More than 20 of this year’s pre-apprentices came together at Ringlink’s headquarters in Laurencekirk this month for a teambuilding and wellbeing workshop.
The focus of the full-day event was to help the young people improve their team-working, communication and problem-solving skills.
Split into two parts, the morning was spent looking at mental health characteristics, its impact, and identifying strategies to maintain mental fitness.
The afternoon activities were more hands-on with the cohort divided into teams for tasks that included a “shepherd” herding blindfolded “sheep”, specially designed ball games and the intriguingly titled “island hopping”.
The day finished with the teams coming together to compete in the final “Tyre Stack” session.
Positive and constructive
Team One was crowned overall winners from the afternoon but Ringlink’s operations manager Gail Robertson emphasised that it was not all about the winning.
“Learning to work together as a team and to listen and support each other was a key component of the day and you could see that coming together,” she said.
“We introduced this workshop this year as an experiment and it was a positive and constructive day that helped them identify their own strengths and weaknesses.
“We’re really keen to help the pre-apprentices build their own resilience as well, because that is what will help them go forward into the workplace and succeed, as well as more widely in life.”
The workshop was delivered by Arbroath-based IED Training Solutions and supported by Hannah Scorgie and Paul Duguid from Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC).
Ian Clark, IED managing director and one of the instructors on the day, said: “The focus was on mental fitness as the cornerstone of human performance, equipping these young individuals with tools to thrive in challenging environments.
“We wanted to introduce skills they could practise and take back into the workplace.
“The result was a dynamic day of growth and the realisation that collaboration and reflection are key to success.”
Group reunion
The teambuilding and wellbeing workshop took place as the pre-apprentices pass the halfway point in their placement and was the first time they had all been together in a group since June. At that point, they had completed a four-day block induction at SRUC at Craibstone which involved a range of activities and certificated training.
Since then, they have been on their 26-week individual placements with an approved mentor business.
The 21 pre-apprentices are part of this year’s summer intake, with 45 individuals going through the programme this academic year. This includes six current forestry pre-apprentices and a winter intake who start in January.
The ultimate aim of the Land-based Pre-apprenticeship is to help prepare young people for employment in agriculture and the wider rural sector.
The programme provides practical experience, training and knowledge allowing the candidates to make informed decisions as to how they would like their career to progress.
Accredited by the Scottish Rural College (SRUC), the programme is currently funded by Scottish Government and administered by Skills Development Scotland, on an extended pilot basis.
Ringlink Scotland provides the day-to-day management of the programme, recruits and supports candidates along with the mentor businesses, and provides certified training for the trainees.
