Development success for customer service apprentice

7 Sep 2020 03:10 PM

Fiona Podolski has successfully completed her end-point assessment for the Level 2 customer service practitioner apprenticeship standard, and achieved a distinction. Fiona works at Hingham Library and since undertaking her apprenticeship she has developed her skills and grown in confidence.

Fiona commented: “Working through the Customer Service apprenticeship has not only helped focus my work in the library, but it has motivated me to look for further development opportunities. The improvements I have made in my own work practices helped increase the number of customers through the door in the library and increase the number of books issued at the library. This in turn has increased my confidence and my enthusiasm to develop my skills further.”

Lesley Olesen, Apprenticeship Delivery Manager at Norfolk county council’s learning provider, Adult Learning commented: “This was the first time we had delivered the new standard and we had reservations about the process, including questions about whether we were doing it correctly. The journey for us as a training provider was a steep learning curve as so much had changed in the apprenticeship world and we had to ensure we understood exactly the requirements so as to support the learner to Gateway.”

Embracing end-point assessment

Fiona told us how her apprenticeship has enabled her to progress with her development: “Not only did I look for opportunities to do more within the library service, I also started to look for opportunities outside of the library. I spotted, applied for and succeeded in getting a job as a digital inclusion coordinator with voluntary Norfolk and carers matter Norfolk. I will be doing this alongside my job in the library. This has all been a result of this apprenticeship, encouraging me to set myself goals and giving me the confidence to do more!”

Fiona’s employer Hingham Library commented on why they take on apprentices “We aspire to being a learning organisation, providing opportunities for staff of different ages and stages. There are limited qualification opportunities for library assistants so we are keen to support their development in this way”

Supported by EPA Plus

“EPA Plus supported us throughout the process and ensured all our questions were answered in a timely and professional manner.”

Lesley also stated that: “We researched many EPA providers but found the website easier to manoeuvre than others and the support given by our Client Relationship Executive was the best! He always answered my queries via Teams, phone calls and emails in a timely manner with minimal delay. He was happy to acknowledge he did not have all the answers but would come back to us within 24 hours with the solution or response.”

Susan Goldstein, Head of Client Relationships at EPA Plus said: “Fiona is a great example of the important place that apprenticeships have in enabling people to progress in their development and gain confidence. I have no doubt Fiona will inspire others to engage in learning though her new role. All of us at EPA Plus are delighted to have played some small part in this process.”

EPA Plus offers both NCFE and CACHE standards across a variety of a sector and subject areas, which is supported by sector expertise, guidance documents and proactive service. Visit our end-point assessment webpages to find out more: https://www.cache.org.uk/end-point-assessment