Back in 2022, 16-year-old Sid Airey started his career journey at Ring Stones as an apprentice… Now aged 19, he’s working as a trainee quantity surveyor and is looking forward to his future in construction.
Talking about starting at Ring Stones at the age of 16, Sid explained: “I didn’t think about doing an apprenticeship so early, until I got the opportunity.
“I got lucky really – a friend of my dad’s works here and he knew I wanted to do this as a career. I got gifted the opportunity. I took it and so far, I love it”.
Working with Calico’s Shared Apprenticeship Service, Ring Stones have the capacity to host around 11 apprentices across the business, with four apprentices currently employed.
Sid added: “I prefer learning more practically. I’m learning on the job. You can only learn so much in a classroom. You get so much more experience by doing an apprenticeship, and it puts you ahead of people your own age”.
Now he’s finished his BTEC apprenticeship, Sid is looking to do HNC (undergrad degree) in Quantity Surveying. Ring Stones are also looking at the opportunity for Sid to do a degree in Quantity Surveying in future, which has the potential to take his career even further.
Now based at Network 65, Sid enjoys learning new skills, working on varied projects and doing something different every day.
He said: “Construction is always progressing and changing. There’s always something to learn and I’m always doing something new.
“Everyday day always takes extra thinking, and it helps me learn more, plan better and work differently. I’m always having to think with most tasks – nothing is what it says on the tin”.
Joining a workforce can be daunting for those who start their apprenticeships at a young age. Thankfully, Sid works with a ‘proper sound’ team who have always made him feel welcome and support. He added: “The people I work with are great – they’re all so funny. They all have a laugh. It’s daunting started at 16 but they’ve always made me feel welcome”.
Sid concluded: “Starting out at 16, my knowledge wasn’t the best because of my age, but I’m learning something new every day. Ring Stones are putting me through my HNC – I can’t thank them enough for investing in me and believing in me”.
To find out more about Ring Stones, visit ringstones.co.uk or to learn more about apprenticeships, please visit: calicoenterprise.org.uk/careers/apprenticeships/
