Being the best he can be

Tommy Verrall is the workshop manager for the Gillingham cluster and started out as a fleet apprentice in 2010.

He says his apprenticeship gave him a great start to his career with Royal Mail. ‘I started my journey as a fleet apprentice in Gillingham workshop with the City of Bristol College,’ said Tommy.

‘I met some great people and made some friends for life, most of whom are still in the business. In 2014, I transferred to Dartford workshop and spent a year as a technician, before becoming a shift supervisor.

‘More recently, I was put into the role of workshop manager for the Gillingham cluster. This is a fantastic opportunity as Gillingham is one of the largest clusters within Fleet and there’s a real chance to make a difference.’ 

Tommy has worked hard to progress through the organisation. ‘I decided early on that I wanted to progress to a management role,’ he said. ‘I started offering support and cover to the secondary shift supervisor and later to the workshop manager. This helped me to improve my skillset and knowledge of the role, and so I was in a good position when vacancies came up.’  

Tommy says that managing people has been one of his biggest challenges. ‘Fortunately for me, being the shift supervisor in a smaller workshop allowed me to develop my skills within a smaller environment,’ he said. ‘I like to think that I’m approachable and can talk to people, while being a coach and a manager. I have great feedback from colleagues at Gillingham, which is something I am very proud of.’

Tommy would definitely recommend the apprenticeship route to other colleagues: ‘Fleet is going through such an exciting and innovative change now,’ he said. ‘With workshop and management structures changing, the addition of electric vehicles, and the up-to-date booking tool being implemented, it’s a great time to jump on board and learn what we do.

‘Fleet offers so many interesting and exciting challenges day-to-day. Whether you are mechanically minded or not, it offers something for everyone.’

He thinks apprenticeships offer a great way to develop people: ‘The investment put into the students is fantastic and I found it was structured in such a way, that no one is left behind,’ said Tommy. ‘The apprenticeship has given me the best possible chance to develop my knowledge, skillset and become the best I can be.’

Applications are open for the 2019 apprenticeship and graduate programmes. Click here for more details.