed by the company. The schemes have grown significantly in popularity and, in 2016, for the 2016-2017 intake, around 1,200 young people applied for just 30 available positions. The Merchant Navy Training Board – which recognises training programmes for professional mariners – has named CalMac as one of the top five companies in the UK for maritime apprenticeship numbers.
