An ambitious business administration apprentice from Solihull College & University Centre is excelling in his varied apprenticeship role at media solutions business, Digital Garage.
After initially planning to follow the traditional A-Level route, Daniel Buckley, 17, realised he preferred a more hands-on approach. He soon began searching for an apprenticeship that would help establish himself in the world of work.
Living in a remote area, Daniel found it difficult to find something local that satisfied his interests until he came across a vacancy with Digital Garage, a provider for broadcast, immersive and creative technology solutions. Daniel was successful in his application and began his Business Administration and Events journey as an apprentice.
Digital Garage are heavily invested in education and training and have built a working environment for an apprentice to thrive in. Daniel’s role is varied; he works on rotation between departments to get a full understanding of the business operations. Daniel is learning something new every day and enjoys talking to colleagues to glean from their experiences.
In a live, working environment, apprentices pick up skills as they go about their daily duties. Daniel has learnt about professionalism in the workplace, advanced IT skills, confidence building and knowing how to converse with different stakeholders in varying scenarios.
Daniel receives great support from both his employer and the College for his learning, with one-to-ones and tasks relevant to the apprenticeship in the workplace and regular visits and progress reviews from his assessor coach. He also attends the College’s Blossomfield Campus one day per month where he is excelling.
People & Culture Director, Vicky Smith, commented: “Daniel joined Digital Garage’s first-ever apprenticeship programme in September 2025. Daniel has experienced a varied blend of hands-on practical work tasks, involvement in real research and business projects, and college-based learning.
He has fitted into the team seamlessly and his curious nature has led him to get involved in so much already, including order processing, sales, and marketing tasks. His first key project was helping to co-ordinate an event in Dublin which he did with the confidence and ease of someone who had done it many times before!
Launching our first apprentice programme has been a really proud moment for Digital Garage and we are delighted with all that Daniel has achieved in a few months. We know we have a great track record growing our own talent and now formalising our offering with the apprenticeship scheme with the College was a natural next step. It’s a privilege for our business – and for the wider media solutions sector – to play an active role in supporting and encouraging career development.”
Having been on programme for several months, Daniel recommends the apprenticeship to others, commenting: “Go for it! If you have an interest in what the company does, it’s really fulfilling and you can gain experience and work your way up.”
