A new dawn for Dawnus and Apprenticeships at Salford City College

11 December 2018 

“I’m buzzing!” were the words 16-year-old McKenzie Kelly used to describe his feelings after he was recruited by Apprenticeships at Salford City College to work with Dawnus Construction.

(Mckenzie Kelly) 

McKenzie, from Salford, along two other Salford City College apprentices, were taken on by Dawnus to work on the Manchester and Salford Inner Relief Route Improvement Project. Dawnus, who have recently opened a new office in Salford as they work on improving the roads in the area are eager to support local residents as part of their social value promise to the City of Salford - and they did just that by taking on these new recruits. Mandy Shepherd, Team Leader for Apprenticeship Recruitment and Business Development is extremely proud of the apprentices and her team’s accomplishment in placing them with the construction firm. She said: “Sometimes candidates don’t see how happy we are to see them achieve, and quite often we are that busy delivering a fast-paced recruitment service, that we don’t reflect or showcase what it actually means to each individual apprentice, but from time to time it hits you and you think, that is exactly why we do what we do. “McKenzie’s reaction to being placed with Dawnus was priceless. It was truly an honour to hear how proud he was of himself. All I can say is if our candidates are ‘buzzing’ then we are ‘buzzing’ too.” McKenzie, along with Bongani Masilela, one of the other apprentices taken on by Dawnus, both took part in the Kick-start to Construction Project, delivered by Keepmoat Homes and Inspiring Communities Salford. The Apprenticeships at Salford City College Team delivered advice and guidance on apprenticeships as part of the project and the candidates were also taken to City Skills, Salford City College, to take part in workshops. It was at this point both McKenzie and Bongani became certain this was the trade for them. The Kick-start Project was also supported by Salford Connexions Service who helped the candidates create CVs, gave careers advice and prepared them for the interview process. Julie Baker from Keepmoat Homes said: “If it wasn’t for the partnership projects like this would not be possible. The apprenticeship team were eager to talent match these individuals to current opportunities and source employers. The difficult thing for these candidates is they have just left school so they have little work experience. That’s why we think the apprenticeship route is an obvious one for those who have completed our project. “The support mechanism and partnership is fantastic from both providers and employment links from the apprenticeship team and Mandy is right in saying when we gain interviews and outcomes like this it just makes it all worthwhile.” If you are interested in embarking upon an apprenticeship, or hiring an apprentice yourself, cal 0161 631 5555 and speak to one of the team.