Uptree

About Shawbrook Bank

Shawbrook is an award-winning specialist bank, serving real estate professionals, SMEs and consumers with a broad range of lending products and a secure home for their savings. With over 425,000 customers, a £10.5bn loan book and £10.9bn in customer savings, Shawbrook continues to experience strong, tech-enabled, growth.

Challenges

Raising brand awareness to drive apprentice applications

A primary goal for Shawbrook Bank was to create opportunities for young people to access careers in financial services and support commitment to enabling social mobility through actively driving applications from a diverse pool of young people to their Thrive Apprenticeship Programme. Thrive is an opportunity designed for aspiring individuals aged 18 to 24, aiming to kickstart their careers in the dynamic realm of financial services.

Improving diversity and inclusion

Championing diversity and inclusion within its business, Shawbrook Bank sought to simplify the application process and motivate young individuals from all backgrounds to explore the world of technology and banking and consider careers in the sector. To fulfil these aspirations, Shawbrook Bank recognised the importance of partnering with a company that can effectively connect them with schools in order to reach students from a range of backgrounds across multiple regions. Shawbrook Bank wanted to focus on reaching students from various backgrounds, including those who came from families reliant on free school meals, contributing to reducing inequalities. Another focus was to engage female students, a group that is traditionally underrepresented in the banking sector.

"Uptree seemed pragmatic, had experience across a range of sectors and a good understanding of the young talent market." Lee Shaw, Head of People & Talent at Shawbrook Bank

Solutions

Reaching students through our networks

Shawbrook Bank has leveraged Uptree’s extensive network of schools and students, through assemblies, workshops and digital content to showcase the company and its array of career opportunities to a previously untapped younger audience. This activity garnered significant interest, leading to over 300 students eagerly applying to participate in Work Experience Days and Application Masterclasses hosted at Shawbrook Bank’s offices. Through collaborative efforts with the Uptree team, Shawbrook Bank successfully positioned its brand at the forefront of students’ minds as they explore their career paths.

Creating meaningful connections with students

Uptree’s outreach to students has been instrumental in enabling Shawbrook Bank to connect with a diverse pool of young talent through tailor-made events to support their career prospects. During these events, Shawbrook Bank’s employees were present, actively guiding students with their invaluable insights on the careers available at Shawbrook Bank. For many attendees, these events served as their initial introduction to the range of career paths within the company.

Students keen on exploring careers at Shawbrook Bank were given the opportunity to participate in Application Masterclasses. These sessions shed light on the available roles within the organisation and offered practical tips on the application process. Group activities, mock interviews and CV workshops, facilitated by Shawbrook Bank employees, equipped students with practical skills for future success.

These events facilitated a strong connection between Shawbrook Bank and an engaged group of young individuals while simultaneously offering valuable volunteering prospects for their employees.

Insight events

In the Academic Year of 2022/23:

2 Application Masterclasses

3 Work Experience Days

119 students across 95 schools

41% women participants

Results and outcomes

The collaboration between Shawbrook Bank and Uptree has yielded promising outcomes, enabling the company to reach a diverse talent pool of young individuals. The events organised and the engagement with students have helped to increase interest and understanding of careers in banking.

As a result of our events, 23% of the young people in attendance went on to apply to Shawbrook Bank’s apprenticeship programme with 4 securing roles at the company.

Lee Shaw expressed his satisfaction: "Our partnership with Uptree has simply enabled engagement with young people in the target demographic, showcasing Shawbrook's mission and Thrive Apprenticeship Programme."

Changing students’ perceptions

The partnership has connected Shawbrook Bank with a diverse talent pool of young people. From student feedback, it’s clear to see that the events are helping Shawbrook Bank to become an employer of choice amongst the younger generation.

Following Shawbrook Bank’s Application Masterclass in 2022/23:

Before the events, 57% of students were considering applying for careers at Shawbrook Bank. This changed to 99% after the events - a 75% increase.

100% said the events were ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ useful in helping them understand careers in Investment Management.

Before the events, 29% of students were ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ confident about applying to work for Shawbrook Bank. This changed to 99% after the events.

Student testimonials:

‘The event was very informative, I learnt a lot about how I would apply to the apprenticeship scheme and what it would entail.’

‘This event has given an even more positive view that this is a pathway that I aspire to pursue.’

‘I was able to get a good understanding of how the Shawbrook team interacts and the culture of the company, which was very inviting, whilst gaining an understanding of the apprenticeship role’

‘I love how diverse Shawbrook Bank is and how they are offering great opportunities for students. I learned more about the environment at the company. It is full of bright, polite and helpful people who are all approachable! I look forward to applying for their future roles.’

U.N. Sustainable Development Goals

Through its collaboration with Uptree, Shawbrook Bank has been able to work towards several of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals:

• Goal 4: Quality Education - Shawbrook Bank’s partnership with Uptree has improved students’ understanding of early career roles in the banking sector, aiding them in making informed decisions about their future careers.
• Goal 5: Gender Equality - 41% of the students that attended work experience and masterclass events were female. The collaboration has actively encouraged gender equality by engaging a diverse pool of young people, thus contributing to a more balanced representation within the banking sector.
• Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth - 34% of students that attended Shawbrook Bank’s work experience and masterclass events were in receipt of free school meals. By reaching students from various socioeconomic backgrounds, including those from families reliant on free school meals, Shawbrook Bank has helped promote decent work and economic growth.
• Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities - Shawbrook Bank has engaged a diverse pool of students in their events with Uptree, with 63% of those in attendance being from diverse backgrounds. The collaboration contributes to reducing inequalities by providing opportunities to those from underrepresented communities.
• Goal 17: Partnerships for Goals - Shawbrook Bank has partnered with Uptree to improve their student outreach and connect with young people. This collaboration highlights the importance of partnerships in achieving broader sustainable development goals.

Looking forward

Building on the success of the partnership in 2022/23, Shawbrook Bank and Uptree are enthusiastic about expanding their collaboration. Future initiatives include student outreach in Glasgow through school engagement and Work Experience Days. The ongoing partnership signifies a commitment to continuously explore new and improved ways to engage and inspire young talent.

Get in touch with us now to discuss partnership opportunities and collaborate with us in inspiring and engaging with the next generation of talent.