News release
8th October 2015
German Apprentices Get Taste of Life in Lincoln
Seven German apprentices have arrived in Lincoln to take up three-week work
placements as part of an exchange programme involving Lincoln College.
Every year the college applies for Erasmus+ funding to pay for Level 3 students and
apprentices from its Lincoln, Gainsborough and Newark campuses to spend three weeks in
Germany or the Netherlands.
In return apprentices from the continent come to Lincoln to improve their skills in trades such
as mechanical engineering, automotive engineering, childcare and carpentry.
Of the apprentices, two carpenters will be working at Lincoln Cathedral, two mechanical
engineers will be based at AJ Engineering in Lincoln and two motor vehicle students will be
working at Vauxhalist and Read Hyundai in Lincoln.
They will join a Dutch student who is already working at St Francis School in Lincoln, which
will welcome two more German apprentices later this month.
On Tuesday (6th October), MD of Kreishandwerkerschaft Coesfeld (the trade association of
craftsmen in Germany) Dr Michael Oelck along with the President Norbert Hoffmann and
Vice President Ferdi Limberg visited Lincoln Cathedral to see the apprentices at work.
Dr Oelck said: “This is my fifth visit to Lincoln so I know it quite well now. I always enjoy
coming to the city and meeting staff from the college as well as local employers who kindly
support the scheme; without them and their counterparts in Germany it wouldn’t be the
success it is today.
“The programme is unique in that it facilitates the exchange of apprentices. As well as giving
them a valuable insight into different working practices it enables them to experience a
different culture and improve their English.”
Apprentice joiner Andre Niehoff added: “It’s been interesting to look round all of the buildings
owned by Lincoln Cathedral and find out about the construction methods used in old as well
as new buildings here in the UK. Next week we’re going to be working with the cathedral’s
roofers which we’re really excited about.”
Lincoln College has participated in the Erasmus+ programme for the last eight years. In
September, Lincoln College’s European Officer Ann Stanley was invited to speak at the
ERASMUS + ‘My Story’ Annual Conference in Edinburgh along with Tim Horton, a former
Level 3 plumbing apprentice at Lincoln College who works for Plumbmac in Lincoln.
Tim is just one of more than 50 Lincoln College apprentices who have benefited from the
exchange programme.
“We were invited to the conference to speak about how we have successfully supported
apprentices to undergo work placements in Germany for three weeks,” said Ann.
“The audience included people from the world of work and education as well as the
Commission Government. The feedback that we received at the conference and on our
return was very positive
“It’s clear that Tim got a lot out of his placement – not only was it valuable for his
professional and vocational development, but also for his personal development. At the
conclusion of his placement Tim along with six other apprentices were all offered jobs by
their German hosts.”
Notes to Editors
About The Lincoln College Group:
•
Founded upon a concept of ‘synergy’, The Lincoln College Group comprises a number
of like-minded organisations with a shared purpose of providing exceptional education,
training and related services to their students.
•
Currently providing secondary, further and higher education, the Group includes Lincoln
College (with its campuses in Lincoln, Newark and Gainsborough and operations in
China) and two secondary school academies: The Newark Academy and The
Gainsborough Academy. It also encompasses Deans Sport and Leisure, a commercial
sports centre based in Lincoln City Centre.
•
Lincoln College International, a project to develop and run three Colleges in the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the latest addition to the Group.
•
The Lincoln College Group is also the lead sponsor of the Lincoln UTC which opened in
September 2014.
For further information about this release please contact:
Kate Strawson
Director, Shooting Star
Kate@weareshootingstar.co.uk
01522 528540
07733 230293
@KateStrawson
weareshootingstar.co.uk