Musings on a Library Information and Archive Services Assistant Apprenticeship

In late January, I logged out of Zoom, closed my laptop, and thought, “That wasn’t as bad as I expected.” I had just finished my library apprenticeship exam, which consisted of a presentation on a project I had run and a professional discussion.

In the months leading up to this, I had written 13 assignments, run a 4-week project, written a 4,500-word report on said project, and completed over 300 hours of off-the-job training. My pass or fail had come down to this exam.

Though I had already been in post for a couple of years, the apprenticeship gave me the background information on libraries and their structure that I was missing, but more importantly, it allowed me to connect with other library apprentices, both from the NHS & Public library spheres, and see just how differently things were done. I was surprised by just how many hats my library team wears in comparison to other NHS libraries whose teams seem to solely focus on their libraries, whereas I and my fellow library assistants are responsible for booking rooms at the training centre we are based at, general IT help for the people using the rooms, dealing with car parking issues and then there is the e-learning support we are responsible for providing to staff members.

Considering all of this, I felt my role was more similar to the public library apprentice who reported spending a lot of time helping with sign posting people to other council-run services, helping patrons with filling out forms/applications and providing IT assistance, though he was spared the indignities of having people complaining about the lack of car parking.

Hearing about other libraries and the discussions we had on topics like censorship, AI, the increasing lack of library funding, information & digital literacy and on how we are meeting our users’ needs were my favourite part of the apprenticeship. These discussions provided a range of perspectives and prompted me to think about our library’s role not just within the CDDFT but within the wider NHS sphere.

I started experiencing difficulties when I reached my End Point Assessment (EPA). I had trouble finding a ward who were happy to help me trial my project, which was to set up a library loaning scheme for patients in long-term care. This delayed my EPA start date, which then meant that my due date for my report would be over the Christmas period. Unfortunately for me, CILIP’s offices were closed over Christmas, meaning I wouldn’t be able to submit anything during this time, which meant everything was further delayed, as I was required to submit my work in January.

When I finally sat down for my End Point Assessment, my examiner was very patient and understanding. She prodded me towards formulating an answer when I hesitated by refining her questions and didn’t mind when I referred to my notes. She made what could have been a rather stressful experience rather pleasant.

A week later, I received an email saying that I had passed. I was over the moon; all of my hard work had paid off.

Would I recommend doing an apprenticeship to other library assistants? Yes, just don’t plan your project and EPA over Christmas.

Sarah Penman

County Durham & Darlington Foundation Trust

Library & Learning Services Officer