The first ever apprenticeship course focusing on putting people at the centre of the design of digital public services is celebrating the successful graduation of its three students.
The User Centred Design apprenticeship was developed by the Centre for Digital Public Services (CDPS) in partnership with Gower College Swansea (GCS).
The 18-month course is the first of its kind in the UK and provided on job training with CDPS around service design, user research and content development, as well as a formal qualification from Gower College Swansea.
The aim of the apprenticeship was to build digital skills and capability to ensure that services are sustainable, accessible, inclusive and designed to meet the needs of the people who use them.
All three apprentices have not only successfully completed the Agored Cymru accredited course but have also been offered full time employment with CDPS.
Ruth Garner, Sarah Floyd and Alexandra Wagstaff are now Junior User Centred Design Officers and will be working on content design and user research supporting public sector services in Wales.
Reflecting on her experience, former teaching assistant Ruth from Cardiff said, “I was nervous to leave my familiar job, but this apprenticeship has exceeded my expectations and fully prepared me for a career in this field. I completely understand the importance of user-centred design as it literally has the capability to make or break a service. I’m excited to continue developing my skills and applying what I have learned in future CDPS projects to create services that meet peoples’ needs and make a real difference across Wales.”
Centre for Digital Public Services Head of Skills and Capability Peter Thomas said, “We launched the apprenticeship scheme to begin to address the critical shortage of digital skills in Wales. Our goal was to create practical pathways into digital careers, particularly for public services, and to build a pipeline of skilled professionals.
“The success of this scheme, marked by the graduation of our first-ever apprentices, is a testament to the hard work, creativity, and commitment of everyone involved. Our pioneering apprentices, Ruth, Alexandra, and Sarah have set a high bar for future participants and the scheme has laid the foundation for meaningful change in digital public services in Wales.”
Bruce Fellowes, Head of GCS Training helped to develop the course and is inspired by the achievements and learning of the first three apprentices.
He said, “I am delighted with the success Gower College Swansea has had with the User Centred Design learners from the Centre for Digital Public Services. From the planning stages right through to the completion of the apprenticeship framework, the managers and apprentices have been fully engaged with the programme. The managers have supported the apprentices with time to carry out their studies, given relevant roles and responsibilities to gather the necessary evidence for the course, and looked to promote the apprenticeship both internally and externally. I look forward to working with CDPS for many years to come.”
Eight other organisations from across Wales are already accessing the course, with 15 apprentices currently learning vital digital skills.
Welsh Government Minister for Culture, Skills and Social Partnership, Jack Sargeant, said, “Digital skills are the foundation of a modern public service, and this pioneering apprenticeship demonstrates Wales’ commitment to developing homegrown talent. It’s great to see Ruth, Sarah and Alexandra graduating as our first cohort of specialists, bringing vital skills that will help transform how we deliver public services. By investing in digital skills and focusing on user needs, we’re building a stronger, more responsive public sector that works for everyone whilst creating valuable career opportunities for local talent.”
Case Study
From digital learning to digital working: the Apprentices’ journey
A passion for helping people was the key reason all three of the apprentices signed up to the inaugural User Centred Design course.
Sarah Floyd from Swansea joined after a 21-year career teaching pupils with additional learning needs, bringing with her an empathy for creating public services that are truly inclusive for the people who use them.
She said, “Putting users first and making services that fit the needs of those users attracted me and I’m grateful to CDPS for championing this apprenticeship which enabled me to gain hands-on experience as well as completing college modules. Although I no longer work with children and young people, developing better public services will help create a future in Wales that’s fit for purpose for those youngsters I once taught.”
Ruth Garner also has a background in education, having worked as learning support assistant in a primary school in Cardiff. Her enthusiasm for digital communication had inspired her to pursue a Certificate in Professional Digital Marketing and the apprenticeship was the next step to developing her career.
She said, “This experience has reinforced how content design plays a crucial role in making digital services more inclusive and user-friendly. In today’s world digital communication plays a vital role in bringing people and communities together and I hope the skills I have developed will help me to design accessible public services within Wales.”
Alexandra Wagstaff, from Barry, was inspired to sign up to the apprenticeship after working in clinical research and seeing the value of including patients in the process.
She said, “Having seen the value of patients’ views to ensure the focus remains on outcomes and wellbeing, I was keen to learn about user voices driving service design. We are living in the digital age, and there is so much to be done to make the most of the digital tools we have! It’s exciting to think my future contributions could help people all over Wales.”
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The Centre for Digital Public Services (CDPS) was set up by Welsh Government to help public sector organisations in Wales deliver better, user-centred digital services. They provide guidance, support, and tools to build digital capabilities across the public sector.
Gower College Swansea is one of the largest providers of apprenticeships in Wales offering a diverse range of training programmes supporting small private companies, large multi-national organisations and the public sector. Some of its programmes are also offered in England.
