Case Study: Lisa Cockerill

NVQ 2 Beauty Therapy

When I left school I wasn’t sure what job I wanted to do as a career. I got a job as an admin assistant in an office and worked there for about four years. I didn’t really feel it was the job for me and I grew very bored and frustrated. I had always had an interest in beauty therapy and so my boyfriend offered to pay for me to attend a night school to qualify to do manicures and nail art. I really enjoyed doing the qualification and it made me realise I wanted to change my career.

As I had worked full time for four years after leaving school, I had financial responsibilities like a mortgage, a car and bills to pay. There was no way that I could study full time and lose my income, so when I found out about Apprenticeships I felt really pleased and lucky as it meant I could work towards a qualification and earn a wage. I couldn’t have done it otherwise!

The support from College has been great. I find that when I have a problem or I’m unsure about something I can just call my Assessor or Work Based Learning Advisor and they always try and sort things for me straight away. When I was unhappy in my first placement my Work Based Learning Advisor supported me to find a new one - I love it at Pure Indulgence (in Bingley) and receive excellent training.

The facilities at College are brilliant. You have everything you need in the Academy of Hair and Beauty, which means you can make the best use of your time in College (one day a week) and improve your skills under the tutor’s supervision. I think the structure of the course is really good and the pace of the training is just right for the needs of an Apprentice.