Those of you familiar with Anglia Accountancy training will no doubt know of, or heard about, Sally Tebbs. Sally has been working with AAt for over 13 years, and joined the team not long after it was established in 1996. Although employed by Boston College Sally is an extension of AAt reaching out to both students and employers across the Peterborough and South Lincolnshire area offering her services to meet the demands of work based learning. When you ask Sally why she does what she does her response is, “I’ve been doing this work since 1991, I still get the buzz from doing what I do. No student is the same and things constantly evolve and change meaning that you have to adapt.”
Sally Tebbs (centre) with Victor and Jenny Gidney
So what does Sally’s day to day role actually involve? “I spend a lot of time out on the road visiting employers, the training advisors and the students themselves. Offering them support as they progress throughout the course, both from an academic and emotional perspective.” The pastoral care side of things is what makes Sally unique and very good at what she does. “She manages to take on everybody else’s problems and still get on with it” states Lynn Ladds, Sally’s boss “she is a great ambassador and genuinely understands the needs of the learner”.
During Sally’s time working with both Victor and Jenny she has assisted and looked after over 500 students helping them to achieve their accountancy qualifications – a mean feat for anyone. “I’ve seen AAt grow from the small training establishment in 1996 to what it is today. Each year is different seeing peaks and troughs in the number of students coming through. As with any other industry the current economic climate is giving cause for concern, yet the number of students still involved in training programmes such as accountancy remains strong. “It will be the funding and support that is most essential at this time, making Sally’s role even more valuable,” states Victor.
Within an academic year Sally takes care of, on average, 50 students working closely with them as individuals and their employers. This is to tailor a study plan suitable to the student as well as to the employer. One thing that has become more apparent over the years is the diversification into other industries. It is not just the traditional accountancy firm that requires staff to be trained. Every firm has an accounts department and therefore it is as important as any other to provide exemplary training facilities to these too, whether it is the NHS, Council or local business.
As a core member of the team there was no escape for Sally as she hit her milestone birthday of 50 in February. “Well I was supposed to go to AAt on the Tuesday where they had a cake ready for me but unfortunately I couldn’t make it so they ate it!” laughs Sally. “But on the Wednesday Victor had gathered everyone together. About 50 students sang happy birthday and presented me with flowers and a huge card signed by everyone – I was very touched”.
So what does 2009 hold for Sally Tebbs? “I just want to continue to provide a professional service with the best regional training organisation and secondly to have fun and enjoy what I do for another couple of years”.
