TENON has always had an ethos of training young people to become good, qualified accountants and giving them a rewarding career.

Historically, the company's annual trainee intake has comprised of both college leavers and university graduates.

For more than 10 years, the Basingstoke-based firm of accountants and business advisers has used the AAT apprenticeship route to train its college leaver intake.

The course is studied on a day-release basis at Basingstoke College of Technology (BCOT) and has been very successful.

For many college leavers today, concerns about student debt often lead them to look for a job rather than going on to university.

The AAT apprenticeship scheme enables Tenon to offer a rewarding job with a qualification alongside it - an attractive proposition to a potential employee.

The AAT qualification gives the trainee an excellent foundation in accounting and finance matters, which serves them very well as they progress with their career.

It also enables us, as an employer, to recruit excellent employees at an early age.

Once obtained, the AAT qualification can be used to fast track into further qualifications, such as the Chartered Accountancy qualification, thereby enabling the trainee to continue their career progression.

For more than a decade, Tenon has had an excellent relationship with BCOT, together training and developing many young people to enable them to fulfil their potential.

-Andy Lewis, Tenon accounting services manager