Cameron pursues career in finance with Forest Holidays

Former Burton and South Derbyshire College Business student, Cameron Holt has been appointed by Forest Holidays as a Finance Administrator after undertaking a work placement with the company during his course.

Cameron undertook an industry placement in Forest Holiday’s Finance Department as part of his Level 3 Business course. During the placement, Cameron was eager to learn and enjoyed the opportunity to develop new skills. His manager was so impressed that he was offered a part-time job alongside his college course.

Once Cameron had achieved his Level 3 qualification, he was then taken on full-time and offered the opportunity to study a Level 4 ACCA Apprenticeship, to follow his dream of becoming a qualified accountant.

Industry placements give students on Level 3 technical education courses the chance to put their knowledge and technical skills into practice in the workplace. This involves a 315-hour placement in a relevant role with an employer, where students can gain the skills they need in their future careers. Meanwhile, employers can nurture the next generation of workers while benefitting from an extra member of staff with fresh ideas.

Cameron Holt said: “Studying at BSDC allowed me to gain experience in finance and business which I could then apply in the workplace. My future career goals are to become a qualified accountant. I think finding the right industry placement is really important – once you find the right placement, you’ll want to be there and really enjoy it. The best part about working at Forest Holidays is that the people are lovely and it’s a good environment to work in.”

Kat Hart, Head of Transactional Processing at Forest Holidays and Cameron’s line manager said: “Cameron did really well on his industry placement with us and we have been delighted to take him on full-time, as well as giving him the opportunity to expand his knowledge with an apprenticeship.

“Forest Holidays have offered various work placements to college students over the years in finance, marketing, IT and data teams. It’s really important for businesses to offer work placements and apprenticeships as it gives students a chance to put things into practice in the workplace for their future career. It also gives staff experience of mentoring and brings fresh ideas and a pipeline of future employees to the organisation. I would really encourage other businesses to get involved and offer these opportunities.”