Data Protection Apprenticeship Launch Event
Damar Training celebrated the launch of the new data protection and information governance practitioner apprenticeship yesterday, 7th September.
The event, held at The Bloc in Manchester, was attended by data protection experts and learning and development leads from a wide range of public and private sector organisations across England. Attendees included members of the trailblazer group that designed the apprenticeship and also members of Damar’s employer reference group. The reference group has been a close part of the programme design process, ensuring that the programme meets the needs of employers in this rapidly growing sector.
The apprenticeship is available to employers across England, with the materials and content development also supported by Act Now Training, a leading international consultancy working in data protection and information governance.
The first cohort of Damar apprentices on this exciting and innovative new programme, that was approved by the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education earlier this year, will start in October.
Attendees enjoyed talks during the event from Jonathan Bourne (managing director, Damar Training), Ibrahim Hasan (director, Act Now Training) and Phillipa Nazari (Assistant Director Information Governance and Data Protection Officer, Greater Manchester Combined Authority and Transport for Greater Manchester).
Increased regulation, coupled with the processing of growing amounts of personal data mean that data protection and good information governance are now business critical for many organisations. Increasing requirements have led to a skills shortage and the new apprenticeship provides a high quality and cost-effective development solution for organisations with data protection and information governance teams. The programme complements Damar’s existing portfolio of business and professional apprenticeships and will be attractive to both new and existing partner-employers, particularly those in financial and professional services and the public sector.
Damar’s managing director, Jonathan Bourne, commented:
“The data protection apprenticeship is much needed. It helps address skills shortages in data protection but also enables organisations to improve compliance, reduce regulatory and legal risk and increase their efficiency. We are delighted to be working with so many committed employers who, like us, see the apprenticeship as one of the keys to improved capability in data protection and information governance.”
Ibrahim Hasan, director, Act Now Training, added:
“We are excited to be working with Damar Training on this much needed apprenticeship. It will develop the information governance profession by encouraging a diverse range of new information governance professionals with the knowledge and skills to enable them to tackle the data protection challenges ahead.”
Phillipa Nazari was the chair of the trailblazer group of employers which developed the apprenticeship in conjunction with the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education.
Phillipa commented:
“It has been a great honour to give something back to the profession that will leave a lasting legacy for employers. Each individual and organisation that benefits from the apprenticeship will be ensuring that a fundamental human right is upheld and organisations can derive value and insight from their data and information in the appropriate, legal and ethical way. I hope that the apprenticeship will open up opportunities for a rich and varied career and be accessible for an even more diverse pool of talent. It’s been needed for a long time and now the future looks bright.”
If your organisation is interested in the apprenticeship and would like an initial conversation, please get in touch. You can also read more about the apprenticeship standard on our website.
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