The South West Heritage Trust is pleased to congratulate apprentice Rae Pearson who recently achieved a distinction in Level 3 Content Creation from Bridgwater and Taunton College.

Rae’s Successful Heritage Journey

Rae completed her End Point Assessment having been with the Trust for 17 months as part of the Arts Council funded NPO programme. As a valued member of the NPO team, Rae helped to deliver a variety of community engagement activities, from care homes to early years providers, learning a huge range of skills from event organisation to website design and social media.

 Rae Pearson helping a toddler to explore ‘The Fascinating and Curious Museum’ that saw the NPO programme take museum objects into early years setting across Somerset.

“This apprenticeship has provided me with invaluable experience and a wide range of transferable skills in a sector that truly interests me. I’ve had the opportunity to work on diverse projects with various community groups—experiences that would not have been possible at this stage in my career without this apprenticeship. I have greatly enjoyed collaborating with a skilled and diverse team within a supportive organisation, alongside an exceptional training provider.” Rae Pearson

Supporting Local Young People

Rae is one of four apprentices working with the South West Heritage Trust. Since 2023, the Trust has partnered with local training providers—Bridgwater and Taunton College and Richard Huish College—to offer apprenticeship training. The other apprentices work across marketing, exhibitions and design and finance.

The apprenticeship programme has provided opportunities for the Trust to support local young people in pursuing their career aspirations and to gain valuable insight into the heritage sector. It has helped the Trust build towards a more diverse workforce, with young people bringing fresh ideas and perspectives. It also contributes to developing mentoring and management skills for staff.

“The South West Heritage Trust is providing excellent opportunities and experiences for their apprentices and are really committed to giving high quality training and support. This has been consistently provided during learners’ on-programme training and End Point Assessment.”
Teresa Bridgman – Trainer Assessor Apprenticeships – Business & Professional Studies at Bridgwater and Taunton College.