Contractor - Group Reconciliations Review

I have thoroughly enjoyed my internship as it has boosted my confidence, as I have learned new skills which I can now apply to University. This internship has allowed me to meet some lovely people and have fun planning charity events for Mental Health UK and just networking with other like minded individuals. I found this internship incredibly beneficial as I would never have considered at banking career but from the experience I could see myself applying for the graduate scheme.

I felt like part of the team from day one! Everyone has been so supportive and encouraging in helping me to develop new skills and brushing up on old ones. My team got to know me as an individual and invited me along to nights out and events which helped me to settle in to my new role. My team also helped me in my charity challenges and supported me when I was really unwell in and out of work and upon my return to work helped me to feel comfortable.

My management team checked in with me everyday and ensured I was comfortable and happy in my day to day tasks. They also supported me in my own development goals and worked with me to ensure I had lots of experiences within the bank such as shadowing others teams and working up in Edinburgh for the day and joining labs sessions. I had weekly meetings with my managers to discuss what I had been working on and what I had learned for the week and other opportunities that I wanted to pursue so I felt that I had opportunities to grow. When I was unwell management were kind and considerate of me and messaged me to see how I was doing and really made sure that I was ok at work and I was given opportunities to stay off and recover.

I was busy everyday collaborating within my team on their tasks, as well as working on my own tasks which helped me to work on things that I had identified as my outcome goals for this internship. This made me feel as though my work and help was valued and that by being in everyday contributed to my teams success. I enjoyed being busy because I wanted to learn as much as possible in the ten weeks that I was in the Change team.

I was given a fair amount of responsibility for working on my own tasks independently against a deadline to ensure I could use my new skills productively. I always felt I could ask for help or advice but I was left to work through my day to day tasks as I was trusted to complete what had to be done. I appreciated being trusted and given the freedom to work with the responsibility I was given.

I am training to become a primary teacher and so I have learned new computer and presentation skills that will really help me to be successful in my degree and career. I have developed my time keeping and organisational skills which will help me keep track of my workloads and ensure I am having a good work/life balance.

My office was fun and relaxed, whilst everyone being professional and ensuring that tasks were completed, but everyone was always in good spirits (even on a Monday morning!). I felt at ease in the office and not overwhelmed with pressure or stress to complete tasks.

I found that my placement was very well organised, even after my team only finding out I was joining them on the Friday and I was starting on the Monday (due to the changes going on in the bank my previous team were being disbanded) so my new placement was very accommodating and gave me a brilliant induction.

I felt very invested in as I had opportunities to shadow other departments and members of staff which allowed me to develop my skills. I also travelled to Edinburgh to work with other staff in other teams and get exposure to other areas within the business and network so that if I come back to the graduate scheme I have contacts and a better understanding of the business.

I thoroughly enjoyed my internship and so future employment prospects are very appealing. As Lloyds was a great company to work with and the pay was excellent! I could see myself in a role within Lloyds because it is so diverse and has many departments that I could choose from.

As I was the only intern in my building and still lived at home there wasn't a lot of socialising. However, within my team there were staff nights out which allowed me to socialise and develop new friendships. Networking in others areas also allowed me to talk to others through OC and email.

I would say it was relatively cheap the standard amount you would normally pay on a night out.

There are lots of restaurants, pubs and clubs to choose from, as well as a cinema and bowling nearby so there was lots of things to do.

There wasn't any clubs to get involved in outside of work but as I volunteer and work another job I probably wouldn't have made the events anyway.