How Snapchat filters could attract new NHS apprentices in Leeds

A new social media campaign has seen a series of quirky Snapchat filters created to highlight some of the more diverse roles on offer for young people.

Painting and decorating, pathology and social media apprentices are among the designs, which allow users to pose in the uniforms of each apprenticeship position using the Snapchat app on their mobile phones.

Health Education England’s (HEE) Leeds branch will now target job centres in the city, including the Jobcentre Plus on Eastgate and Park Place, with a new filter for each of the five days of National Apprenticeship Week.

Kirk Lower, HEE’s national lead for apprenticeships, said: “Using our Snapchat Geofilters in and around job centres allows us to target a younger demographic, who we know are actively looking for work.

“As well as very specifically pinpointing our audience at a time when they are job-hunting, we are doing it in a creative way that will hopefully appeal to that younger demographic.

“One of the challenges we have is making people aware of the opportunities for apprenticeships in the NHS and the diverse range of more than 150 different roles on offer.”

The NHS in England has committed to creating 100,000 apprenticeships – almost seven times the current number – across the country by 2020. There were almost 20,000 apprenticeships recruited into training position in 2015/16.

Leeds is one of 10 cities being targeted in the new Snapchat campaign, which is a first for HEE’s health careers service and is part of a wider push to position the NHS as a major employer of apprentices.

The campaign comes as research from HEE revealed misconceptions about apprenticeships still prevail amongst school and college pupils, including 86 per cent believing that apprenticeships are only for those looking to pursue a trade such as plumbing and engineering.