DOZENS of career opportunities are now available with Carmarthenshire County Council with the authority on the hunt for apprenticeship and graduate trainees.

The programme starts this week with five apprenticeships and three graduate trainee posts on offer in project management, business administration and finance roles.

Four of the apprenticeship posts for business administration are based in the education and children’s department, and the other for finance in learning and development.

The graduate trainee posts are within the communities directorate in housing and public protection, leisure services, mental health and learning disabilities.

Other career opportunities are being offered over the coming weeks in departments including environment, the chief executive’s office and resources.

Graduate trainee career opportunities will include leisure services as a project officer, a business graduate within mental health and learning disability services, a graduate architect and a graduate accountant.

These posts are also for two years, and will follow a professional post-graduate course.

They are part of the council’s Work Ready programme, now in its seventh year, which is aimed at offering local people employment within Carmarthenshire.

Since the programme was launched, the council has recruited 50 apprentices and 21 graduates with several moving onto employment within the authority itself.

The council's executive board member for HR Cllr Mair Stephens said: “The Work Ready Programme is in place to help people gain valuable work experience, develop workplace skills, and also to work towards recognised vocational and professional qualifications and gain an insight into careers within local government.

“A career in local government can be extremely varied and rewarding and over the coming weeks there will be a diverse range of apprenticeships and graduate posts on offer, working within departments across the whole of the council.”

Successful apprenticeship candidates will be employed on a fixed term basis of up to two years and will benefit from a range of work based learning opportunities as well as access to corporate learning and development.

Cllr Stephens added: “We believe that by developing apprenticeship and graduate opportunities, people can learn and grow through these routes to play a key role in the delivery of high quality services and contribute to Carmarthenshire’s future.”

•More information and details of how to apply will be available on Carmarthenshire County Council’s website carmarthenshire.gov.wales from this week onwards.