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Currently, more than 200 Pets at Home Vet Group colleagues are completing apprenticeships, including 182 in Vets4Pets and Companion Care veterinary practices, 17 in the group’s Specialist Referral Centres and 20 at the Support Office in Swindon.
Among the colleagues benefitting are veterinary nurses, animal care assistants and customer care assistants.
Jo Fuller, head of learning and development at Vets4Pets, said: “Apprenticeships are a core part of our business and something we are very passionate about.
“We not only want to attract and nurture new talent but also invest in our existing colleagues from across the group. Whether that’s veterinary professionals within Vets4Pets and Companion Care practices or colleagues who work within various teams at our Support Office from legal to marketing and much more.
“We really want to offer apprenticeship opportunities that help to unlock people’s potential and help individuals to build successful and fulfilling careers.
“Making apprenticeships available to everyone is essential, and we are proud to be members of the Apprenticeships Diversity Champion Network.
“Now, with no age restrictions for apprenticeships, everyone has the opportunity to continue learning, progress their career and make a shift into a job area that interests them. We currently have apprenticeship colleagues who vary in ages from 18 up to 59.”
As part of its commitment to apprenticeships, Vets4Pets has just launched a Leading People apprenticeship to focus on supporting its line mangers in its Swindon Support Office to become inspiring leaders.
Those taking part will finish with a recognised leadership qualification as well as the group’s own internal accolade.
It also recently launched its Vet Nurse Academy, an initiative that was created to help address the current shortage of vet nurses within the profession. This initiative provides vet nurse apprenticeship training information for 24 UK colleges and aims to increase the number of veterinary nurse apprentices training within the group’s practices.
“When we are thinking of introducing new apprenticeship opportunities across the group, we always consider if the training will help people develop their professional skills and support personal growth, if it will it enhance our business and whether it will benefit the veterinary profession,” continued Jo.
“We want to continue creating initiatives like our Vet Nurse Academy in order to support our profession and help the next generation of veterinary professionals.
“We hope our apprenticeships stand out from the crowd and highlight that we are passionate about investing in people throughout their career.”