Heart of England Co-Operative Society leads the way with an innovative apprenticeship scheme

Heart of England is an independent, regional co-operative society offering a wide range of food and funeral services at the heart of communities across the UK.

The head office is based at Whittle House, Foleshill Enterprise Park in Coventry.

The business, which currently employs over 150 people at head office and many more at locations across the country, has also invested heavily in its apprenticeship programme as part of its recruitment and development strategy. Heart of England Co-operative Society has strengthened its teams by recruiting apprentices into several departments including Accounts, IT, Digital Marketing and Facilities Management.

Rob is 27 years old and he joined the accounts department one year ago. He said ‘I previously worked in another industry, which wasn’t for me so applied for this role to build my knowledge and skills. I am working as part of a large team at Heart of England and really enjoy this role.’

Sadia is 23 years old and she is a Digital Marketing apprentice. Sadia commented ‘I was a little nervous when I started this role, but the people here have made me feel really welcome and supported. I have gained knowledge and understanding of social media, SEO and google analytics.’

Harvey is 18 and just 4 weeks into his IT apprenticeship with Heart of England. He said ‘I work as part of the helpdesk department and feel like I have settled in well. The team at Inspire and LMP have also supported me and given me confidence.’

17-year-old Jacob has worked at Heart of England for nearly 1 year. He is a member of the facilities team and enjoys his role. Jacob said ‘my role is really varied, and I get to visit different sites and help lots of people. I would recommend an apprenticeship to anyone considering it as it enables you to learn and earn at the same time.

The Apprenticeship Manager at Heart of England added: