Apprentices from Northumbrian Water are the company’s first to successfully pass their end-point assessment with the Energy & Utilities Independent Assessment Service (EUIAS) and graduate as Water Process Technicians in the Wastewater pathway.
By completing the Apprenticeship standard the operators are now deemed as fully competent to perform reactive and routine maintenance on equipment and be a key part of delivering safe water supply to local communities.
Working together, the sector employer group with support from the EUIAS designed the apprenticeship. The standard, which has five occupational pathways, allows apprentices to learn practically and theoretically, ensuring apprentices can build ‘hands-on’ experience and specialist know-how every day.
Bernie Zakary, Head of Service for the Energy & Utilities Independent Assessment Service, said: “As a leading provider of high-quality, end-point assessment, we’re delighted to see Northumbrian Water’s first group of apprentices come through our end-point assessment service.
We have developed a robust end-point assessment for Water Process Technicians that ensures apprentices have the knowledge, skills and behaviours they need to work safely in their industry. Our sector-leading service is delivered by our dedicated technical assessors, who provide a strong and credible assessment after the occupational programme.”
Tracey Greener, Workforce Development Manager at Northumbrian Water, said: “By working through the Water Industry standard and end point assessment we have a greater assurance that the apprentices have high level knowledge and skill to perform in their roles. The EUIAS end point assessment process has been robust and a smooth process from start to finish.”
The EUIAS provides end-point assessment on 10 English Apprenticeship Standards. The trailblazing service graduated its first apprentice in May 2016 and recently celebrated assessing the 1,000th apprentice in July this year. With a leading position, the EUIAS continues to raise the bar of workforce competence and resilience, across all competitive markets and industries.