Bosses give apprentice his dream job

A Basildon young apprentice has impressed his bosses at Essex legal firm Birkett Long so much that he’s now on the road to a career in financial services after they gave him a permanent job in the Financial Services business in Colchester.

Sam Francis, 18, shunned going to university and amassing student debt in favour of the apprenticeship scheme as an office administrator.

He gained the role through TheLightBulb organisation – a private company working in partnership with the government to deliver funded apprenticeships and training courses across a range of industries.

Sam has gained an NVQ Level 2 qualification in Business Admin. During his year with Birkett Long, Sam impressed his bosses so much that they dubbed him their “Man Friday” and now he has achieved the role in financial services that he was aiming for.

Sam said: “My new role is Financial Services Administration Assistant with a view to becoming a Trainee Paraplanner.”

The teenager, who achieved 9 GCSEs at Basildon’s Woodlands School and 4 A/S levels at Palmers College, said the past year with Birkett Long had been “great” and moving to the team of independent financial advisers was a highlight.

Now he is planning on continuing to study since he wants to take the Chartered Insurance Institute exams – the insurance and financial study programme for the financial services industry.

Sam said: “The qualification I am studying for is the Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning – there are six exams in total and I aim to achieve a minimum of two a year. In the long term, I hope to become a Financial Adviser.

“Everyone here has been brilliant in making me feel welcome and helping me learn all the new processes.”

Nicola Ward, Associate and Head of Financial Services, said: “It is refreshing to have a young person’s outlook in the team and someone who has enthusiasm and drive to further his career in financial services. He will be an asset to our team.”