Nursing assistant stars in national apprenticeships campaign

A nursing assistant at Cromer Hospital is one of the stars of a new national apprenticeships campaign.

Fire It Up has been launched by the Department for Education to raise awareness about the huge variety of apprenticeship options available for people of all ages and backgrounds.

Sarah Eley joined the Trust as an apprentice in 2015 after 30 years of working in an office as a customer relations manager and is now a nursing assistant in the ophthalmology department at Cromer Hospital.

She said: “No-one thinks you can retrain for a new career in your 50s, but I’m proof that you can. I applied for the nursing assistant apprenticeship scheme at Cromer Hospital and since doing it and working in the hospital I feel I am a happier person, I’m more fulfilled.

“I’m proud of what I have achieved and that’s reflected in the reaction I get from the patients. It takes some guts to change career completely at that age but if it’s something you are passionate about and care about – go for it.

Sarah Eley when she won the NNUH Apprentice of the Year award in 2016

The apprenticeship scheme gave me the opportunity to fulfil my dream to get into nursing and now I want to help others explore career options through apprenticeships.”

For more information about apprenticeships at NNUH, visit: https://new.nnuh.nhs.uk/training-education/apprenticeships/