AGCO Apprenticeship - Year 1 - George Fenner
18th April 2019
George Fenner, 17, has a long interest in the agriculture sector, with his father Arnie having worked on farms and taken a similar apprenticeship scheme in his younger days.
Arnie was keen for George to follow this path, and George was equally enthusiastic about following this career route.
On finishing studies at Chelmer Valley High School on the outskirts of Chelmsford, Essex, George took on a job at RW Crawford’s Essex depot, initially for just one day a week. “This soon increased to two days, and then in a short period I was offered the opportunity to join the apprenticeship scheme,” explains George.
“My mentor at Crawfords, Richard Foster, has been through the AGCO apprenticeship scheme, and there are currently two others undertaking it, in Year 2 and Year 4, so I was very keen to follow in their footsteps, as well as my Dad’s,” he adds.
As well as his interest in farming, engineering is very close to his heart. Both he and his father enjoy grass-track motorbike racing, a hobby that takes them all around the country, ably supported by mother Tracy and older sister Rosie.
“As you can imagine, this hobby involves quite a lot of maintenance and engineering, so I am always learning,” says George.
While he has learnt much from his Dad with the hobby, in the workplace George is eager to learn from his colleagues, and the experiences they have gained through their apprenticeship.
“At this stage of my career, a lot of my time is spent shadowing Richard and other colleagues, and learning from their experiences. The apprenticeship helps me to develop these skills, and having access to the relevant equipment really does help,” explains George.
“The residential element during the college block is good too. We all get on well, and the internal support is really helpful,” he adds.
George will be mainly working with Massey Ferguson tractors at Crawfords, and is also developing his skills with air-conditioning servicing.