11th February 2021

The role of the Skills Coach: National Apprenticeship Week

For National Apprenticeship Week we’re celebrating everything that apprenticeships have to offer. This year’s theme is ‘Build The Future’ and puts focus on how apprenticeships can help both individuals to build the skills and knowledge they’ll need for a successful career but also how employers can benefit from utilising newly skilled talent for their workforce.

We’re proud to be Liverpool’s leading provider of apprenticeships and have helped thousands of people start their careers across a range of industries, from Construction Crafts and Motor Vehicle, to Health Care, Digital and Cyber Security.

Our apprenticeships are available from level 2 all the way up to degree level and are a great opportunity for trainees to earn whilst they learn, blending sessions taught at the college’s industry standard facilities alongside working in a real-life, paid job.

All of our apprentices are supported throughout their programme by college tutors and industry experienced Skills Coaches – many of whom started their careers as Apprentices.

To find out more about the role of our Skills Coaches, we spoke to Emma Langshaw, who started out in the industry as a Hairdressing apprentice herself and has since returned to college to support the next generation of professionals, drawing on her expert knowledge and using her connections as Technical Director for Toni & Guy Hairdressing.

What was your apprenticeship like?

I found the Apprenticeship scheme to be hard work, but enjoyable and rewarding at the same time.

Over the course of the 3 years, I learnt lots of new skills such as how to deal with clients and customer service along with various hairdressing cuts and skills. All of which I have been able to put into practice through my career in the various roles I have held.

How did your apprenticeship prepare you for becoming a ‘Skills Coach’?

As I have come through the scheme from an apprentice level, progressing to the role that I am currently undertaking as an assessor, I can fully appreciate the challenges and requirements of the apprentices themselves, as I have experienced their position first-hand.

What exactly does your role entail? 

My current role allows me to provide support and coaching to new apprentices, to assist them in building new skills and knowledge that will help them in their future careers within the industry. As part of this, I also take on the role of mentor, in an attempt to help build their confidence and technical understanding.

How does it feel to be supporting the next generation of apprentices? 

I feel very proud and honoured to be helping develop the hairdressers of the future and hope that what I instil into them now helps mould them into the best that they can be and in turn ensure that the industry and skills within hairdressing are maintained at the highest possible level.

What advice would you give to someone thinking about doing an apprenticeship?

I would totally recommend an apprenticeship scheme as it provides both practical and academic learning and allows people not just to read about it in a book or watch it on a training video, but to have the opportunity to put what they have learnt into practice in real-life scenarios.

What advice would you give to employers about apprenticeships? 

Employers can really benefit from apprenticeships, they allow companies to assist, encourage and mould new talent according to their values and business requirements, they’re proving to be a direct investment in the next generation of hairdressers.

To find out more about apprenticeships and to register your interest, visit: www.liv-coll.ac.uk/apprenticeships or if you’re a business and would like to speak to our team, please email: workforceskills@liv-coll.ac.uk