Dorset Police

Dorset

Samantha Mayes

Learning Development Unit Support Manager

When you’re Head Girl at your school and a straight-A student, why on Earth would you want to become an apprentice instead of going to university?

That was the question Paige Noyce faced from her Headmaster, her careers advisers, and almost everyone else she met when she decided to turn away from the beckoning lights of academia and enrol at Weymouth College.

“My headmaster tried to push me away from doing an apprenticeship but I thought it would give me a qualification in something I’m interested in as well as work experience,” says Paige, who became an apprentice with Dorset Police.

“There was a point where I was starting to crumble as it was getting a bit too much. But my parents said I could do what I wanted to do and they would support me.

“They knew I would push myself. I can’t just sit back and relax. There are so many things I can learn here.”

After resisting the pressure to continue down the academic route, Paige then found she had to convince her new employers that she was making the right choice, too.
 
“The apprentices we’ve had have generally done other things first before realising those weren’t for them,” says Samantha Mayes, the force’s Learning Development Unit Support Manager.

“For Paige to come straight from school was quite different. It concerned me a little bit. I asked her what she wanted out of the apprenticeship, and she said she wanted to gain some hands-on skills and life experience while doing a qualification as well.

“It was her positive attitude that sold it to me. It’s not typical. Her academic achievements didn’t put me off but I was concerned whether she was making the right choice. And her careers advisers had told her not to.”

Paige’s A* and seven other A-grades proved a good indicator of how she’d do at Dorset Police.

“She’s picked up lots of skills and her IT skills are amazing,” says Samantha. “She’d been at school using computers forever. We’ve even got her to develop things here for us. That’s her forte.

“She produces spreadsheets, takes minutes of meetings, supports the e-ppp helpdesk and has improved our communication with the updating of the intranet site.

“It’s been brilliant all round. She’s a pretty quick worker. If Paige maintains her attitude and continues to gain new experiences’ and skills, I think she could be a future leader within the Force. She has that edge to her.”

Paige completed her apprenticeship in only 10 months and now has a full-time job with Dorset Police in Governance Unit Support.

“I source all my apprentices through Weymouth College,” says Samantha. “Paige is my tenth. It’s a really good way to get young people into the Force. They look at things very differently and think outside the box.

“It’s quite refreshing sometimes. They’re ready to be moulded. You can put time and effort into them and it’s lovely to see them develop and move up.

“Weymouth College is very flexible. There have been times when Paige had needed to be here for a meeting about a new computer system when she was due to be at the college, and they were very happy to let her stay here.”

Weymouth College is equally proud of her.

“Paige demonstrates that apprenticeships have developed and are a real alternative to academic progression and not just the poor relation,” says Becky Moate, the college’s Training Solutions Manager.

Paige herself praises the college in return for its flexibility and support throughout her apprenticeship. And she stresses that she’s not against academic achievement, either.

“A lot of people came in from universities to talk to us,” she says. “I’m not against A-levels. In fact, I’ve started a BA degree in Business with the Open University.”

Weymouth College