“Applying to South and City College to work for Worcester Bosch back in 2018 has been one of the best decisions I have ever made and I am proud of myself for coming this far and achieving what I have.”
Lee Smallman, Gas Engineer at Worcester Bosch
This story was written by Tracy Kerr, Business Consultant at South & City College Birmingham
South and City College Birmingham have been working with Worcester Bosch for 7 years and have recruited and trained over 45 Gas Engineering Apprentices from all over the UK, most of which are now qualified Gas Engineers working in the field for Worcester Bosch.
One of our success stories is local lad Lee Smallman from Wolverhampton. Lee left school in 2002 and moved from job to job and after being made redundant twice he decided to apply for the Gas Engineering position in 2018.
Lee got through an intensive recruitment process and was offered the position by Worcester Bosch and he started training at the College in September 2018.
Lee states: “I was over the moon I secured the role, and I couldn’t wait to start work with my mentor in the field. I just wanted to get stuck into the job and I was apprehensive about College as I didn’t have many good experiences at school”.
Lee started block release at the Bordesley Campus of the College and immediately felt at ease as all the staff were supportive, helpful and friendly. “I left school without achieving A-C grades in English and Maths at GCSE, so I was very reluctant about the prospect of doing these again. Yvonne was a fantastic teacher and she helped and supported me to successfully achieve Level 2 in English and Maths. I was so proud of myself and grateful to Yvonne for her help and support from start to finish.”
Lee praises his other tutors and Assessor too…
“I always felt like nothing was too much to ask, the tutors push you to get better and better and always went over things if I wasn’t sure. For some of the time Covid hit and the College still kept in touch to make sure I was ok and set work for me to do. This was the case for my mentor, Allan and Jason in Worcester Bosch too. They were really supportive at a difficult time for everyone.”
Lee passed his course and apprenticeship in 2021 and is now a qualified Gas Engineer and works independently covering areas in the West Midlands.
“Applying to South and City College to work for Worcester Bosch back in 2018 has been one of the best decisions I have ever made and I am proud of myself for coming this far and achieving what I have. I couldn’t have done this without the help, support and dedication of Worcester Bosch colleagues and all the staff that taught me at College”.
Lee is thriving and is looking forward to a long and rewarding career in the company and supporting new apprentices coming into the business.
Want a hands-on career with skills that will always be needed? Take a look at out Plumbing & Gas courses.