Apprentices hard at work in the Marsh Lane training school

More than 100 new apprentices are being recruited by BAE Systems to train in Preston.

The training school on Marsh Lane in Riversway will be home from September 2015 for the engineering recruits.

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For a year the new intake are shown the ropes ahead of moving to the Warton and Samlesbury sites.

It comes as BAE announced it would be shedding hundreds of management jobs at its two bases near the city.

Chris Boardman, managing director of the company’s Military Air and Information (MAI) who started as an apprentice in 1979, said: “As someone who came through an apprenticeship, I recognise the value of giving our people the right skills to do the job.

“Generations of workers have gone through the scheme at our Lancashire site and I am delighted we will yet again be recruiting fresh talent to our business in September.

“It is these people with bright new ideas who will become the future of our business.”

Recruits are taken in to learn business, project control and engineering – and could go on to make fighter planes for the RAF.

Thomas Hornby has been awarded First Year Apprentice of the Year

Thomas Hornsby, 21, studied at the training centre in Preston and is now undertaking the first of a number of placements as part of the second year of his study working in the systems integration team working on Typhoon, which includes testing the jet’s on-board data systems.

He said: “I love the role, it challenges me every day and I know that I am not only working towards a qualification but getting paid for it as well.

“I am getting on-the-job training alongside a group of people who have been doing the jobs for many years, you cannot beat that experience.”

The firm took over Preston North End on Tuesday to run a careers event which was attended by hundreds of future apprentices.

Applications are currently open for apprentices.

For this year, it will also take on a number of youngsters training for a Higher Apprenticeship in Aerospace Engineering, a new five-year scheme which offers youngsters the chance to earn a degree qualification in aerospace software development.

Were you a BAE apprentice? Will you be applying? Let us know in the comments below