As part of National Apprenticeship Week, we want to celebrate all our amazing apprentices!

Carvell Cushion Is a local 19-year-old who secured the role as office admin assistant at the LFC as part of cohort 3. Carvell first found out about the Sports Works programme at his local job centre after he had already applied for several roles. After a number of interviews Carvell was successful for the role and embarked on his journey with The LFC Foundation. The office admin role involved answering emails, helping people with bookings, getting sports equipment ready for training sessions and helping with kit distribution.

Carvell says that what he gained the most from the placement was getting the confidence to be able to open and talk to people. This helped him to communicate over the phone in his role. Carvell suggested that “the skill I developed the most was my communication skills and how I presented myself. When I started, it was hard for me to say certain things without using some sort of informal language, but I have been able to learn how to cut them out. I was also able to learn the importance of professionalism and being able to do my work to a high standard”.

At first his line manager Elaine would write a script for him until he gained confidence. Carvell said that the main reason he did so well on the placement was because of how comfortable the staff made him feel. “The team has really helped me to fit in. They're so nice every day and usually Elaine is the first one in the office. I would normally walk in and see a huge smile on her face. She would ask me how was your night? It just sets you up for the rest of the day. It helps you sit down and then you’re able to crack on.”

In five years, Carvell says he wants to try and open his own café because of his interests in both cooking and business. He says that he would recommend the Sports Works placement to a friend because it was helpful for him personally and he got great support from the staff during the program. Elaine who was Carvell’s manager highlighted, 'Working with Carvell over the last six months has been a pleasure. I have seen how much he has grown in his personal development and his confidence. He has this real can-do attitude and has become such a valued member of the LFC Foundation team.' Carvell highlighted that the Sport Works program introduced him to SMART Targets “These allowed me to set little goals for myself to achieve within a certain timeframe, which would allow me to be able to motivate myself to get it done so I can start on my next target”.

Since Carvel has completed the Sport Works program, he has been able to turn his kickstart role into a permanent position in which will sit along side a level 3 business apprenticeship paid for by the Foundation. Carvell has not only become an integral part of the LFC Foundation team but was also recognised and won the Unity award at the recent Foundation community awards. Find out more about our Works programmes.