Our Birmingham pre-internship
Learners on our pre-internship in Birmingham attend careers learning sessions to develop their skills and confidence 3 days a week between September and July. The course involves some
work experience
Work
experience
Experience is when you have learned or tried something before.
is when you try out a job to help you learn new skills.
and other forms of employer engagement.
What do learners do in pre-internship classroom sessions?
Topics covered include:
- Exploring the world of work
- Exploring what good CVs and cover letters look like
- Understanding how to job search
- Identifying positive
interview
An interview is a meeting where you talk to someone or a group of people about something. When you have an interview for a job, you have to answer questions and say why you would be good at the job. The person who gives the best answers is offered the job.
skills and describing my skills to others - Expected workplace behaviours and health and safety at work
- How to work in a team
- Prioritising and time management.
Engaging with employers on our Birmingham pre-internship
As part of the pre-internship course, learners also engage with employers. This could be in the form of guest speaker visits, or trips to employers' premises.
During terms 2 and 3, pre-internship learners must also complete a minimum of 45 hours of work experience. Learners are supported in their placement by a skills coach and could do work experience with a range of employers including:
Greene King. The UK's biggest pub chain. Hospitality work experience placements available in front of house and back of house roles - waiting on tables, serving at the bar and working in kitchens.
The Midlands Arts Centre. Work experience placements available working at the centre's cafe and in other facilities like the cinema and recording studio.
Evri. Leading logistics company. Warehouse operative work experience placements available at their Birmingham warehouse.
Sanctuary Care.
Care home
A care home is a place where people who need support live. There are staff there all the time.
provider. Health and
social care
Social care means the services that give care and support to people who need it.
work experience placements available in roles like carer, activity assistant, play worker.
You can find out more about employers we work with in Birmingham on our Birmingham supported internship page.
Where is it?
Learners on our Birmingham pre-internship attend sessions at the Lewis Building in central Birmingham for 3 days a week between September and July. There may also be trips to other sites and work experience could take place at a range of locations.
The aim of the pre-internship is to prepare learners to progress onto our supported internship or employer-led supported internship in Birmingam the following year.
How do young people enrol on this course?
To express an interest in joining our pre-internship in Birmingham and to start the enrolment process, please complete our online expression of interest form.
If you or the person you are enquiring on behalf of are eligible for the course, then a member of the team will work to get in touch with you within 14 working days.
Before we can agree to enrol learners, we will need to see a copy of the young person's EHCP and to meet with htem to discuss why you want to do a supported internship, as well as their skills, needs and interests.
Our Birmingham prospectus
You can find out more about all our courses in Birmingham in our 2025/26 prospectus.
Our classroom where we deliver the classroom learning elements of our supported internship in Birmingham is at the Lewis Building in the city centre. It is a 0.3 mile (6 minute) walk from Birmingham New Street station. It is also close to bus stops on the 74, 66 and X64 routes (from Priory Queensway stops) as well as the 9, 12, 12A, 82, 87 and 101 routes (from Colmore Row stops).
We understand that some people may not have much experience of travelling on their own and may feel nervous about finding their way to our classroom.
We encourage people to come and visit our premises before enrolling to see what it’s like and to get a sense of the journey from home. We also try to arrange meetings with employers where learners will do work experience before they start on the programme so they can experience the journey to the workplace as well.
You may also be able to get some travel support before joining the pre-internship from your local
council
A council is also called a
local authority
A local authority is also called a council. They are a group of people who make decisions about some of the things in the area where you live like schools, social care (support for people), parks and dustbin collection.
. They are a group of people who make decisions about some of the things in the area where you live. These include: schools, social care (support for people), parks and dustbin collection.
.
For Birmingham City Council residents, visit https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/info/50052/school_travel/893/independent_travel_training_itt
For Solihull residents, visit https://www.solihull.gov.uk/Schools-and-learning/independent-travel-training
If you would like to enquire about enrolling on our pre-internship in Birmingham, then the best way to start the process is by completing our online expression of interest form.
However, if you would like to get in touch with a member of the team directly, then please contact the programme coordinator in Birmingham, Mia Smith.
07814 938 821
For general enquiries, you can also contact: employment.support@mencap.org.uk