Lancashire, Accrington and Blackburn to benefit from new drive of recruitment as FSB says BT is leading the way

BT Plans almost 100 New Apprenticeships in North West

More customer service and engineering apprentices to be recruited across the region this year

Lancashire, Accrington and Blackburn will be three locations to benefit from a major BT recruitment drive of apprentices across the UK, it was announced today.

There will be 30 new apprenticeships in Accrington this year in customer service roles at BT’s customer contact centre. In Blackburn there will be an additional eight places for BT Business customer service apprentices. The apprentices will be part of a rapidly developing operation dealing with a wide range of customer issues, including enquiries about BT Sport, superfast fibre broadband and mobile communications.

The Lancashire jobs boost is part of a recent national announcement to create 1,000 new apprenticeships and graduate jobs in the UK. It is expected that more than 96 apprentices and graduates will be recruited across the

North West as a whole. The majority are customer service apprenticeships with the remainder mainly engineering jobs in BT’s local network business, Openreach.

Other North West towns and cities to benefit include Manchester and Stockport and Liverpool.

The new recruits will join the 139 people already undergoing BT apprenticeships in the North West with 56 of those graduating this year.

The Globe Centre in Accrington is the base for one of BT’s major customer contact centres in the UK, employing 350 customer service advisers and managers and handling more than 13,000 inquiries a day. Further information about BT apprenticeships and how to make an application is available at: http://www.bt.com/apprentices

Gary Lovatt, Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) Regional Chairman for Lancashire said: “It is great news for our region that BT is leading the way and ensuring a bright future for people entering their apprenticeship programme. Apprenticeships are a great way for new employees to learn the ropes and gain the skills they need to kickstart a fantastic career within the North West. The way apprenticeships are run is changing so employers large and small will be able to have more of a say in how their apprentices progress through a qualification – ensuring a better fit for employee and business alike.”

Kieron Charleson, BT regional partnership director, said: “This latest announcement is great news for Lancashire and the North West as a whole and further confirmation of the vital role played by BT as an innovator, investor and creator of jobs in the region. Such recruitment is a major vote of confidence in the quality of the North West workforce and the abilities and commitment of people in our region.

“An apprenticeship with one of the world’s leading telecommunications companies is a great way to start a rewarding career, offering first class personal development opportunities.

“BT has a very strong reputation as a leading employer and with major developments, such as our multi billion pound investments in superfast broadband, mobile communications, TV and sport, the prospects have never looked brighter or more exciting.”

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