I joined the Trust in November 2020 as a Data Analyst Apprentice. When I started, my role was a temporary, but I secured a permanent position as a Band 3 Analyst before progressing to a Band 5 Assistant Developer, and now a Band 6 Developer.

At each stage of my career, my managers and teammates have had my career goals in mind, and have pushed me in doing the best I can do. From providing excellent employer references that supported me getting a Distinction in my apprenticeship, to supporting me in securing a further apprenticeship opportunity.

As a university drop out and a KFC employee before working at Clatterbridge, I was really eager to make a big change and break into a career that challenged me and where I could make a difference. When I saw the posting for the apprenticeship I knew I had to apply.

You can apply for apprenticeships via the gov website, there is often a wide variety of apprenticeships on there for a wide variety of sectors. Sometimes breaking into a meaningful career without any experience or qualifications can be extremely daunting, but apprenticeships give you that chance to jump into a new career that can lead to all sorts of opportunities.

I’ve always wanted to work in a career that was challenging and I’ve always been adept at problem solving and mathematics. It wasn’t until I started this career path that I fully knew exactly what I wanted to do. I get really invested into solving complex problems and this career provides me the opportunity to do that. Furthermore, the demand for data professionals is growing more and more by the day. The fields surrounding data are changing every day and that means that I’ll never really stop learning something new, which is a large passion of mine.

For me, the highlight of my time at Clatterbridge is how I’ve impacted my colleagues around me. This was my first office job, so I was very nervous about how I would handle working in a team, but I feel I’ve become a pillar of strength within the team as it has grown over the last few years. To cement that feeling, my team have nominated me for a number of awards, including Apprentice of the Year 2021, Newcomer of the Year 2022 and Learner of the Year 2024.

My team are one of the main factors that keeps me at Clatterbridge. Every team has their ups and downs, and there is no shame in that, but we work together to support each other as much as we can, through the hard times and the good, and I don’t think a workplace culture like that is common. Another important factor is the opportunity. There are hundreds of routes of personal development for individuals who are passionate about being their best selves, from the Skills Development Network to private training companies. There is a training course for anything, all you have to do is ask.

To anyone who wants to get into a new career in this field, experience can be a tough hurdle to jump. In data, not many people are willing to hire a person who has little experience, but there is a way to get that experience without working in a data job. When you’re looking to break into the data field, you want to covey to the hiring manager that you’re passionate about the field, and the easiest way to do that is with passion projects. Getting started on a couple of your own projects with public datasets, and researching tools to use in these projects can really highlight your passion for data and convince a hiring manager take a chance on you.

There is a wealth of information out there on YouTube and ChatGPT, just find a topic that interests you and do some analytics on it. You’d be surprised how interesting a hobby and career in data can be!