Shining star Oliver wins ‘Apprentice of the Year’ at Bouygues Energies & Services
Oliver Chapman is a shining example of how to do an apprenticeship. He took an opportunity to do a short-term work placement within a company, which resulted in him being offered an apprenticeship. After much hard work and determination, he has then gone on to win ‘Apprentice of the Year’ and inspire others to start an apprenticeship.
Oliver is employed as a Business Administrator Apprentice at Bouygues Energies and Services, a global facilities management and energy performance organisation, as part of their apprenticeship programme. He works hard to contribute towards supporting Broomfield Hospital, Chelmsford and keeping it a safe, operational and sustainable building.
He says that the most important skill he has learned is to have confidence in himself, which is something he had really struggled with prior to starting work. Oliver is now hoping to build on what he has achieved so far and continue to grow his career. He would like to continue his journey with Bouygues Energies and Services as he has enjoyed it so much.
26-year-old Oliver has been supported by his manager Gill Ball, Helpdesk Supervisor at Bouygues Engergies & Services, who also recently won ‘Apprentice Champion.’
Gill said; ‘Oliver started with Bouygues Energies & Services on the government Kickstart scheme. He impressed us so much that we offered him a Business Administration apprenticeship, through LMP Education, to follow on from Kickstart placement.
When I first met Oliver he was very open and honest about the challenges he faced having autism. However, over the last 18 months he has developed to such an extent you would not recognise the young man that came for that first interview. He gets on well with his peers and mixes with people both inside and outside of work.
Oliver has helped change processes on site and has created many programmes on Excel that have improved reports and the way we record things. He helps with many tasks including the weekly fire alarm test. He has been instrumental in bringing in a new system for the fire doors. He often assists on the helpdesk and is very communicative with the people on the phone. Oliver is a great asset to both the team at Broomfield Hospital and Bouygues Energies & Services as a whole.
In his own words here is Oliver’s apprenticeship story so far;
‘I joined Bouygues Energies & Services at the end of 2021 as part of the Kickstart Scheme, which helps people aged 16-24 into short-term work placements. After six months of demonstrating my knowledge, skills and ambition, I was excited to be offered an apprenticeship.
The main benefit of being part of an apprenticeship programme for me was being able to develop myself and learn how the workplace operates. I have gained so much knowledge and using what I have learned, I have been able to make significant process changes.
The best thing about my role as Business Administrator is the variety of tasks I undertake. Sometimes I will be doing important office admin such as designing a spreadsheet from scratch, other days I am involved in more problem-solving work. I particularly enjoy creating Excel formulas and using creative combinations of functions to make a spreadsheet work.
My role also includes taking telephone calls for building repairs on our 24/7 maintenance helpdesk, which can be very fast-paced at times! It’s also exciting as the jobs that come in are unpredictable: they range from simple fixes such as broken lights to more complex ones such as lift breakdowns.
My manager Gill has been a guiding light throughout my entire employment with Bouygues Energies & Services. I am autistic and I was struggling to find employment before starting. Gill did not know anything about autism prior to meeting me. When she decided to take me on under the Kickstart scheme, she took it upon herself to learn about the condition and how it can impact people. She then used this knowledge to create a more understanding and welcoming space for neurodivergent employees within the site and the broader company. This has helped me be myself and flourish in a work environment.
Saliah, my tutor at LMP Education, has also been a big support. Her guidance with my coursework and overall support has helped me gain further knowledge and skills and enabled me to receive my level 3 Business Administrator qualification.
I was also shortlisted for the Bouygues Energies & Services annual apprentice awards. I was thrilled to take home the main award of ‘Apprentice of the Year’ which was presented to me by the CEO recently.
LMP Apprenticeship Tutor Saliah Azad added ‘Oliver has been amazing throughout the apprenticeship, he was always on time for his sessions and always keen to learn. He was a very diligent and inquisitive learner always asking relevant and positive questions. He produced his work on time each month applying knowledge learnt to his work practices. It was a pleasure being his tutor and I wish him all the best for the future.’
Well done Oliver from everyoune at LMP Education.
If you are interested in finding out more about the apprenticeship opportunities with LMP Education visit https://lmp-group.co.uk/apprenticeships/
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