Learn more about the Agriculture Apprenticeship

What I love about the Agriculture Apprenticeship is that we’re a very mixed group. Different ages, different life stages. It doesn’t matter what your start is - half of my cohort are from farming backgrounds and half aren’t; they’ve got no agricultural experience at all. And quite a few of the existing agricultural managers who look after us aren’t from a farming background either, so they know what everyone’s going through.

I almost didn’t do an apprenticeship. I thought I was too old, that I’d been in work for too long. Initially I was worried about how people would perceive it. But as soon as I got onto the programme and things got started, I saw that it just didn’t matter at all. Barclays see the positive in everyone.

You’re mentored really well. You’ve got a buddy, someone you’ll shadow at least once a week as they go to markets, fairs, client farms. You see what they do and they take you through everything as they do it. You’ll be surprised how quickly you catch up – and there’s a great course we do right at the start that takes you through every sector; everything you need to know about every kind of farming.

You’re supported to learn at your pace all the way.

The other brilliant thing is that you’re in a role that can be really flexible, whether you’re looking after a family or whatever you have in your personal life. Myself and my other half actually look after our own flock of sheep – a mixture of commercial and pedigree – and then I’m also juggling my work and studies. But the team help me make that happen. If you’d rather work late one night and finish earlier the next, they’re supportive of that.

It’s all about personalising everybody’s journey. You only move onto new skills when you’re personally ready. I had a bit of background in relationship management, for instance, so I’ve started doing my own client reviews over the phone, but others in my cohort are working on building other skills first. 

Starting to make those calls has been so rewarding for me. To give you an example, I spoke to one gentleman recently who wanted to borrow from the bank to redo his dairy parlour. Milking is actually one of the most technologically forward parts of farming, but that technology is expensive and food preparation areas have to be kept to such high standards, so you’ve got to have the money there to do it. In talking to him and setting him up for lending appointments, I can really help him improve his farm and his business. That’s such a massive thing as an apprentice.

Becoming an agricultural manager is definitely the goal for me, and the programme qualifies you for that. There’s a clear path and huge potential for progression in this sector, so you know you can work your way up. It’s a brilliant part of the bank to be in, with support to go as high as you want to go.