LUKE Judge is on the verge of setting up his own plumbing company.
But he says he is fully aware that without spending four years doing an apprenticeship he would never have been able to establish his own firm.
"Doing an apprenticeship was vital to me," said the 21-year-old. "It gave me really good on-the-job training and experience."
Luke did his NVQ levels 2 and 3 while working as a plumber. The work was overseen by New College Nottingham (NCN).
He finished the apprenticeship in June last year and will set up his own business later this month.
He told 150 students at NCN's Basford Hall campus about the benefits of apprenticeships at a construction fair. The college held the event to mark National Apprentice Week.
Afterwards, he said: "Apprenticeships are a great way of learning a trade.
"You can't do that in the classroom. You are able to get experience of the job.
"I was able to get first-hand experience of working with toilets, bathrooms and heating systems.
"I can't think of any course where I could have found out about things like this.
"If my company proves to be a success I would definitely look into taking on apprentices as well.
"After all, these will be the tradesmen of the future so they are worth while investing in."
The Nottingham Post is campaigning to find 100 apprentice opportunities in 100 days for people in Notts.
The 100 in 100 campaign is being run together with the Notts and Derbyshire Chamber of Commerce and the National Apprentice Service.
Luke said his experience was evidence of how successful apprenticeships can be.
"Anything to boost the number of apprenticeships out there is a great idea," he said. "Without them, a lot of people would be struggling to get work."
Two NCN tiling students are considering doing a plumbing apprenticeship after their current course ends later this year.
One of them, Zak Dunker, 17, said: "I really want to go into plumbing and don't feel I will have much joy unless I do an apprenticeship as I can learn while I do a job."
Joseph Crespo, 18, is hoping to do the same. He said: "I am very interested to hear about apprenticeships. I would really like to get involved as it is a great way to be trained."
Pauline Skelton, NCN mentor, said: "We have a huge interest here in apprenticeships. We are fully behind them and what they help people achieve.
"We have run information sessions which are very well attended. Between eight and ten students a day come.
"By doing an apprenticeship, people really do boost their job prospects, which is great to see."
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