Tag: apprenticeships

The apprenticeships of the future

19 May 2021

Sustainable business

In brief

  • Apprenticeships are widely available at Drax, not just in engineering

  • Hear what our existing apprentices think about the opportunities they’ve taken

  • Discover where to find out more: could you be the next Drax apprentice?

Apprenticeships are changing – once mainly the domain of school leavers entering a trade, they are now a possibility for people at many different career stages, in countless industries.

At Drax, we offer a wide range of apprenticeships across a variety of business areas, from engineering to data science. The scheme covers costs to individuals without affecting employee salaries or benefits, whilst providing sufficient support and protected study time.

“Take the opportunity! We’re very lucky to have the chance to complete apprenticeships while working.”

— Beka Mantle, apprentice

By undertaking the apprenticeship, people can learn a new set of skills to improve their knowledge and expertise, boost their career opportunities and gain invaluable experience.

What is an apprenticeship?

An apprenticeship is made up of learning with a training provider and practical experience on the job.

Apprenticeships can benefit Drax by attracting new talent while also developing existing colleagues and future-proofing our workforce to help achieve our ambition to become carbon negative by 2030.

Apprentice Q&A

The following insights from Drax employees highlight the opportunities that apprenticeships can give them and what they have learnt so far.

Joe Clements

Job title: Technical Engineering Trainee

Apprenticeship: Mechanical Engineering Pathway Continuation

Q: What are the benefits of an apprenticeship?

A: It’s put me in positions that I might not have found myself in before, forcing me to learn fast and adapt. It’s also benefiting Drax as I’m constantly learning and developing within my team. On completion, I should be ready to go straight into an engineering role.

Q: What are the challenges?

A: Balancing your work and study, especially as you grow into the role and take on more tasks. However, you’re guaranteed learning hours on a weekly basis.

Lois Cheatle

Job title: Finance Graduate

Apprenticeship: Accountancy and Taxation

Q: Why did you want to do an apprenticeship?

A: Having graduated from university and taken a year out, I wanted to further improve on the skills I’d learnt. An apprenticeship has allowed me to develop these skills both from learning on the job and having technical support from my training provider as I worked my way through my accountancy qualification.

It’s also given me the opportunity to develop soft skills such as communication and building relationships, which is part of the professional development side of the apprenticeship.

Alex Hegarty

Job title: Data Science Analyst

Apprenticeship: Data Science

Q: How was your apprenticeship application process?

A: It was fairly straightforward – Louisa Russell (Early Careers Manager at Drax) helped me with my enrolment. To qualify for the course, I had to complete a quiz to prove I had basic proficiency in programming.

Q: What’s the best thing about doing an apprenticeship?

A: Having experts with extensive knowledge of the subject who you can pester with questions.

Beka Mantle

Job title: 4E Business Lead

Apprenticeship: Improvement Specialist

Q: Have you felt supported? 

A: Very. My line manager is always checking in to see how I’m getting on and offering support, and I have catch ups with the Early Careers team. I also meet my apprenticeship tutor at least bi-weekly, and he’s always there to answer any questions and talk things through. I’m also lucky to have someone else on my team who’s working through the same apprenticeship – it’s great when we need to practise something or bounce ideas off each other.

Q: What would you say to anyone thinking of doing an apprenticeship? 

A: Take the opportunity! We’re very lucky to have the chance to complete apprenticeships while working, and I’m grateful to have the support of so many people around me while I’m on this journey.

Chris Hughes

Job Title: Seconded to Supplier Relationship Manager

Apprenticeship: Regulatory Compliance

Q: What’s the best thing about it?

A: Making new friends from different sectors, such as councils and environmental health, and gaining an insight into their working lives and how compliance plays its part. It’s also motivating to get continuous positive feedback about my strong coursework and presentations.

Jason Reeve

Job title: Collections Manager – line manager to Chris Hughes and Jessica Leason, Supplier Relationship Manager

Q: How do you manage study commitments?

A: I’ve made sure that both Chris and Jessica have had dedicated study time blocked out in their diaries. In our 1:1s, we’ve discussed progress and looked at the assessment criteria to make sure they’ve been involved with projects giving them valuable experience to support their apprenticeship.

Q: Why is it important to support colleagues doing apprenticeships?

A: It’s vital to develop your team – as a manager, a large part of my success is down to the skills and expertise my team brings to the table. Helping Chris and Jess through their apprenticeship has really aided their personal development, knowledge and skills. I soon started seeing the benefit in terms of what they were bringing to the team, their contribution to the department and their own confidence.

Their continued development through the scheme has helped keep their passion alive for their roles and driven their success.

Go deeper

Find out more about the apprenticeships we offer at Drax, as well as our other career opportunities here.

Meet the apprentices powering our future

4 March 2019

Sustainable business

“Different people do things different ways,” says Sam Stocks, an apprentice engineer at Drax Power Station. It’s a sentiment echoed by corporate administration apprentice Chloe Carpenter at Opus Energy. Asked to describe her role, she says, “[It’s] a very different kind of job.”

Chloe and Sam are just two of a number of apprentices at Drax Group who are working across the UK. And while they’re proud to do things differently, they do have something in common – they’re all hands-on, practical people who would rather get stuck in on a project than sit still and hear about it in the classroom.

“I chose an apprenticeship over higher education because I’m more of a doing person,” says Molly Fensome, a corporate administration apprentice. Sam agrees. “I like to be hands-on,” he says. “I don’t like being sat in a classroom.”

They are doing things their way – engineering their own futures while growing personally and professionally. And ensuring the future of our energy supply in the process.

Finding a strong sense of identity

For Sam, working at Drax wasn’t just a sensible career move, it was also following in his family’s footsteps. “My grandad worked in the power station industry all his life. [My family] know exactly what I’m like and they knew what type of place this was to work.”

Drax’s transformation from a coal-powered plant to a modern, sustainable electricity company means Sam’s work is building a power framework for future generations, while also paying homage to his grandad’s career.

Jake Dawson, an electrical engineer apprentice, followed a similar path into the power industry. Being born and bred in the area, Drax Power Station has always been a part of his geography. “Because I’m such a local lad it was perfect for me,” he says.

In his role, Jake can play a key part in the region where he grew up. A recent Oxford Economics report shows that Drax contributes £431 million to Yorkshire and the Humber economy and supports over 3,200 jobs.

A role in a team

Drax is a large organisation, but for Chloe finding role models within her team she can look up to and take guidance from has been easy. “Mentoring sessions are relaxed and you build a special bond with that person,” she says. “You can talk to them about work, outside of work – anything. They’ll always be there for you.”

Corporate administration apprentice Matt Donnelly has had a similar experience, adding that he’s seen his confidence grow, and feels he has made lifelong friends in his role.

Ultimately, it’s not just that they are given the right support, but that apprentices are integrated as a part of the company from day one. “My favourite part of my apprenticeship so far is being part of the team,” says Chloe. “Because you feel like you’re not just an apprentice, but you’re also one of them.”

Being part of something bigger

Sam remembers his first day at Drax Power Station: “It was overwhelming, you don’t actually realise how big it is and realise how many people work here. It’s just normal now, if I go anywhere else, I’m thinking, ‘That’s not as big as at work.’”

It’s not just its size that makes the UK’s biggest single site renewable power station stand out, but the potential for career development there. It’s this that Jake had on his mind when he first made the decision to become an apprentice. He was working in an unskilled job with little opportunity, but he knew he had it in him to find something bigger.

His outlook today as a Drax apprentice is very different. “My aim after the four years is to carry on growing as a person, increasing all my skills that I have, and maybe eventually becoming a supervisor or an engineer, who knows?”

This mindset of striving for better is evident across apprentices. It’s what drove them to join the programme in the first place. “Instead of going somewhere like uni and then possibly coming out without a job, you’ve got a job, and you’re actually learning as you’re doing it,” says Sam. “The skill set that I’ve learnt now – I’ll probably go anywhere in the world with it.”

Find out more about apprenticeships at Drax

People strategy

21 March 2018

Sustainable business

Our people strategy: One Drax

Following extensive consultation with employees, we developed our people strategy to 2020 – One Drax. It has been designed to address the key issues that were raised by employees in our 2016 employee survey, such as the need for clearer learning and development programmes and more effective internal communications. The strategy focuses on valuing our people, driving business performance and developing talent to deliver our strategic and operational objectives.

We launched the five aspects of the strategy: my career, my performance, our behaviours, our reward, my recognition. In 2018, we will focus on all of these aspects and, in particular, our reward, my recognition and my career.

Behavioural framework

We have developed a number of HR programmes in line with our people strategy. The foundation of this is a new behavioural framework that identifies positive behaviours reflecting our Company values: honest, energised, achieving, together. The behaviours are integrated into all areas of our people management processes at Drax Group. The HR team consulted with one in five employees across the business, including senior leaders and union representatives, to develop the framework.

In 2018 we will further embed the behavioural framework and our Company values into our culture by developing an online tool for employees to evaluate how they demonstrate the behaviours.

Developing our people / apprenticeships

At Drax Power, we have a proud history of apprenticeships, with the majority remaining to work at Drax and progressing through the Company.

Mick Moore joined Drax on 7 September 1976 as a craft apprentice.

On completion of his apprenticeship, Mick continued to further his education and completed an HNC in Electrical & Electronic Engineering. After a 10-year break he resumed his further education, graduating from Humberside & Lincolnshire University with a degree in Electronics & Control Engineering, achieving Chartered Engineering status with the Institute of Electrical Engineers in 1999.

Having worked at Drax for 41 years, Mick’s career has included roles such as Instrument Mechanic, various engineering grades from Assistant Engineer to Process Control Engineer & Maintenance Section Head. Mick is now the Electrical, Control & Instrumentation Engineering Section Head for Drax Power and is currently responsible for a team of 51 people.

 

The people behind the power

7 March 2017

Sustainable business

Drax Group may have been built with Drax Power Station at its core, but today it’s a set of integrated companies, helping to change the way energy is generated, supplied and used, to build a better future.

At the heart of each part of the business – from creating the fuel to power the station’s boilers to managing the supply of electricity, gas and renewable heating fuel to customers – is people.

Here we meet some of those people working behind the scenes.

Robert Gatlin, Operations Supervisor, Amite BioEnergy, Drax Biomass

robert_bw“I was a student in the Process Operations Technology programme at Southwest Mississippi Community College and Drax came to the school to recruit new grads. They were introducing a new technology I’d never heard of and it sparked my interest.

“The idea of using biomass to produce electricity on such a large scale was fascinating, so I joined Drax Biomass in 2014. I was unaware biomass was being used to produce electricity – it’s very exciting to be part of something this big and cutting edge.

“One of the most interesting things I’ve discovered working here is the way moisture affects nearly everything in the pelletising process. We really have to work diligently to ensure our moisture levels are where they need to be in every stage of producing a pellet.”

Rachel Grima, Sustainability Analyst, Drax Group

rachael_bw“I’ve always wanted to work in renewable energy and I studied life cycle analysis during my degree. I started looking for jobs in renewable energy, and as the biggest generator of renewable energy in the UK, Drax was an obvious choice!

“Today my job involves assessing and interpreting sustainability data for all the biomass we use. Our team uses this data to assess if a supplier meets our sustainability policy and regulation.

“I’d never looked very much at transport emissions, so I find it really interesting. You can move 30,000 tonnes of wood pellets in one ship, but it would take over 1,000 trucks to move that many, creating far more greenhouse gas emissions. Since joining the team, I’ve been really surprised to see how driving small efficiencies in a supply chain can create real savings in greenhouse gas emissions.”

Stephen Wilkinson, Turbine Maintenance Technician, Drax Power Station


Stephen Wilkinson, Turbine Maintenance Technician“I’ve always enjoyed building and fixing things. Given that my father and both grandfathers were in engineering – one of them even working at Drax during its construction – I had a strong drive to get into engineering. Living locally, it seemed the biggest and best place to work.

“I’m a Turbine Maintenance Technician, so I act as the link between the turbine support group and the main station planning and maintenance teams. I start the day early by looking through the list of overnight defects, focusing on the turbine area. After this I’m out of the office having a look at the issues to determine whether the station maintenance team or the turbine support group will carry out the repair work. From this point on every day is different.

“The recent changes Drax has made to adapt to a rapidly changing energy market has affected most people at the station. For me, seeing the major turbine upgrades take place has been extremely interesting. I started as an apprentice and then as a fitter, working on the turbine outages, seeing these upgrades first-hand. This has moved on to the point where I have been lucky enough to visit a number of the turbine manufacturing facilities in the UK and Germany.”

Gemma Baker, SME Customer Service Delivery Manager, Haven Power 

gemma-baker_bw

“I joined Haven Power in July 2007 as a Customer Service Advisor. I’d never worked in the energy industry before and thought it sounded interesting – Haven caught my eye as it was a new company which excited me. Being part of and contributing to a growing company was right up my street!

“Now I’m responsible for delivering a consistent and valued account management service to our electricity customers across all the small- to medium enterprise (SME) segments. This includes everything from billing and cash collection, to renewals and query and complaint resolution. I’ve been at Haven for nine and a half years now!”

Sam French, Customer Service Administrator Apprentice, Opus Energy

sam-french_bw

“Before joining [Opus Energy] I didn’t know anything about the energy industry – now I know about different supplier competitors, how an electricity supply contract is agreed and registered, and how we actually apply for a supply. I’ve learnt so much about different aspects of the energy industry, too.

“I haven’t had that much involvement with the Drax Group yet, but I’ve enjoyed looking into the business. I’ve found it really interesting to learn how they’ve managed to transition from a non-renewable company to one that is now producing more renewable than fossil fuel power – which is amazing.”

Amy Carton, Sales and Marketing Executive, Billington Bioenergy

amy_bbe_bw

 “I’m responsible for all aspects of internal and external marketing and communications at Billington Bioenergy, a company which supplies wood pellets to commercial and domestic customers who use them to heat their homes or businesses.

“I try to be environmentally conscious and keep my carbon footprint as low as possible – renewable and sustainable heating comes into this. It’s wonderful to spend my days promoting the merits of renewable heating. It’s a relatively small industry in the UK in comparison to our European counterparts, but this makes what we do here in Billington Bioenergy quite unique.

“There was quite a bit of information to digest when I first started – for example, ENplus regulations, different types of pellets, how wood pellet boilers work… it was a big learning curve!”

Find out about careers and apprenticeships within Drax Group:

What does an Instrument Craftsperson do?

10 November 2016

Power generation
Instrument Craftperson in action

How do you go about fixing a turbine that, on a normal day, spins 3,000 times every minute? The first port of call is to call in someone like Alice Gill, an Instrument Craftsperson at Drax Power Station. 

What does an Instrument Craftperson do?

What I do is maintain and repair the equipment that links the outside power plant and the control room – equipment that tracks temperature, levels or positioning that then informs our operators in the control room what’s happening on the plant.

Things like an oxygen analyser. It’s a probe that sits in the boiler and monitors the oxygen level so the operator can ensure the correct ratio of fuel to air is going into the boiler to reach optimum combustion.

I might be called on to do calibration checks on that sensor to ensure that it’s working properly. Or I might be asked to completely remove it and then to repair it.

How did you come to be doing this job?

I’m not the sort of person who likes to sit down at a desk all day – I’m more of a hands on sort of person. My dad was always working and fixing things in the garage at home and I liked being in there with him.

When I was at school I decided I didn’t want to go to university so started applying for apprenticeships and looking into engineering opportunities. Drax was one of those schemes and was the one I most wanted to be selected for – luckily enough I was offered a place.

The apprenticeship was four years and there are loads of training courses and so much to learn, including hands on experience and working in the plant.

I remember first arriving to the power station and not really believing the scale of the place. You think, ‘How am I ever going to find my way around?’, but you soon get used to it and it becomes the norm.

In September I became a full Instrument Craftsperson so now I can really get stuck in.

Alice Gill at Drax Power Station

“I’m not the sort of person who likes to sit down at a desk all day – I’m more of a hands on sort of person.”

What sort of challenges do you face?

Over the summer I’ve been doing a lot of work on the turbines. It’s a big job as they’re one of the most important elements driving the plant and generating the power. During outages the whole thing gets overhauled and given a full health check.

The turbine team needs to get into machinery, which is densely constructed and put together, so it’s my job to go in and carefully remove instrumentation so they can access it. When they’re done, I have to go back in, refit everything and check it’s all working again.

How do you do that?

When you’re removing the instruments it’s a bit more of a ‘just get it off’ approach – you just make sure you get it off safely without damaging it.

Then when we’re refitting it, we’re out there with our multimeters making sure we’re setting different probes at the right voltages and that everything is calibrated correctly.

There’s a screen in our workshop we use to watch the activity of the turbine so we can see the speed of the turbine creeping up as they switch it back on. It’s always a big moment. You know things are going to be alright because you’ve done everything, but there are still some nervous people in the room. The turbines are spinning at 3,000RPM so you really need it all to be working properly.

Is there anything that could wrong on an average day?

One of the biggest things that could go wrong in my area is the potential to trip an entire generating unit. It might be that you over-pressurise something or you accidentally trigger a switch that then sets off a daisy chain of events that ends up in a unit tripping. Tripping is where the unit turns off which basically leads to a total shutdown in electricity generation from one sixth of Drax Power Station.

There’s something called the 660 club – at full load the units are operating at 660 MW so if you trip one you enter into this infamous club. There are a few guys in the 660 club but thankfully I haven’t joined! When operating at full load of 660 MW, our units supply the National Grid with around 645 MW– enough to power an entire city.

What do you do outside of work?

I’ve got a horse called Red – I’ve had him for seven years but I’ve been riding since I was eight. It’s quite different to working with things that do exactly what you tell them. When you get on the horse he just does what he wants – he’s got a mind of his own. It’s a big change!