Starting on 8th February 2021, it will be National Apprenticeship Week ‘Build the Future’ in the UK. Horticulture is one industry very well placed to take advantage of apprenticeship schemes – a highly skilled and practical occupation.
To celebrate this special week, we feature this blog contribution from the RHS and Aiden Couzens:
The RHS celebrates apprentices during National Apprenticeship Week
February 8th is the start of National Apprenticeship Week. A celebration of Apprentices and the benefits they bring organisations such as fresh ideas, diversity, an enthusiasm for learning, and of course a love of horticulture! Former RHS Apprentice Aiden Couzens now works as a horticulturalist in the seed and wellbeing team in the new RHS Wisley Wellbeing garden. He describes his inspiring journey into horticulture and how this role feels like the stars aligned at the right time for him.
“I was lucky enough to have been raised with a good sized and mature garden at my disposal. From a young age, I followed my parents around as they worked on the garden, my mother especially encouraged me to join in. I remember one of the first things I grew by myself without help, was carrots in a large pot that I could just about see the top of. They were meant to be fully sized carrots, but I got so excited and impatient that we ended up eating baby carrots for that night’s dinner!
The house was my Grandparents’ before it was passed on to my parents, and the garden was built and established by my grandad. Sadly, I never met him, but I am glad that I can still connect with him through our shared love of gardening.
Admittedly, I never knew that I wanted to follow this career path. Growing up, it was never made apparent to me that horticulture is an available career path. I was always guided towards lawyer, doctor, scientist, etc. Reflecting this academic push, I followed a route that lead to a bachelor’s degree in Psychology. While I found the subject incredibly interesting, I wasn’t attracted to any of the career paths that stemmed from it. Nothing called out to me.
Shortly after my graduation from university, my mother fell ill with Lymphoma. So I was unemployed for a while, partly by choice as I wanted to stay at home to care for her and help around the house. Just before her diagnosis, she had sowed and planted out a lot of vegetables. Because of this, one of the main ways I helped out was by caring for the garden.
A family friend popped round to visit, and greeted me as I came in from the garden, knees and hands coated in dirt. She asked me if I was looking to do gardening as a job, or if it was just a hobby. At the time I said ‘Oh, no, it’s just a hobby. Something to keep me busy while I’m looking for a job’. I look back at that moment every now and again, and laugh. If only I knew!
But it planted the seed (pun intended), and I started looking into horticulture on google. Almost immediately, a link to the RHS website popped up, and after a bit more digging, so too did apprenticeships. I was a little unsure at first, because I was almost 22, and I knew that apprenticeships are usually for 16-19 year olds. However, the advert said that it also accepted career changers. Ultimately I thought that it didn’t hurt to try, so with a little excited bubble in my belly, I clicked on ‘Apply’.
Alongside a very enticing liveable wage, RHS Garden Wisley was fairly local and easy to get to by car, so I lived with my parents while taking driving lessons. For the first few months, my dad had to wake up extra early to drive me to work each day, so he was happier than most when I got my licence!
It didn’t take me long to realise that this is what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Everyone in the RHS loves what they do, and inspires colleagues and visitors alike with their passion. They are always willing to share their knowledge, and actively encourage you to ask questions, no matter how obvious the answer may seem. Their passion is evident in how gorgeous the gardens are year round, and their sunny dispositions even on dreary days!
A two-year apprenticeship is an excellent way of practicing the knowledge and skills you gain from your shared time between the RHS and college. There is no shortage of opportunities to experience and build a wide network with other areas of the horticulture industry.
The end-point assessment [at the time that Aiden was assessed] consists of a knowledge test of 40 multiple choice questions, three practical tasks, and a professional interview. I passed with distinction, which is testament to how well the combined mentoring efforts of the RHS and Merrist Wood college prepared me.
From the very beginning of my apprenticeship, I wanted to find a future career that would combine my interest in psychology and my passion for horticulture. I didn’t want to follow a horticultural therapy route, but I wanted to focus on how garden design and the plants themselves can affect people’s minds, akin to how lavender can help treat insomnia and anxiety. Such an experimental perspective of practical horticulture didn’t exist at the time, but little did I know that the planning and designing for the Wellbeing Garden was already well underway.
It felt as though the stars had aligned. The Wellbeing Garden was exactly what I was looking for, and what I was interested in. The timing couldn’t have been any better, as the vacancy for the position in the Seed and Wellbeing Team opened a mere few months before the end of my apprenticeship. A few months in and already the entire team get along really well, and I couldn’t have asked for better colleagues.
It isn’t often that you get to see the making of a brand new garden from scratch. It’s a fantastic opportunity to watch your hard work come to fruition and really make a difference.
Immediately the garden rooms have transformed from patches of bare soil to works of art. The Molinia and Panicum gives the garden a sense of gentle swaying movement, the large swathes of Pinus mugo creates a calming sea of emerald green, and the scent of rosemary and sage being carried on the breeze is simply divine.
I’m excited for when it will be opened to the public in June 2021, when the surrounding fencing comes down and everyone can get up close and personal, and experience a fantastic new area of Wisley!”
The RHS is currently recruiting for 15 Level 2 Horticultural Apprentices across all five RHS gardens; Wisley in Surrey, Hyde Hall in Essex, Harlow Carr in Yorkshire, Rosemoor in Devon, and Bridgewater near Greater Manchester. This includes an Arborist Apprentice at Bridgewater, and for the first time there is a further Level 3 Apprentice, available at Rosemoor. Anyone can apply as long as they are above the age of 16 (please see the full eligibility criteria on job description). The RHS is committed to being an inclusive employer and welcomes applicants from ethnically diverse backgrounds.
Closing date: 1 March 2021 for start date in August
For further details and how to apply visit: https://www.rhs.org.uk/education-learning/qualifications-and-training/work-based-training/rhs-apprenticeships
Find out more about the RHS apprenticeships available in the RHS leaflet: RHS Apprenticeship Leaflet