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Do not give up says apprentice who got zero GCSEs

Andrew DawkinsWest Midlands
News imageWest Midlands Combined Authority A woman with mainly blonde hair and wearing a dark top is smiling at the camera. She is next to a silver car and a sign above her head in the background includes the letters CC Autocentres.West Midlands Combined Authority
Olivia Mackay has been working at CC Autocentres as a customer service apprentice since December

A customer services apprentice has urged people to not give up and "push yourself to get the job you want", after she left school without any GCSEs.

"I left school with 'zero' GCSEs, but I didn't give up," Olivia Mackay said.

"I pushed myself, went to college and got my Level 2 qualification while working part-time at a pub."

The 20-year-old worked towards becoming a Level 2 automotive technician qualification and achieved a grade 3 in maths and English at college while working part-time.

Mackay, from Penn, Wolverhampton, was later made redundant, but said she got a new start when she was contacted through a scheme set up by the West Midlands mayor.

She is one of 1,500 young people helped through the Youth Trailblazer [YT] scheme, which supports 18 to 21-year-olds into employment, education or training, funded by the West Midlands Combined Authority.

City of Wolverhampton Council's YT initiatives offered "structured work placements, improving transitions to education and training, and long-term jobs", the authority said.

Mackay was contacted by the council-led service Wolves at Work - which offers free one-to-one support for people looking for work - through the YT scheme.

She told them she had an interest in an apprenticeship or employment in the automotive sector and local business CC Autocentres then took her on.

News imageGoogle A brown building of at least three storeys. More than half a dozen steps, with two white hand rails on them, are near the building in the background.Google
City of Wolverhampton Council said young people were being offered a range of options through the Wolves at Work scheme

Mackay admitted she "didn't know what to do" when she was made redundant, but through supported from the scheme and Wolves at Work, the apprenticeship was secured "so I can work towards my dream career as an automotive technician".

"I was even given a free bus pass to get to and from work for a month which really helped," Mackay said.

"I'm getting a range of experience by working with customers, booking tyre changes in, calling gas suppliers and helping to keep the garage running smoothly - all while gaining expert knowledge, advice and experience from skilled technicians."

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