Babcock Devonport welcomes more than 250 recruits

International defence company Babcock has welcomed more than 250 new apprentices and graduates to its Devonport facility in Plymouth.

The intake is part of the firm's early careers programme.

The new joiners will benefit from the recently launched Babcock Skills Academy.

Paul Watson, Babcock Devonport's managing director, said: "We are delighted to welcome so many talented recruits."

The early careers employees will support a variety of business areas at the site, from submarine life extension programmes to advanced manufacturing projects.

The apprentice roles include welders, fabricators and pipe workers.

The graduates are involved in specialist engineering, naval architecture and project management.

Mr Watson said: "The calibre of our candidates was extremely high again this year and it is fantastic to be offering so many apprentices and graduates the opportunity to unlock their potential with us."

Gareth Kenward, Babcock's apprentice and early careers manager, said the opportunity was important for the business and the city.

He said: "It's great from a south west perspective, it's great from a city perspective and it's great from a Babcock perspective but it's absolutely about making sure we've got the people trained to the right level to do the job we are going to need to do.

"Not just in the short term and medium term, but right to the long term as well."

Mr Kenward added: "There have been large technological advances and that's constantly happening. We need to make sure we are pairing our workforce with the right skills to meet those ever changing environments."

The company has now launched a recruitment campaign for the next intake of graduates to join in September 2024.

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