After a start of the year in Dublin, from the 20th to the 22nd of June the European Apprentices Network met in nice and sunny Rome. Besides our internal meetings, we participated also in the seminar on the topic  of “Apprenticeships: From school to work – Italian case” which was arranged in cooperation between the European Alliance for Apprenticeships and the Italian energy-provider company Enel.

On our plate, there were many issues, from the disseminations of our Key Priorities, to the composition of the Network and its strategic future: all issues that are vital to the Network and its development. In fact, we also discussed the newly launched call for Members and our expectations from it, looking forward to welcoming always more apprentices from all over Europe!

Apart from our internal meetings, we had the opportunity to meet with CONSALFORM and find out about the “Scholar Jobs” project – more info here. Another great opportunity we had was to meet the Italian Apprentices from ENEL, and share with them different perspectives on 6 key topics that we have in common: different Italian apprenticeships schemes, safety in the workplace, access to higher education, access to apprenticeships and their reputation, promotion of apprenticeships as valuable pathways, competences and gender balance. While discussing these topics, we also prepared for our moment on stage, called: “The European Apprentices Network meets Italian apprentices: the learners’ perspective“ . During this session with all the members of the European Alliance for Apprenticeships, we shared our concerns, claims and best practices with one European voice: it was a great feeling and moment!

On Friday 22nd, at the end of the conference, we visited the Enel Technical and Digital Training Centre in L’Aquila. The centre welcomes almost 10 000 people yearly, among which also many apprentices. During this study visit we digged deeper into the apprenticeship scheme at ENEL, their safety training and their educational tools, including a – fun, but also highly educational – Virtual Reality Safety Training.

We are looking forward to welcoming new members and getting to know them at our next meeting in Albania!