An apprenticeship in the leisure sector is a great way to gain valuable skills, knowledge and experience. You get to work in a sector you love, develop a range of skills, and set yourself up for a successful and rewarding career.
I’m Arwel Jones and I’ve worked in the leisure sector for years. I’m currently manage wellbeing hubs for Ceredigion Actif, the county council’s provider of leisure services. One of the best things about my job is running our apprenticeship programme. I love watching our apprentices and the broader team flourish, and how the skills and knowledge they develop during their learning has such a positive impact on our members.
In this blog, I share my thoughts on what we look for from our apprentices – and the mindset needed to get the most out of an apprenticeship in the active leisure sector. And, some of my current apprentices talk about what they get out of their apprenticeship journey!
At Ceredigion Actif, we’re here to give people the best start in life, helping them to be the best they can be. Our apprenticeship programme is one of the main ways we achieve that ambition – a significant proportion of our front-line staff are or have been apprentices. Our apprentices make a difference to our organisation and to our members.
We’re looking for enthusiasm and ideas
We look for people with enthusiasm and eagerness to learn, who’re willing to offer suggestions and new ideas. Our apprentices often offer up recommendations for improvements and enhancements to our class timetable. We try to accommodate additional learning requests such as studio cycling and kettlebell courses as part of their apprenticeship programme.
Gail says: “One of the things I really love about working at Ceredigion Actif is how it supports its staff through a commitment to apprenticeships. The programme has been of immense value to me and I know it will help me meet my personal and career goals. I feel like I’m adding value back into the organisation and I’m learning things I know are going to be useful to me throughout my career.”
We want you to develop your career
We want people to join Ceredigion Actif who are keen to stay and develop their careers with us. Our apprenticeship programme is at the heart of our long-term talent strategy. It is designed to fill our recruitment pipeline and allow us to develop our workforce. Every employee to join us an apprentice since 2021 is still with the organisation, and a number have since progressed into more senior roles.
Lucy says: “The blended delivery structured by Ceredigion Actif has been fantastic, as I have been able to approach my learning in a manner through allocated off the job training and support from COPA and managers. The learning approach has really supported my growth and development in which I have now progressed onto my Level 3 Personal Training apprenticeship.”
We need you to be customer-focused
We need to be able to offer a range of classes and services for our residents, meeting a variety of needs from our Active Families programme for pre-school children to our 60+ activity offer, and other points between. We want residents of all ages to engage with physical activity, reducing the impact of inactive lifestyles – individually, collectively and on partners such as the NHS.
Eleanor says: “The apprenticeship route at Ceredigion Actif has been really beneficial to me as it has given me the opportunity to learn many new skills, not just in fitness, but also health and wellness and how my role supports the business and benefits the community. Every month I’ve been able to develop new skills through the support of my training provider, which has given me great confidence to deliver to the general public.”
I’m Arwel Jones, manager of wellbeing hubs at Ceredigion Actif. Ceredigion Actif is the county council provider of leisure services. In line with national guidelines for healthy lifestyles, our programmes are designed to encourage residents of all ages to become healthy and active and to embed those principles into everyday life. Ceredigion Actif works with COPA/North Wales Training on the development and delivery of its apprenticeship programme.
