Hear what our graduates have to say

We are very lucky to have truly excellent graduates who work with our organisation, many of which have progressed to permanent roles. We strive to offer our graduates ongoing support to help them achieve their maximum potential. We asked some of our past and current graduates about their experience with our graduate programme, and here is what they had to say

Amani Ali

My first placement was with the Policy team where I worked to develop the policy function by coordinating weekly briefing notes for the leader / Chief Executive. Other workstreams I led included preparing and submitting external awards to deadline and delivering a Christmas gifts appeal. Working in this team taught me how to concisely formulate reports and meet tight deadlines, in the fast-paced department of the Chief Executive. I feel grateful to have been entrusted with supervising an A-level student on work placement; this experience helped build my confidence while I closely supported their learning throughout the week.

My second placement was in the Preparation for Adulthood team, where I supported young people with complex disabilities to prepare and transition for adulthood. I was involved in the Promote the Vote campaign, where I coordinated a resource guide to help support people with learning disabilities to vote. In addition to this, the British Association of Social Work (BASW) have partnered with Bradford Council to launch this guide as a UK-wide call to action. This has been an exciting project as I have been able to speak to people with learning disabilities about their experiences of voting, and I have been afforded the opportunity to collaborate with social workers, both internally and externally. I was interviewed by BASW for their Human Rights Day podcast, alongside the head of service and an expert by experience!

I am currently placed in the Transformation and Change PMO, which helps drive innovation across the organisation. I am exposed to high-level workstreams, such as emergency financial planning. I am leading a project around innovating the way staff can present change ideas to the organisation. I am looking forward to advancing my knowledge and skills in a team which is heavily involved in driving change in pressured timescales.

Sam - Programme Officer

During my time on the NGDP, I was involved in several key projects. One of these was the Fleet Efficiency Project, where I learned how to work in a small team to achieve defined objectives in identifying efficiencies that could be made in the Council's Fleet Service. I also experienced the full project cycle by seeing the project through from its initial scoping phase to its completion. Additionally, I learned how to give succinct presentations to senior officers in Bradford Council around my work and the project's benefits. Through this project, we identified significant cost avoidances within the Council's Fleet Service. We also helped to re-engineer business processes around how vehicles are procured by Bradford Council, to reduce time delays and better inform the move away from traditionally fuelled vehicles and towards Electric/Hydrogen vehicles.

Another key project that I worked on was the Welfare Advice Needs Assessment Project. I was asked to write a report on the key areas of people's lives where welfare advice services (such as the Citizens Advice Bureau) could make a difference. I learned how to write in a concise, factual manner and how to back up my writing with both qualitative and quantitative evidence. I also learned how to conduct independent research, and how to ask the right questions of people currently working in Bradford's welfare advice system. This project identified pressing areas of need for welfare advice, particularly around the cost-of-living crisis and increasing demand for Universal Credit. It also assessed how these rising areas of need could best be addressed, for example through investment in self-service advice and through offering consultations to occur via video conferencing, making welfare advice easier to access.

Since completing the NGDP, I have been successful in securing a permanent position in the council’s Transformation & Change PMO. In my new role I have applied many of the skills that I developed on the scheme. I have been able to utilise my experience working on the whole life cycle of projects, by implementing proper governance and quality standards in projects and ensuring that they deliver the best possible benefits to the council. Additionally, I have continued the improvement work that I started with the council’s Fleet Service. By utilising my communications and analytical skills, I helped to bring together key individuals in understanding what the long-term requirements of the service will be, particularly around how fleet depots are used.

Anne-Marie - Project Manager

“What I learnt; my development: I have been working as part of the Data and Analytics team within the Office of the Chief Executive on the localities project, which sits in the Department of Place. I have made a data tool to help inform locality working plans which has shown me how data and intelligence are incorporated into Council working priorities alongside local knowledge and soft data. I have learnt how to manage and self-direct my work to fulfil expectations in the way I believe is best. This has been a great opportunity to explore my own working style as I worked on creating the data tool. I have had the opportunity to present in front of different groups such as internal stakeholders, the Civil Service, the VCS and Councillors.

My next placement was then in Economy and Development Services where I was able to continue developing similar skills, as well as placing more emphasis on project management through working on funding streams, Town Fund, and clean growth.

My third placement was in the Transformation and Change PMO in Corporate Resources. In this placement I was able to develop a wide range of project management related skills, alongside a professional qualification. The breadth of work this this team does crosses all service areas in the Council and gives you exposure to senior managers in project environments, focusing on issues that are most important to the organisation. During my time in this placement, I successfully applied for a Programme Officer role, and 8 months later then successfully applied for a Project Manager position in this team, which is my current role.

Along with previous graduates we established a young person’s network at the Council, which we hope will increase the profiles of all young and provide opportunities to socialise with young people whatever their position, department, or role, who you otherwise might not come across.”