Teamwork makes the dreamwork: How CSA Apprenticeships are supporting a neurodiverse workforce

We recently spoke to Virginie Lambertucci, a Credit Services Association (CSA) Apprentice and Plant Health and Seed Import Inspector based at Heathrow Airport. Virginie recently received a distinction in her Level 4 Regulatory Compliance Officer Apprenticeship. Initially Virginie was overwhelmed and very emotional at receiving the news. However, being very humble about the whole thing, she claimed the result was more a testament to her line manager, and the support received from her mentors at the CSA. 

“I’m an import inspector based at Heathrow Airport. We are ISO accredited and therefore follow a very structured approach to training. My line manager, Karen Freeman, has been there the whole time to support me with anything and everything that has happened along the way. She has been constantly reassuring and making me believe in myself throughout – especially at times when the work has been intense (I am also a volunteer on my days off so I don’t get much free time to myself). Looking back, it has made me realise how important that line manager support really is, especially for the 20% off the job time (and the rest!). Karen gave me constant feedback – championed the CSA Apprenticeship I was doing – allowed my colleagues to support me in my day-to-day job. She also knew too well from the start that I wasn’t just going for a pass – a distinction was always the goal and Karen totally supported me to get there. She made sure I had the opportunities to gain the knowledge, experience and scripting I needed. For this reason, I know that I will strive to follow in her footsteps by encouraging other colleagues/staff/managers to take on an Apprenticeship as part of their career development.”

We also talked to Virginie about her experience around the common misconceptions surrounding Apprenticeships: 

“This CSA standard was actually a first for the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) and this initiative created a non-degree entry route to becoming a professional Plant Health and Seeds Inspector (PHSI). I was recruited into the department on the Regulatory Compliance Officer Apprenticeship in 2020 during the pandemic. Initially it took some time to demonstrate the value of this new Apprenticeship – I was aware of the wider stigma that surrounds doing an Apprenticeship – and associated connotations that you only do an Apprenticeship if you can’t do a university degree – however, in my case, I had already completed a bachelors and double masters! When I first started some of the compliments I received from new colleagues for instance asking why I am doing as Apprenticeship because I seem really “switched on” was as if they assumed that I was perhaps over-qualified. However, it has benefited me so much since starting my role as a regulator. I really believe that we need to encourage people to look at an Apprenticeship as that next step, not just after high school, but also after college or university, and later on throughout your working career!”

We asked if the Apprenticeship has benefitted Virginie in other areas, not always obvious at the beginning and before signing up. 

“Not only has my professional life benefitted from completing this Apprenticeship, so has my personal life.  I’ve taken on things in my day-to-day life that I never would have taken on before. At the beginning of the year, I was given a parking fine which I thought was unlawful, so I appealed the fine and for five months I fought my case eventually taking it before the independent tribunal and won! I realised then that I had the knowledge and skills to assess how regulators act and enforce legislation, as well as the confidence to use that learning to my benefit. I was able to challenge the local authority enforcement, it felt great to have the confidence to deal with this sort of life event.”

In terms of support received from the CSA throughout the Apprenticeship, we asked if there was anyone Virginie would like to give some recognition to.

“I must firstly praise my CSA tutors, Harvey and John. We had regular catch-ups and these were especially useful in the run-up to preparing for my professional discussion. At the time it’s not always obvious how much these catch-ups are benefitting you. Both Harvey and John set the bar very high for me and sharing their own knowledge and experience went a very long way – it was a real joy to learn from them and I’m sad that I don’t get to see them anymore. 

"And the last (but certainly not least) person to mention is Senior Consultant at CSA, Zoe Dellow. I am dyslexic which obviously comes with its challenges, and Zoe was a huge support with this from the very beginning. We talked regularly and openly about the areas where I was struggling and together worked out the best solutions for me to move forward. I was concerned about accessibility due to my dyslexia and how it might affect me submitting coursework and sitting exams etc. But the CSA had this covered. I had a reader during my exam which reduced my anxiety enormously. The way the exams and coursework are structured it was always clear what was expected of me. It felt like for the first time in my professional life, a bit of a safety net with respect to the reasonable adjustments, and this is very important to me because it has always been challenging to perform well within rigid and very restrictive exam conditions. Doing this particular CSA course, coupled with the options available to me as part of it, I really enjoyed the end point assessment as an opportunity to showcase my knowledge skills and behaviours!”

Finally, we touched on the importance of feedback throughout the CSA course – something Virginie is very passionate about. 

“I always like to give constructive feedback and I think this also helped me throughout my Apprenticeship journey with CSA. Everyone at the CSA was so responsive to feedback – they were never defensive, always understanding, and quick to respond – and for someone who doesn’t learn well online, this was so important for my confidence. It really felt like everything I asked and fed back was built on to make the course better, not just me, but anyone coming after me with similar neurological conditions.”

We concluded the chat by asking Virginie if she had any final comments about her CSA Apprenticeship journey.  

“If I had to pick out the best part of doing a CSA Apprenticeship I would probably link it to the fact that you do it at the same time as doing your day-to-day job. The learning I gained while on the course and then how I was able to tailor that to my day-to-day tasks, felt very rewarding.  Being able to link the learning to important aspects of my role, for example how the course content lined up with the principles of our own regulatory code, meant that everyone I work closely with got to see how it was benefitting not just me, and them, but the organisation as a whole.”