Since May 2017, Pearson UK has used the apprenticeship levy allowance to future proof it’s skills pipeline, and work to attract a diverse range of talent into the business. Almost 300 employees have joined an apprenticeship, with the programmes on offer ranging from level 3 in team leading, through to the Masters Degree Apprenticeships in Digital and Technology with many more besides.

Those that take them are offered a flexible and blended approach to study alongside their job, with a day a week of ‘on the job’ study time. They are encouraged to take up internal secondments, join our Employee Resource Groups and have a strong system of mentoring and pastoral support to help them through the programmes (which range in length from 15 to up to 48 months in duration).

It has been a pleasure to support the hundreds of apprentices who made the choice to build careers through vocational learning, drawing on my own experience to provide guidance for the generations of apprentices that followed me.

I look forward to sharing some of their stories - the first is Toni’s, and how a series of apprenticeships transformed her career after returning to work after having a son.

Read 'How apprenticeships transformed the career of one mum returning to work'

By Anne Ashworth, Head of Employee Apprenticeships, Pearson