A Cobham nursery was presented with a grant cheque for £1,500 by Brooklands College after taking on an apprentice.

The Government grant incentive is available to businesses with fewer than 1,000 employees, those which are new to apprenticeships or have not enrolled a new recruit or existing employee on to an apprenticeship programme in the past 12 months.

Little Angels Nursery began working with Brooklands College a year ago while exploring the benefits of employing an apprentice.

Leela Jones, manager of Little Angels Nursery, said: “The financial incentive from the Government was definitely a deciding factor when thinking about employing an apprentice but wasn’t the only benefit.

“The apprenticeship framework means that apprentices are able to learn important theoretical lessons in the class room while at the same time gaining essential practical skills while in the workplace.

“I am very happy with Brooklands College as a training provider and am planning on running two further apprenticeships with them in the coming year.”

For more information about apprenticeships at Brooklands College, visit brooklands.ac.uk.