– Shelley Peters, Advanced Team Manager, and Chad Healey, Targeted Youth Worker and Level 6 Integrated Degree Youth Work Apprentice, Cornwall Council
For Chad Healey, becoming a Youth Work apprentice with Cornwall Council has been about more than gaining a qualification – it has been about recognition, professional identity and investing in a future he has already been working towards for years.
Chad joined the Family Help Team in September 2025 as a Targeted Youth Worker, bringing with him extensive experience of supporting young people, first discovered through volunteering with the YMCA. However, his years of hands-on experience as a youth worker far outweighed what a formal qualification alone could recognise.
“At my stage of life, it would be very difficult to get a professional qualification that actually matched my experience,” Chad explains.
“The apprenticeship allows me to get that professional identity that recognises the experience I’ve gained over the years.”
The apprenticeship is funded through the Council’s own Apprenticeship Levy, in line with their commitment to supporting high-quality youth work and staff development.
“Cornwall Council’s a great employer,” Chad said “I’m funded one day a week for the course, travel is supported and I’m given study days and supervision. That understanding makes all the difference.”
For Shelley Peters, Advance Team Manager in the Family Help Team, apprenticeships are a long-term investment in both people and services.
“It’s how I came through in my profession as well,” she says. “So, I understand how hard it can be, but also how rewarding it is to achieve that qualification when you’re properly supported.”
Shelley believes the benefits go far beyond the individual.
“Yes, there’s extra support and supervision” she explained “But the investment is worth it, because what you get back is a strong, skilled workforce that can give back to the team and the community.”
She is clear about the value Chad brings through his course study “You share your knowledge with the team – and I learn from you too. It really is a two-way street.”
For Chad, the apprenticeship has strengthened both his confidence and practice.
“Yes, there’s a bit of work-life balance to manage when studying at home, but the positives massively outweigh the challenges,” he reflects.
Ultimately, both Chad and Shelley see the apprenticeship as an investment in the future of youth work in Cornwall. “To have this opportunity is a blessing,” Chad says, “It’s an investment in my future – and in the future of the young people we support.”
