Let's Celebrate Young Talent for National Apprenticeship Week 2022!

Today marks the start of National Apprenticeship Week 2022, a government-backed initiative to highlight the increasingly important role that apprenticeships play now for young people, for businesses and for the UK economy as a whole.

Companies nationwide will be celebrating and highlighting their commitment to apprenticeships. On social media many of those stories will be told using the hashtag #NAW2022. 

To mark this important week in the calendar we're talking to some apprentices and first up is 22-year-old Callum Morton from Swindon who is an accounts apprentice at Optimum Professional Services. 

Callum is a former student of Churchfields Academy and then New College, Swindon where his favourite subjects were PE, History, Maths. Callum wanted to take an apprenticeship to further his career. We asked him about his decision. 

Why have you chosen an apprenticeship? 

To gain a comprehensive understanding of how to be an accountant whilst learning on the job on a day to day basis.

I chose an apprenticeship as I prefer to learn whilst doing, so an apprenticeship suited my style of learning. It also helps me to gain my qualifications whilst also learning new things every day about how be an accountant and how the business world operates. 

How’s it going? 

Very well, I’m learning new things every day and progressing well. I’m continuously learning and trying new and more advanced things all the time. 

What are you learning?

I’m currently at the end of my AAT Level 3 qualification and starting on my AAT Level 4 in the coming weeks. 

As an apprentice in an accounting practice I am learning how to prepare accounts and tax returns for limited companies, partnerships and sole traders. 

By working in practice rather than industry, I am able to gain a far better understanding of how to prepare accounts and I get to experience preparing accounts for a wide range of businesses which helps me to improve my knowledge and therefore makes achieving my qualifications far easier.

Where do you hope it will take you? 

I hope to become a fully qualified accountant with a complete understanding of my role and industry. There are many avenues which I could explore to achieve this as well, so there are plenty of options and I’m not limited to just one way to get qualified. Once qualified I hope to obtain a senior role and undertake more responsibility.

All of us at Total Swindon wish Callum well and if you want to find out more about this week of celebration visit: 

https://www.apprenticeships.gov.uk/influencers/naw-2022#