A former apprentice has been appointed to engage with employers and develop Apprenticeship opportunities in South West and Mid Wales.

Rhianydd Herdman, 25, from Ammanford, is the new Apprenticeships Programme development manager for the region employed by the National Training Federation for Wales (NTfW), which represents more than 100 work-based learning providers across Wales.

She is one of five members of a NTfW Apprenticeships Team appointed to make it easier for employers to engage with the Welsh Government’s Apprenticeships Programme.

The team’s mission is to increase the number of employers recruiting apprentices and using the Apprenticeships Programme to upskill their existing workforce.

Funded by the Welsh Government with support from the European Social Fund, the team is working with employers and interested stakeholders across Wales.

Rhianydd will work with larger employers, especially those who pay the Apprenticeships Levy, to develop engagement and Apprenticeship opportunities.

Employers are referred to her after completing an expression of interest form on the Business Wales Skills website.

The team aims to make a significant contribution to helping the Welsh Government achieve its goal of creating 100,000 quality Apprenticeships in Wales during its current term of office.

Rhianydd, a Welsh speaker, studied Performing Arts at Gower College Swansea before becoming a business administration apprentice with Carmarthenshire County Council.

She then worked in finance and administration at the Regional Learning Skills Partnership in Llanelli for three years before being appointed senior recruitment officer for a work-based learning project at the University of Wales Trinity St David.

A post as project officer on the Canolfan S4C headquarters in Carmarthen followed before she joined the NTfW.

“I am looking forward to supporting employers in South West and Mid Wales region to get involved in Apprenticeships and to helping young people to know what is out there for them,” said Rhianydd.

“As I was an apprentice myself, I have seen first-hand the benefit of Apprenticeships.

“I already have contacts with businesses across the region through my previous posts and have started to identify the training needs and gaps. I am ready to get stuck in to the role.”

Having had her hopes of becoming a professional ballet dancer dashed, she said she was keen to ensure that Welsh people in the creative industries had qualifications relevant to the workplace.

Away from work, she teaches ballet and contemporary dance and enjoys running.

Her ambition is to run a marathon to raise money for equipment for Amman Valley Hospital in memory of her grandfather.