Apprentice Melanie insists 'you're never too old' after education return 30 years on from leaving school

Apprenticeships offer a great chance to change career direction later in life or upskill in your current role and open up promotion opportunities.

Melanie, who turns 51 next month, falls into the latter category after seizing the initiative when the Bettys & Taylors Apprenticeships and Careers Coordinator walked into the staff café she works in as a Catering Assistant.

With years of experience in the hospitality industry behind her, Melanie had been wanting to take her next vocational steps and secure a formal qualification for some time, so she summoned up the courage to ask the question and was soon enrolling as a Level 3 Senior Production Chef at York College.

Taking up the story, Melanie said: “We have an Apprenticeships and Careers Coordinator at Bettys, who moves around the business and she was in the café one day. She was sat in the corner and we were quiet, so I quietly emailed her to see if she was free and, then, I went and sat down with her. 

“I took my opportunity and thought it was my chance while there was nobody about. She explained that Bettys did the Senior Production Chef apprenticeship with York College and how it worked. I then had to write a bid for myself to prove how the course would tie in with my job and it was accepted.” 

That cleverly manufactured conversation proved the catalyst to end a long journey back to education for Melanie who, in the early 1990s, had been steered down the wrong career pathway at school.

“I finished my GCSEs at 16 and there wasn’t an A Level department at my school, so I was really given two choices - hairdressing or working in a nursery,” she explained. “I didn’t want to do either and ended up doing hairdressing, but it was never something that I was going to take up as a career.” 

Melanie went on to work in Marks & Spencer’s food section before securing a job in their café, where she made coffees and the small selection of hot foods they served.

Having always been an enthusiastic cook – describing roast dinners as her speciality – Melanie had found her natural calling and pursued other roles.

“After a number of years with Marks & Spencer, I moved to a job in a nursery as a cook just on my own, which I really enjoyed,” she enthused. “I loved that. 

“I cooked all the children's meals – breakfast, lunch and dinner - and also cooked with them, doing basic biscuits and cakes. I went on to work in a secondary school, where there were nearly 2,000 students and we only had an hour to get them in, served, fed and out again.” 

She joined Bettys & Taylors – owners of the famous tearooms and world-renowned brands such as Yorkshire Tea – four years ago, working at the Plumpton Park site of the company’s main offices and factory in Harrogate.

The business gives all staff members an allowance to enjoy their daily meals in the café whilst at work, which means it is Melanie’s job to help feed the workforce, as well as herself!

A hot breakfast is served in the morning followed by a fully cooked lunch with a different choice of soup and hot meal every day.

All dishes, meanwhile, follow the same recipes used in Bettys’ tearooms. 

“You can’t just add things in, because that would change the allergens,” Melanie pointed out. “I enjoy making the soups the colour they should be because, if you over cook them, they will be the wrong colour. 

“There’s a lot of prep work, too, because we cook everything from fresh and I also have ordering to do and deliveries to put away, as well as the training of staff.”

While apprenticeships remain a great option for school leavers, they do not discriminate when it comes to age either.

Melanie is one of more than 60 apprentices over the age of 30 currently studying at York College and a quarter of those are older than 40. 

“I would advise anybody my age, older or even a bit younger to take that step and do it,” Melanie declared. “You’re never too old and, whilst I’m the eldest in the class, I feel like I’ve mixed in well.

“At first, I didn’t feel confident with the computer side of things. We had typewriters, not laptops, when I was at school, and any computing work I’ve done has been self-taught. 

“We also use our own intranet at work, which is different to what we do at College, but I’m more confident now and I’m not frightened to ask the other students for help if we’re in the computer room. Likewise, there are things I can help them with as an older person, so it works well.”

Melanie attends College every Monday on day release with Bettys & Taylors covering her travel and food expenses.

She is now midway through her one-year apprenticeship and has been impressed by the standard of teaching and facilities in the Hospitality department.

“The kitchen is very modern and replicates what we have at work,” she said. “I also enjoy the practical parts of the course and the theory. 

“I do the one-to-one training in our department at work, so I’m hoping to pass on the new skills I’m learning in College and the tutors always explain everything well and we have (Microsoft) Teams, so you can always get questions to them that they answer when we’re not in the building.”

When she completes her apprenticeship in September, Melanie is also hoping to use her new qualification to secure promotion at work as a Senior Production Chef.

“I’m hoping to move up and would hope to take more of a shift lead then, which I’d be qualified to do,” she added. “I’d be managing stock levels, booking deliveries, ensuring all staff are trained and making sure recipes are all up-to-date including allergens.” 

Having returned to the classroom after more than three decades, Melanie’s not ruling out furthering her education either.

“Now, I’ve got the bug for studying, I would like to go up to the next level and do my Level 4,” she said.

To learn more about our Level 3 Senior Production Chef apprenticeship, please click here

For a list of our current apprenticeship vacancies, visit here

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