We’ve asked our Apprentices to describe their overall experience at Orbit and how the support we've offered has helped them secure permanent roles and improve their confidence.
Callum
My overall experience at Orbit has been a positive one. It has been my first ever experience at work and I’m thankful that I have had such great colleagues to help me adjust from life at school to life at work. I began working in the Lettings department, where I had the opportunity to learn hands on the ins and outs of social housing and was also given the opportunity to shadow different areas of the business to fully understand the housing process and what other areas of the business entailed.
Later on in my Apprenticeship, I transferred to the Property Management department. This transition was made more difficult because of COVID-19. This was because of the restrictions causing me to learn my new role from home making it harder for me to pick up my day-to-day responsibilities. My Manager and new colleagues were and still are always there to answer any questions that I may have and I can just message them and get them to run through anything if I was to get stuck.
Kai
My experience with Orbit over the past year has been incredibly positive. I joined Orbit at 16 years old, youngest in the Apprenticeship cohort and fresh out of secondary school; although it was a massive adjustment, the transition was seamless, and I felt a part of the team from day one.
Orbit’s development of their employees is at the forefront of the Apprenticeship and Graduate programs, the opportunities we have been given over the past year has really been invaluable and really set us on a strong path for our careers.
We have been able to network with the wider business, outside of our usual working departments, building links that are a great advantage to have in the future.
We have had the opportunity to present projects on how to improve the business which have now been launched into the business, after being presented to senior management teams. We have all secured permanent roles in our areas of the business, bringing Orbit’s ethos and all the skills gained in the apprenticeship into our everyday working. I began the Apprenticeship, knowing not a lot about social housing and I have completed it as permanent Lettings Assistant managing my own patch and being chosen for Lean Review Pilot on how to improve the allocations and voids process in the business.
Dan
I have thoroughly enjoyed my time with Orbit since I started over 14 months ago. Like a lot of the other Apprentices this was my first full time job so it felt like a big step. I have enjoyed many aspects of my Apprenticeship, from volunteering at a local charity with my team, to meeting lots of new people through our Apprenticeship project. I thought starting my Apprenticeship with no background in Finance would be challenging, but the support I received from my colleagues helped me learn the ropes quickly and they are still as willing to help if I misunderstand something now.
Orbit has also funded me to go to college once a week to study for the AAT finance qualification. After completing the Apprenticeship and level 2 qualification, they are now funding me to go on to the level 3 course.
At the end of my Apprenticeship, I was fortunate to be offered a permanent role in my team in Finance; this added job security has made a real difference during these uncertain times.
Charles
My overall experience at Orbit has been very positive. As it was my first job in an office environment, I wasn’t sure what to expect but my team was very welcoming and have been extremely supportive in my time here.