Severn Vale Housing Society has teamed up with South Gloucestershire and Stroud College to train two plumbing and heating apprentices.

These are the first of a range of apprenticeships being offered by Severn Vale Housing across a wide range of skill areas.

To celebrate National Apprenticeship Week, they will also be recruiting a further eight apprentices right across the business.

Staff from Severn Vale attended the Tewkesbury Careers Fair this week to showcase the apprenticeships on offer.

Matt Lewis, 19, from Cheltenham, and Aaron Rogers, 25, who lives in Stroud, are the first two plumbing and heating apprentices to begin their training.

They attend college in Stroud every Monday and spend the rest of the week learning on the job with Severn Vale's maintenance staff.

Matt said: "I have settled in well at Severn Vale and I am really enjoying the experience. I am learning a lot already."

Aaron said: "This is a great opportunity for me to train on the job and get some professional qualifications.

"I will be studying for two years to gain an NVQ in plumbing and heating, with the option to go on and study for a gas qualification."

Severn Vale CEO Tim Knight added: "This is a very exciting time for us and we are extremely pleased to have taken on our first two apprentices.

"We are delighted to be working with the award-winning SGS to be able to deliver our apprenticeship scheme.

"The college has just come out on top in a national employer satisfaction survey. It was voted the nation's top employer-facing college with an incredible 99.5 per cent satisfaction rate.

"Working in partnership with SGS we will be able to provide some solid employment opportunities for local young people and give them valuable on-the-job experience."

Picture: left to right, Aaron Rogers and Matt Lewis