Laura, Placement Student, Trainee Assistant HR Adviser
University of Plymouth, Plymouth City Council

I was interested in working for Plymouth City Council because I wanted to experience working for a large organisation. I knew that it would be a very diverse placement that would offer a steep learning curve and give me invaluable experience, providing a sound base for me to use in my final year of university and my future career.

I wrote a speculative letter to the head of human resources (HR) to ask whether the council would be interested in taking on a placement student for a year. I was then invited to a meeting with the assistant head of HR to discuss the possibility of a placement.

Working for such a large employer, my tasks have been both varied and challenging, in fact no two days were ever the same. My placement was split into two sections. The first half was spent in the policy team where I was involved in policy research and job evaluation. I was also responsible for creating a workforce development plan, a new role profile and a number of reports including, equality monitoring, key performance indicators and more recently a leavers report.

The second half was spent in the operations team where I was jointly responsible for advising managers within a particular area of the council. This involved advising managers of any employment issues that were brought to my attention, as well as briefing them on new policies and giving general advice. These issues were very varied and included such things as: maternity, sickness, rolled-up holidays, exit procedures, annual leave, family support leave, subsistence rates, flexi-time, relocation expenses, managing attendance and advice on our corporate policies.

I have enjoyed the placement thoroughly. I was able to experience working in two teams within HR. In essence I feel that I have been given the chance to experience two placements because they were so diverse and I have gained different skills in each.

My current plan is to finish my final year of university and start my HR career on a graduate development programme.