Sam Backham National Apprenticeship Week 2024

As we celebrate National Apprenticeship Week 2024, we speak to Sam Backham, Apprentice Building Surveyor. Sam shares his experiences as an apprentice whilst working towards completing his Level 6 Chartered Building Surveyor course at Anglia Ruskin University.

Choosing his Apprenticeship

From a young age, I had a significant interest in construction and always knew I wanted to work in the industry. Ryan Pinkney came to a careers fair at my school with calfordseaden and I had a talk with him about the opportunities at the company. I followed up on my interest a few weeks later when I contacted him about the possibility of doing some work experience at calfordseaden.

Life as an Apprentice

I completed my work experience in spring 2023 and was certain I wanted to join as an Apprentice Building Surveyor. I enjoyed every aspect of my work experience; the day-to-day responsibilities, my team, and the comfortable working environment. During my work experience, I went to a site and carried out some snagging and my colleague provided me with some useful guidance. This gave me valuable first-hand experience in the field of surveying.

The aspect of my apprenticeship that I find the most rewarding is being able to use and apply the knowledge I learn on a study day into my work during the rest of the week. Having the balance of working and studying simultaneously is perfect, there is a suitable amount of time to understand the information you are provided with both in the classroom and in the office.

My primary roles as an Apprentice Building Surveyor include performing RAAC surveys, condition surveys, project management tasks, and attending regular site visits.

Aims and Advice

After completing my apprenticeship, I plan on working towards attaining chartership, which I plan to do so whilst at calfordseaden. I am aware of the APC support programme here, including the regular workshops that are held to prepare you for the assessments, which are beneficial.

Advice I would give to future apprentices would be to ask questions, as it is the most effective way to learn from senior colleagues and gain useful insight into the role. Also, I advise apprentices to gain work experience in the industry you are considering starting your apprenticeship in, as it can provide an indication as to what career path you want to take.