National Apprenticeship Week 2022 is the 15th annual week-long celebration of apprenticeships. The week brings together businesses and apprentices across the country to shine a light on the positive impact that apprenticeships make to individuals, businesses and the wider economy. 

Similar to 2021, the theme for National Apprenticeship Week 2022 will be ‘build the future’; reflecting on how apprenticeships can help individuals to develop the skills and knowledge required for a rewarding career, and businesses to develop a talented workforce that is equipped with future-ready skills. 

Building the future at JCA  

At JCA, we are passionate about what we do. We support apprenticeships as they assist our talent strategy and allow us to recruit, retain and develop those who want to progress their careers and be equipped with skills for life. We ensure that both the educational and work activities are planned well in advance for our apprentices, so that joining us is a great experience.    

Introducing apprentices to all areas of the business and ensuring that all expectations are achieved are vital in the first few months to continue with the development of our new employees. It is a momentous journey and a great opportunity so we heavily invest our time and resources to create the best possible outcomes for our apprentices. 

Meet our apprentice 

To celebrate this year’s National Apprenticeships Week, we caught up with Lewis, our newest apprentice, to find out why he decided to start an apprenticeship and how he’s been enjoying it so far. Lewis works as an engineering apprentice at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London, our resident maintenance site. 

Hi Lewis, thanks for celebrating the National Apprenticeships Week with us. What made you want to start an apprenticeship in the first place?   

I wanted to start an apprenticeship because I liked the thought of working while learning something new. I felt that this course was best for me, I like the idea of always doing something and not just sitting at a desk. 

 And why did you decide to choose JCA? 

I chose JCA because I knew a couple of people who had been working at JCA for a while. They both told me good things about the company so I thought it would be a great opportunity for me. 

How did you enjoy the experience at the hospital before starting your college course? 

I had a very good experience, everyone treated me well and I fitted in quite quickly. I was taught things very quickly and within the first month I got to understand how things worked around the hospital. 

Explain a little about your day-to-day tasks at the hospital. 

At the beginning of my course, it was mostly shadowing other engineers, for example plumbers, electricians and the fabric team. As I’m more into my apprenticeship, I do a lot of the jobs myself as I’ve learnt a lot and I’m able to carry them out with minimal assistance. 

Which tasks/areas of work are your favourite? 

My favourite areas of work would be the fabric maintenance because it’s very hands on and everyday there’s always something new to do in the hospital. 

How is the college going? 

College is good, I attend every Monday. I’m learning new things, the teachers are good and I’ve made a lot of new friends among other students. It’s a good positive environment and I feel like I’m progressing well. 

JCA apprenticeship programme at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital 

To find out a bit more about the JCA apprenticeship programme, we caught up with Brian Eaton, our Engineering Manager in charge of the programme at the Hospital. 

”Chelsea and Westminster Hospital offers a diverse amount of learning opportunities for an engineer. We have 24 lifts and four escalators, three extremely large steam boilers, numerous pumps and pressurisation units, around 60 AHUs, both HV and LV networks, UPS and IPS electrical systems and a vast water supply with equally vast drainage system. All this makes the hospital a good place to learn and also why we do not try to specialise with our engineering training but to offer a building services approach so that all the areas mentioned above are covered. Our newest apprentice Lewis is having to learn the basics of plumbing, electrical, locksmithing, carpentry and tiling. He is progressing very well and will be a huge asset to our team.” 

If you are interested in becoming an engineering apprentice or would like more information on the apprenticeships scheme, get in touch with us – careers@jca.co.uk  

For current vacancies and opportunities, including apprenticeships, please visit our Careers page.  

For more information about JCA and our services, head over to Our services section.  

To find out more about apprenticeships, visit the government’s website – Apprenticeships.