Seetec Outsource, the apprenticeship and skills expert, celebrates National Employability Day #WeFillVacancies by recognising and praising the dedication and skill of the employability professionals working in the sector and shining a light on the Employability Practitioner Apprenticeship.
With National Employability Day taking place on Friday 17th June, Seetec Outsource is going behind the scenes to celebrate the achievements of the sector.
Seetec is highlighting the qualifications available to sector workers, which ensure anyone needing support into employment is given consistently high levels of service and expertise.
The employability practitioner level 4 qualification is available to any industry professional wanting to increase their skills and learn a holistic approach to finding work for those in need of employment.
As the North West enters a post-covid era, sectors are now back up and running after facing a setback from restrictions in industries such as aviation and hospitality.
Rebecca Nash, National Training Manager at Seetec Outsource, is based in Manchester and leads a team of coaches delivering apprenticeships to both public and private companies across the UK. The team aims to empower employability workers by giving them the skills and tools to ensure people seeking employment are given the support they need to overcome often complex barriers and move closer to work.
Rebecca explained how the service offered by employability professionals differs to that of a standard recruitment agency: “Employability is a journey. It’s very holistic in practice. As practitioners we need to be able to offer specialist coaching support to understand an individual’s needs. This is far removed from traditional recruitment practices. Our practitioners have to be counsellors, mentors and coaches, allowing them to understand often complex human behaviours.
“The work of employability practitioners is often overlooked and misunderstood. Helping people towards work is very rewarding but the expertise and skills needed to make a successful transition into work should not be underestimated.
“From all at Seetec Outsource, we want to reach out to the industry and say well done, you are #filling vacancies.”
Hazel Ross works as an employment advisor for the Supporting Families programme in Wiltshire and was one of the first Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) employees to be enrolled onto the Employability Practitioner apprenticeship in early 2021. She supports service users to overcome multiple and often complex barriers to employment and feels that the programme has provided a valuable opportunity to develop in her new role.
She explained: “The knowledge I’ve gained through the apprenticeship has helped me to better understand our service users, and this means that I can ensure the right support is available to them.
“The behavioural change techniques we’ve learned have proved particularly invaluable. I can apply these to real-world situations and have seen first-hand the difference they make. It’s given me the skills and confidence to deal with even the most challenging customers, and a better understanding of how our interventions can impact positively on employment outcomes.”
Employee-owned Seetec Group is currently supporting 107 learners to achieve the Employability Practitioner Apprenticeship qualification. A number of these are employees from its own employability division, demonstrating the business’s commitment and culture of learning.
The qualification, which was introduced pre-Covid, has now been adapted to remote learning.
The level 4 employability practitioner apprenticeship is a 15-month accredited programme, offering theory-based practical learning solutions.
To find out more about National Employability Day, About Us | ERSA
To find out more about the qualification, Employability Practitioner | Seetec Outsource