On the 24th May, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals were delighted to host a celebration event in recognition of the latest Learning Mentor and Senior Healthcare Support Worker apprentices to complete.
With 43 graduates from both courses, including 27 accredited Learning Mentors and 16 qualified Senior Healthcare Support Workers, the Trust’s Apprenticeships programmes have supported a staggering total of 436 graduates. This impressive number includes 246 officially accredited Learning Mentors and 190 qualified Senior Healthcare Assistants.
According to the ESFA, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals has been officially recognised as the highest performing NHS Apprenticeship Provider in the North West and see the Trust ranked in the top 8% of apprenticeship training providers in England!
Our outstanding results continued, with an incredible 33 out of the 43 graduates receiving the highest possible results of distinction and seven of the graduates receiving 100% in their End Point Assessment, an unheard-of achievement at other providers.
A huge congratulations to the most recent graduates:
- Loren Adlem
- Elizabeth Aughton
- Katy Bailey
- Nicola Barlow
- Zoey Burrows
- Rogit Chakkalakkal
- Francesca Chamberlain
- Rebecca Clare
- Emma Daly
- Jackie Debenham
- Alysha Dodgson
- Phlavia Dupius
- Claire Guffogg
- Jack Hall
- Barry Hardman
- Morgan Harker-Sinclair
- Louise Jarvis-Worcester
- Anu John
- Silpa Jose
- Gisha Jose-Edappallil
- Sheeba Joy
- Megan Lawson
- Deepthi Mathew
- Hayley Mayor
- Zoe Miller
- Vanna Ormond-Prout
- Mita Parmar
- Waseema Patel
- Natasha Raywood
- Lindsey Reynolds
- John Shepherd
- Camille Sherrington
- Giuseppina Soprano
- Racheal Speakman
- Marine Thomas
- Sheejo Thomas
- Chithra Velayudhan
- Maria Visan
- Charlotte Walmsley
- Natalie Winstanley
- Phoebe Wolstencroft
- Emily Wykes
- Elizabeth Yates
One Learning Mentor graduate, Chithra Velayudhan, was keen to thank both her manager and the teaching staff who supported her in her academic journey, she said:
‘I am just so grateful to everyone who has helped me get to where I am today. Thanks to my manager, she is the one who pushed me and motivated me to do the course. My background and education is so different coming from a different country but I would just like to thank Steph (Apprenticeship Trainer). She is so amazing and supportive; I haven’t seen anyone so involved with their students. I was so surprised, she would join us at four, five, sometimes even six o’clock meetings. Nothing was ever too much.’
Nicola Barlow, a Senior Healthcare Support Worker graduate, who only recently began her career in the NHS has commended the course as ‘life changing’, she said:
‘I came into the NHS very late in life. I came almost straight onto the apprenticeship but I’ve felt so supported. I’ve really enjoyed it and met some great people. I’m so glad I did it. Since finishing the apprenticeship, I’ve now got a band 3 role in renal. I’m so happy and it’s because I did this apprenticeship. The experience has truly changed my life and I’m so grateful to everyone for their support.’
Associate Director of Education, Harun Juwale, was also in attendance and was delighted at the incredible results of both the graduates and the teams that have helped them get there, stating:
‘I am just blown away by these results and what you have achieved in such challenging times. When we’re in healthcare it’s always important to remember the difference that we make in a patient’s life. Education is key and it’s the cornerstone of the trust. The fact you’ve overcome all these clinical pressures is just a testament to you.’
But what do these incredible results mean for the trust and why are our apprenticeships so important?
It is not only the graduates who benefit from the qualifications, but the impact of both the Learning Mentor and the Senior Healthcare Support qualification has a cascading effect on both their colleagues and their patients.
This includes junior colleagues and students having better access to high quality mentoring, with more accredited mentors being available, allowing an increase in both their performance and education, in turn enabling them to perform better care.
Feedback given to the trust has also reported that this allows them to feel more confident and competent in their roles as they feel adequately supported and mentored.
Additionally, our incredible graduates are fulfilling the recruitment deficits for much needed Band 3 staff, enabling the trust to continue performing the incredible work it undertakes.
A huge thank you to all involved for the hard work that you have undertaken these past twelve months and beyond!
LTHTr focus their delivery on two apprenticeship standards, which have been identified as integral to support the future workforce, both of which continue to be highly successful. This is the fifth consecutive year that the trust has improved their achievements rates and demonstrates their commitment to continuous improvement and high-quality training.
The Senior Healthcare Support Worker apprenticeship Quality Achievement Rate (QAR) has increased by over 6% to an unbelievable 89.4% and performed 29% better than the national average.
The Level 3 Senior Healthcare Support Worker is a 13-month programme which is used to support Healthcare Support Workers working in adult nursing, theatre and therapy support roles to develop the knowledge and skills required to work within a band 3 role and in addition gain a level 3 healthcare qualification.
The Learning Mentor apprenticeship achieved a QAR of a staggering 87%, an increase of 5% compared to the previous year and 38% higher than the national average.
The Level 4 Learning and Skills Mentor is a 12-month course which is used to support employees who mentor new recruits, junior colleagues and students to ensure that the workforce is adequately and appropriately supported to continuously develop and progress.
Additionally, the trust have retained their 100% programme pass rate, for a staggering fourth year running.
Do you think you have what it takes to become an LTHTr Apprentice? The next intake for each course is already open to applicants with the Learning Mentor apprenticeship starting on the 20th August and the Senior Healthcare Support Worker apprenticeship starting on the 13th September.
If you are interested in pursuing an Apprenticeship at the trust, or would like more information, contact the team by email on: apprenticeshipinfo@lthtr.nhs.uk.
