'I'm proud to say I do what I do' - Apprentices take centre stage as Government minister drops in on Telford defence manufacturer

The spotlight fell on the firm's apprentices during a ministerial visit to the firm's Hadley Castle Works from defence procurement minister Maria Eagle, who dropped in to inspect progress on the firm's flagship manufacturing programmes - the Boxer vehicle and the £800m Challenger 3 tank programme. 

Both projects are being built in Telford, and the firm says the project highlights the value of its team of apprentices, many of whom are engaged in the builds.

Liv McLaughin, a Level 4 engineering apprentice from Newport has been with the company since September 2023, and says the variety of her role is what she enjoys most about working for the company.

"Working at a defence company is very different, it's not your bog-standard sort of automotive company, its something that you'll see different sides of and learn more technical skills with, hence my choice of choosing to work here," she said.

"From day to day what I enjoy most is the variety you get here while being an apprentice, so we get the opportunity to move every six months, for myself I've worked in CAD design and also in the manufacturing team so it gives you insights into different roles across the business so you can decide on a career path for the future.

"You learn your experiences from people who've been here in the manufacturing phase twenty years ago, and I think you learn valuable skills from then as well as some of those who've been working here since 2023. You learn different skillsets depending on who you're working with and the apprenticeship gives you the opportunity to move around and learn from different people. "

Ethan Lamb from Stirchley works as a supply chain apprentice studying continuous improvement at level 3, and has been with the firm since April 23.

"My aspiration was always to go into an apprenticeship. I'm from Telford so when I heard about RBSL and what they were doing here it was something I really wanted to get into," he said.

"My family, and my mum in particular used to work in procurement at MOD Donnington so she just said 'Maybe that's something you'd enjoy' and it's given me something to go towards. Similar to live I've had different stints in the warehouse and logistics and I've also gone into the procuring side of it, so I've got an oversight on the flow of goods and materials coming into the business.

"From the last time this site was manufacturing before 2023 I don't think any of us were born, A lot of the people here worked here when the Warrior was being produced all that time ago so you can see how times change but also how that experience has stayed in the business.

"I'm from Telford as well, so to be here and to be able to support the British Army I'd say it always makes me proud to say I do what I do."

Ewan Ferguson is a Level 3 operations apprentice who's been working with the company since last year.

"I never thought I'd be doing an apprenticeship as it was never my plan in life, but speaking to my family and friends, my grandparents have a rich history in engineering so I decided that was the route I then wanted to take," he said.

"I thought to learn on the job and get that experience rather than going to university or taking a college approach was so valuable - you can get paid, learn on the job and also earn a qualification at the same time.

"What I like most is just how diverse the job is. I spent three months in ISS working with hand tools, learning about the vehicles and breaking them down, and now I've gone into manufacturing so learning about the manufacturing side of the Boxer now. Every day is different, and it's great to have different experience across the business.