University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust (UHL) has been named one of the UK’s best apprenticeship employers by the Sunday Times, recognising the Trust’s long-term investment in staff development and creating career opportunities.
Currently, UHL has 657 colleagues enrolled on UK Apprenticeship Levy funded apprenticeship programmes. Of these, 91 were newly recruited and 566 were existing staff when they began their training.
One of those apprentices is 29-year-old pharmacy technician, Terrence Remedios, who began his career journey at UHL after completing a Level 2 qualification. After securing a full-time role with UHL, he has gone on to complete a Level 3 apprenticeship ensuring that he is able to progress to the next level in his career – a job working as a pharmacy management technician, which he starts in September.
“As part of my apprenticeship, I was able to rotate through a range of different areas including clinical trials, aseptic, oncology, and community pharmacy. This gave me a real feel for working in the pharmacy service in a hospital and helped me learn the skills I use every day in my current role. It wasn’t just classroom based, it was real, hands-on experience,” said Terrence.
“As a mature student I was nervous about taking on an apprenticeship, but UHL supported me so that I was able to take on a role where I could learn as I earned. They gave me every opportunity to succeed, and that support made all the difference.”
Since the UK Apprenticeship Levy was introduced eight years ago, more than 837 programmes have been completed by UHL staff across a range of clinical and non-clinical areas.
Julie McCarthy, Head of Learning and Development at UHL, said: “Our apprenticeship programmes are central to how we invest in our people at UHL. They allow us to support colleagues at every stage of their careers – from those just starting out in the NHS to experienced staff looking to gain new qualifications and progress into more senior roles.
“The scale of our programmes means that apprenticeships are making a real impact across the Trust, helping us to attract new talent, develop existing staff, and ensure we have the skills we need for the future. Being recognised nationally as one of the UK’s best apprenticeship employers is a reflection of the hard work of our learners, their managers and the teams who support them.”
Since April, 107 new apprenticeships have been started and 97 have already been completed. These programmes span a wide range of specialties – from pharmacy services to operations management, demonstrating UHL’s commitment to building a skilled, future-ready workforce.