Employer Story
Thames Clippers on board with Apprenticeships
Thames Clippers is one of London’s leading riverboat service providers. It carries over 7,000 passengers across the capital every day. There are over thirty members of staff and their job roles range from manning the ticket offices to looking after passengers on board their vessels, which vary from commuters and tourists, to celebrities and visiting dignitaries.
The company is continuing to expand as more and more people appreciate the advantages of river travel and it is committed to providing unbeatable customer satisfaction.
Skills Training UK worked with Thames Clippers to develop a bespoke Apprenticeship programme to enable staff to work towards National Vocational Qualifications in either Customer Service or Team Leading within the Transportation sector.
This involved Trainer Assessors going out to meet the staff wherever they were based, either afloat on the River Thames or stationary in one of the company’s offices. They progressed each member of staff through their Apprenticeship, providing guidance to develop individual skills and competence, assessing tasks which were set for each part of their qualification and giving personal support.
The nature of our work is pretty unique and our apprentice staff can often be scattered all over London. Skills Training UK have demonstrated a great understanding of this and have developed an extremely flexible programme to fit in with our way of working. We have dedicated assessors who come out to meet the staff wherever they are based, whether stationary in Greenwich, or floating beneath Tower Bridge!
Richard Coonz, Customer Service Manager, Thames Clippers
I'm a firm believer in giving something back to your employees. Too often, companies simply take, take, take and ultimately miss out on the opportunity to fully engage their staff and inspire them to take more of an active interest in the business. Enabling them to gain a nationally recognised qualification at the end of the year not only improves morale but also helps them to focus their minds on key aspects of their job, which, in my experience, can significantly improve their performance.
Richard Coonz, Customer Service Manager, Thames Clippers
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