How I Kept my Apprenticeship, Despite Being Made Redundant | By Toni-Marie Bonser

I’ve had the title of this post ready to go for a while. It’s been my “north star”.

Every day since has been about getting through an unexpected upheaval and moving on to the next chapter.

I’m so relieved to finally be coming out the other side, and I hope I can be a source of support to any fellow apprentices going through the same or do in the future.

What Happened?
One morning, out of the blue, I was informed that my role was “at risk of redundancy”. I was devastated.

It was such a shock. I didn’t immediately know what to do next, so I spent the rest of that day watching Harry Potter. Then, in anticipation of a redundancy confirmation, I got laser focussed on how I would secure a new job and rescue my apprenticeship. 

It was confirmed about a week later that my role had, in fact, been made redundant. 

The sadness I felt at losing a job I actually liked, soon turned to disappointment when I thought of my 8 months of apprenticeship work potentially going to waste. The ink had barely dried on a 14,000 word assignment I had just submitted, so, through the confusion, upset, and exhaustion, I decided to fight for it.

Of course, I hope no other apprentice ever goes through what I did. But, just in case you are, or you do, I would like my experience to serve as some hope that even if you lose your job, you don’t necessarily have to lose your apprenticeship and all your hard work as well. 

Taking Action
Here are the key steps I took in the immediate aftermath of being told of a possible redundancy:

1. Update CV- The very first thing I did was update my CV and LinkedIn profile, including adding my apprenticeship. I would highly recommend running your CV through ChatGPT for quick and effective improvements, such as changing your experience to sound achievement based rather than description based.
2. Contact Multiverse Coach- I contacted my Multiverse coach to let them know what was happening. I was met with all the support I needed. My coach was very sympathetic and understanding and helped me navigate the next steps regarding saving my apprenticeship.
   
   They were also very accommodating with my need for flexibility regarding attending delivery sessions and submitting assignments.
   
   For my situation, I had 3 months to secure a new role.
    
3. Targeted applications- I would advise any-one looking for a new role to carefully consider where you’re applying and what roles you’re applying for.
   In my haste to find a new role, at first, I applied for anything and everything that vaguely matched my experience. I ended up in some questionable processes and interviewed for roles that I knew within the first 5 minutes weren’t right for me. It was a waste of every-one’s time.
   
   My next role required careful consideration. I didn’t want to deviate too far from the trajectory my previous role had put me on, but I was also aware that any new role had to be understanding and accommodating of my apprenticeship.
   
   This, then, significantly informed where I decided to apply.
    
4. Network! – I’m sure almost no-one wants to hear this, but your network is the single most valuable asset you can leverage when you want to secure a new role.
   
   I posted on LinkedIn about my situation. This action alone got me into numerous interview processes. Generally, I find that people are keen to help others if they can, even if it’s only interacting with a post to increase its reach. You may be pleasantly surprised to see where assistance comes from.
   
   I also sent my CV to all the recruiters I was connected to in my industry on LinkedIn. Word of warning, I was very surprised at the low response rate. Most didn’t even send a courtesy reply. The ones that did were very helpful and supportive.

Introducing my Apprenticeship to Potential Employers
The prospect of talking to potential employers about my apprenticeship was daunting, but everyone I interviewed with was surprisingly open to it.

I approached the conversation with potential employers by:

• Finding an appropriate place to bring it up in interviews e.g., as part of an answer, saying the phrase “as you’ll have seen from my CV, I’m currently doing a business transformation apprenticeship…..”
• Briefly explaining where I am on the programme, and what I have left to do.
• Casually mentioning some of the benefits to both me and the potential employer’s business of being on the apprenticeship e.g., the directly applicable skills to the role.

Multiverse has some helpful guidance to support apprentices who need to have these conversations. Your coach should be able to provide this.
From my experience, organisations are usually keen to support their employees’ personal development endeavours, so it made sense that I received a positive reception when having these conversations.

Transferring the Apprenticeship to my New Role
After I started my new role, I contacted my coach to let them know. From there, the HR department at my new company liaised with Multiverse to process my change of employer and transfer my apprenticeship over to them.

I cannot overstate how lucky and grateful I felt at securing a new role with an employer who was so supportive and accommodating of my apprenticeship. They quickly went through all the necessary admin for the transfer, and even sorted out the question of how the remainder of my apprenticeship was to be funded.

Originally, it was funded by a third-party organisation, and I wasn’t sure how or whether that could continue with a new employer. However, my new employer is part of the Government apprenticeship levy scheme and I was able to continue through that. 

Where am I now?
As of writing, I am working on my project and preparing for my assessments in the coming weeks.

Coming to the end of the experience is bittersweet. While I’m super proud of what I’ve achieved and very appreciative of all the opportunities and experiences I’ve had, I am also looking forward to getting my assessments done and applying what I’ve learned to my new role and rest of my career.

Summary
In summary, if you find yourself in the same situation as I did, these would be the essential steps I would suggest taking to give you the best chance at continuing your apprenticeship:

• Update your CV and LinkedIn with details of your apprenticeship.
• Contact your Multiverse coach and make sure you understand the next steps for your situation and continuing your programme.
• Create a targeted job-hunting plan.
• Network!
• Continue with your Multiverse delivery sessions and assignments so you don’t fall behind.

Conclusion
My journey through unexpected redundancy while undertaking an apprenticeship has taught me invaluable lessons about resilience, proactive planning, and the importance of leveraging support networks, both professional and personal. 

Despite the initial shock and uncertainty, I took immediate steps to mitigate my situation, persevere through it, and eventually succeed in getting back on track.

The successful transition of my apprenticeship to a new role was a huge relief and reassurance to me, and I hope it can be to you too. Now settled in my new role, I'm proud to be nearing the end of my apprenticeship armed with relevant industry skills and experiences that I’m confident will open many doors for me. 

To anyone facing a similar situation, my advice is to stay proactive, maintain communication with your support system, and persistently advocate for your apprenticeship—it's a journey worth pursuing and celebrating.

Toni is a Level 4 Business Transformation apprentice at Multiverse based in London.

She has spent the last 10 years working in the market research industry in various project management roles. She has recently pivoted her career, and her most recent roles have been tech and product focussed.
In her spare time, she enjoys reading, watching true crime documentaries, and sightseeing.