A job in the exciting UK car industry is a great career choice

Goodbye and good riddance to the lousy winter. Bring on the lighter, less dangerous days and evenings, when we can better spot and deal with increasingly common potholes and kerbside cameras, plus wretched no-notice road closures.

Also important is that parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles should be comforted by the fact that more usable daylight hours mean safer bike lanes, pedestrian crossings and pavements for youngsters, many of whom will be revising for and sitting important, potentially life-changing exams.

In years gone by, when some teens achieved decent results, a comfortably off elderly relative would generously reward them with driving lessons. And why not? Being a trained, qualified driver (even if you can’t yet afford a car) means you’re blessed with a skill for life and a qualification that’ll be a real asset when applying for jobs.

If driving is your passion, perhaps consider a reasonably well paid career at the wheel of a taxi or limo, LCV or HGV, bus or coach, or for the elite few, a WRC or F1 car. Remember, world champs Colin McRae and Lewis Hamilton were regular, working-class lads.

Others might prefer careers at vehicle or engine-manufacturing plants or back offices, engineering centres, design studios, vehicle import HQs, franchised dealerships… you name it. Such places would love to sign up new people keen to earn while they learn.

The Volkswagen Group – with its Audi, Bentley, Cupra, Lamborghini, Porsche, SEAT, Skoda and VW marques – is the car empire with the greatest sales success in Britain. Not only is it currently inviting the young, and not-so-young, to investigate and perhaps apply for places on its apprenticeship programmes here, it’s urging candidates to “choose your brand, start your journey”. Bentley goes further, saying “applications are open to everyone, from school or college leavers to those looking for a change of career”.

Arch-rival Rolls-Royce says it’s now welcoming new apprentices to its ‘Future Talent’ programmes and urges those successfully completing formal education to apply. The huge Stellantis family, plus Kia, Suzuki and others, are making similar promises to near-future apprentices. And it’s worth me reminding everyone that apprenticeships are for all-comers – young people, older folk or those somewhere in between.

As for those caring, loving relatives with wise heads? If you have a daughter or son, granddaughter or grandson, niece or nephew struggling to decide on a career path, you could do much worse than steer them towards apprenticeships or jobs in and around the automotive sector and its massive network of support businesses.

I’m talking about a rapidly changing, genuinely exciting UK industry with a £93 billion turnover annually and employing over 800,000 people. What’s not to like?

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