Call 0203 006 5730 / 07747 686118 or email info@carolinecarterrecruitment.com

Recent Articles…

Pre-Employment Checks – References

As we all know, recruitment is an inexact science and pre-employment checks such as securing valid and recent references gives us important information that helps us to decide if a candidate is suitable for a particular role. Over the years I have taken references on behalf of thousands of employers and prospective employees as part of delivering bespoke recruitment services. This has lead me to have many positive, long-term placements and via the same established processes of due diligence, I have also diverted my clients away from certain disaster on more than one occasion! Interestingly these days many grooms, having known me through their careers, give me as a reference to their 'journey.'  Similarly, and not infrequently, employers will ask me for information about a particular prospective employee and of course, where I can fairly and legally comment, I do. Over the years, more especially in the equestrian recruitment environment, I have been struck by how many employers who recruit for themselves or via other routes don’t seem to bother taking up references, opting instead to completely ignore these critical pre-employment checks just hoping for the best; many seem to live to regret this omission sooner or later...

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Are you winter ready?

Apologies in advance to all of you who still have your mind set to happy, sunny, long summer days but the time has now come to start turning our thoughts to the fast approaching winter season. Temperatures are dropping, days are getting shorter, the show season is drawing to a close and the Hunters are out for their early morning jaunts revving up to full steam ahead for the opening meet. Much as we all jest about the delights of the British weather in winter, there is plenty to enjoy too; think frosty early morning hacks, days out at the races, having some downtime if you’re in Eventing/Showing, hunt balls, escaping to the sun for the Showjumpers and dare I say it...Christmas! As with all things in life the key to avoiding stress is good organisation.  So here we are again with another dispenser load of wise words, silly opinions and ridiculous pictures that may or may not help you prepare physically, mentally and emotionally for the slightly more challenging season ahead.

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How an Apprenticeship can benefit your equine career

As specialist equine recruitment consultants, we see the good and bad outcomes of unstructured career pathways and the results of the "rooky errors" grooms make without correct guidance. We're passionate about the part we can play in improving the role of an equine groom as a credible career pathway. Many equestrians join the equine industry by making a blind leap into it, accepting the first job available to them. Needless to say, this isn't a constructive foundation for a fruitful career in the equine industry. Many grooms resort to "job-hopping" in search of the training and opportunities they crave, without realising the damaging effect this has on their CV and future career prospects. By contrast, an Equine Apprenticeship makes the you focus on what you would like to achieve within your career and how you can achieve it. You can then source meaningful employment as an Apprentice Groom, enabling you to earn while you learn, laying the foundation of a promising career - and ultimately become one of the best professional grooms in the equine industry.

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Become an Apprentice Groom – a Parents Guide

Everyone likes to keep things simple, and sometimes gathering all the information needed before making decisions and acting on them can be time-consuming. With this in mind, The Grooms List team have put together a simple step-by-step guide to walk you through the process of your son/daughter becoming an Apprentice Groom. From choosing an appropriate course, to finding ongoing employment, The Grooms List by Caroline Carter Recruitment will be with you every step of the way.

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How an Equine Apprenticeship can benefit your child

As specialist equine recruitment consultants, we see the good and bad outcomes of unstructured career pathways and the results of the "rooky errors" young people make without correct guidance. We're passionate about the part we can play in improving the role of an equine groom as a credible career pathway and we'll always do our utmost to encourage your child to make safe career decisions. Many young people wishing to work in the equine industry will make a blind leap into it by accepting the first job available to them. Needless to say, this isn't always a constructive foundation for a fruitful career in the equine industry. Many grooms resort to "job-hopping" in search of the training and opportunities they crave, without realising the damaging effect this has on their CV and future career prospects. By contrast, an Equine Apprenticeship makes the job seeker focus on what they would like to achieve within their career and how they can achieve it. The job seeker can then source meaningful employment as an Apprentice Groom, enabling them to earn while they learn, laying the foundation of a promising career - and ultimately become one of the best professional grooms in the equine industry.

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A step by step guide to employing an Apprentice Groom

Everyone likes to keep things simple, and sometimes gathering all the information needed before making decisions and acting on them can be time-consuming. With this in mind, The Grooms List team have put together a simple step-by-step guide to employing an Apprentice Groom, from writing your advert to retaining your fully trained Apprentice Groom beyond their final qualification.

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How an Apprentice Groom can benefit YOUR yard

In so many of the blogs and articles we write for equine employers, we find ourselves referring to common difficulties when sourcing, securing and retaining good equine career grooms. It’s reasonable to conclude the pool of experienced grooms wanting to remain working with horses and available to yards is diminishing as the years pass. Trainee grooms, including apprentices, are a lifeblood of the equine industry and the ins and outs of employing them need much more consideration than they currently get. Taking anyone on as an employee is a big responsibility with plenty of legislation to adhere to along associated pitfalls, so it's very tempting to aim to keep things simple by seeking to only take on employees with experience and a solid employment history. Not only could you find this attempt to keep things simple actually complicates your recruitment drive, as you struggle to attract and secure established, experienced career grooms in what is undeniably a very competitive recruitment market for employers, but by shunning the notion of taking on an apprentice, quite simply, you could be missing out!

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4 common pitfalls when employing staff and how to avoid them!

This week's blog is for all those interested in knowing more about the facts concerning employee wages, accommodation charges, holiday entitlements and finally sick pay, income tax, national insurance and pensions. Linda Hudson, Head of Business Development at Educ8 Training, has in the last 10 years worked in both college and private training organisations and rather usefully, has also studied employment law. Linda now kindly offers us all a short review with some handy hints, tips and links for good measure!

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A Sneak Peek at an equine Grooms Wishlist…

Last week we took a sneaky peek at an equine employers 'wish list', this week we thought we would do the same (only fair!) to give those employers who might need it, a gentle nudge towards a better understanding of what grooms are looking for when they make a job move. It is surprising how often we come across bewildered employers wondering why they are still groom-less months down the line. Apart from the fact that the reality is that good grooms are in really short supply, often on further investigation into the job vacancy details the reasons can be somewhat closer to home....

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A Sneak Peek at an equine Employers Wishlist…

It is surprising how often we come across bewildered job seekers wondering why they are struggling to secure their ideal job. Sometimes the reason is obvious, other times less so. No matter how incredibly experienced/qualified and talented a groom you are there can be many reasons things don't happen as quickly as you might like. Clearly, 3 horses, 4 dogs and a magpie (yes really) won't help, but the more subtle reasons usually take the eyes or ears of a genuine and interested recruitment expert! We often can quite quickly help you to identify what the blocks are. Our team compilation 'employers wishlist' is not designed to be an exhaustive tick list by any means, but it does pretty much cover most of what we have heard over the years.

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Information

Caroline Carter Recruitment Ltd
The Stables
Fildyke Road
Meppershall
Bedfordshire
SG17 5LU

info@carolinecarterrecruitment.com
0203 006 5730 / 07747 686 118

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