Local Government Apprenticeships: My Journey | By Kenya Young-Denton

We’re proud to have reached another milestone on our mission: our community has reached 10,000 apprentices and alumni. In this series, we’ll be celebrating this by sharing ten unique stories from some of our most inspiring Community members. 

Comment below on how the Community is helping you achieve your goals!

Now, what if I told you that I believe all apprentices should start their careers with their local council? You’ll probably think I'm crazy, or old school 👵🏾. I am 21, but my young adult life has been focused on local government (by sheer coincidence might I add) and I’ve never looked back. The maturity and growth you will receive will have a positive impact on you both personally & professionally.

So, join me in my tell-all about LGA’s (Local Government Apprenticeships), and why every apprentice should have a crack within their local council.

So The Backstory
Let’s go to a galaxy far far away…

Or to 2019, where I made the life-changing decision to apply for my first apprenticeship with Enfield Council 🏢. Don’t get me wrong, I was incredibly nervous to start, especially within the Housing Team where communication and time management were imperative. This apprenticeship was Level 2 Business Administration, so it set a sturdy foundation for me to build my interpersonal & data management skills.

I won’t lie, and say I did not have my bouts with Imposter Syndrome 😬, especially when the deadline of my portfolio was approaching. However, I always remembered that everyone has their purpose, and even though it may have occasionally felt like I didn’t belong, I had my managers, my team and other apprentices for support.

My key takeaways from this apprenticeship were: 

• Be your authentic self  (Do not change your personality in order to fit in; trust me it never works.)
• Always ask for help if you need it (Do not feel embarrassed if you do not know something; you’re an apprentice after all, so learning is at the heart of everything you do.)
• Networking is key. Try and find networks/groups for apprentices or young professionals which discuss common issues surrounding the workplace in a safe environment

Now the Present… Kinda
Now to my most recent apprenticeship: Barnet Council. 
This was the apprenticeship where I found my love for Digital Marketing. How I came about it was, I guess… through a sudden push from the Multiverse Apprenticeship Recruitment Team. See, I was set on continuing my career in Business Administration, but was keeping my options open once I completed the Fundamentals of Digital Marketing by Google Digital Garage (Trust me, an absolute game changer. Check it out here.)

Anywho…

Barnet Council… Let's go!!!

Working within the public sector (Especially within Public Health) is vastly different from the private sector, as you do not necessarily have core objectives you must achieve such as having a CTR of 5% for an email marketing campaign in the first 2 weeks. Many of your objectives will mainly be for your own/team's benefit, to set a baseline of engagement with your desired audience. In the long term, this is beneficial not just for the above, but also to show your wider marketing team (If not seniors 🤓) the growth of your audience or engagement/CTR.

I won’t beat around the bush, my apprenticeship was hard and even a struggle at times. For example, completing my portfolio proved to be difficult for many reasons. This was due to multiple factors including:

• Censorship of data- Especially dealing with private information from residents such as email addresses, names, phone numbers etc. Projects overlapping
• Projects being delayed
• Restrictions in access to certain digital tools due to senior users

But, even with the difficulties I faced, I still executed multiple organic social media campaigns, & paid social media campaigns. These campaigns formed my basic understanding of Digital Marketing, especially SEO & campaign management where little to no budget was used.

To sum up my experience, I would say that Barnet Council has moulded me both personally and professionally through the help of:

• My Team (Shout out to the Public Health Directorate, in particular, the Adults Health team & Lily & Jen for being the best management a girl could have 👏🏾)
• My scope of projects
• Team Building events & exercises
• Training through both Multiverse & Barnet Council

FU-TURE!!!
Now, to clear up any confusion, I’m not still with Barnet Council, but will be starting a new Marketing Assistant role soon within the private sector. However, both my apprenticeships allowed me to see the public sector in a rare light. 

Working with local governments allows you to respect the work of public sector workers more, as you can see and be a part of the graft. Especially seeing the direct impact their work makes on communities is priceless. Plus as a bonus, it allows you to understand/empathise with individuals who might have it harder than you, making you want to help them even more.

Now, if you see an LGA advertised through Multiverse or anywhere, go for it! Trust me it's worth it.

Kenya Young-Denton is an Alumni and is writing for the Apprentice Lens. Here is more about her:

Having finished my apprenticeship, I think it's about time I share my experiences, and the best way to do this is through blogging. So, come on a journey with me to explore Digital Marketing, apprenticeships and whatever life throws at us.