Looking for a Plumbing apprentiship in stoke on trent

[Ben15stoke]

Hi i am currently 15 and intrested in getting an plumbing apprentiship. I have 5 gsce's already including maths english and science as i did them a year early .

 

[ecowarm]

Good luck in your search Ban

 

[ecowarm]

Ben I mean

 

[Ben15stoke]

Thanks

 

[Deleted member 25704]

Hi i am currently 15 and intrested in getting an plumbing apprentiship. I have 5 gsce's already including maths english and science as i did them a year early .

Ben, you need to do some research before going into plumbing. The apprenticeship programmes have lost their value, because some apprenticeships can be done in weeks. Hence, spending 4 years to get a meaningless qualiifcation, which an adult student can get the equivalent of, in weeks, is not really the way to go.

The longer term forcasts for the plumbing industry do not bode well. My generation was lucky, there was a severe shortage of plumbers, but now there is a massive over-supply - which brings wage rates down and reduces opportunities for youngsters.

There are also safety risks in plumbing, and you may end up as the apprentice of one of the students that passed their qualification on fast track or 'college only training'. The risk here is that experience installers know where asbestos is located and how it can be identified; new entrants who have picked it up as they go along, could be drilling and breaking this stuff up, without knowing.

So what is the alternative - well I would say sustainable technologies is a big market, but this will be a labour market that is controlled by managers (graduates) with installers getting minimum wage. My advice would be to study professional building services in sustainable technologies - get a Btec or similar technical ONC/HNC and progress to university to do the degree.

If management doesn't work out, a degree is for life - whereas your NVQ in plumbing will not be useful for anything - won't even get you gas registered unless you have done the ACS.

Its sad that its come to the point where MPs complain about short apprenticeships (12 weeeks) but then suggest that 1 year is satisfactory - you could be at this for 5 years to get an NVQ3 (including level 1, 2) and by the time you do it, you will have to pay for your own tuition at level 3 after 2013 - so you might as well pay for a degree, which actually worth something and has currency with employers - conversly NVQs don't and employers look on them as worthless 'tickets'.

I wish you well with your career, and hope you will do the homework on the plumbing industry or at least talk to some local installers - just go to the local plumbers merchant and ask the guys as they come through the door, what the industry is like at the moment.

 

[Ben15stoke]

Thanks for you advice . But i dont fancy go uni and all that in the current ecomic sitution . Some of these people with degrees sturgle to get a job in macdonalds so i dont think i will be going down that root . Where as i do plumbing or a trade and have got the skill for life . Also i dont think once qualified i will be working very long as my dad advises me to get self employed as soon as possible as i will have no money worrys to think about as i will still be leaving at home .