Exeter City Council Work Placement Success

University of Exeter Politics student Edward Cole has recently completed a work placement with Exeter City Council’s Housing Development Team, where he researched and wrote the Council’s new Empty Homes Strategy. 

Edward was very enthusiastic about the placement, saying that it allowed him to develop his research and presentation skills, as well as gain valuable office and administrative experience:

“I feel the work experience has been highly successful, and of great value to my own personal development.  I received great support throughout, and have worked independently on the strategy for the majority of the placement… I have also been able to aid in other office tasks as well as attend a variety of Council meetings, offering me a great insight into the broader work of a local authority.”

Senior Housing Development Officer Caroline Massey was equally impressed with Edward’s performance, saying that “Edward has been fantastic and I cannot praise him highly enough. The standard of his work, his attention to detail and enthusiasm has been excellent.”

Caroline was in no doubt about the value of the placement to both her team and to Edward, and was impressed by the quality of candidates for the work placement:   

“The calibre of candidates who applied to the empty homes placement was extremely high, and there were several candidates who were considered to have more than the necessary skills for the position... The value that this type of placement has brought to our team and also to Edward has been fantastic and one that I would recommend to other departments within the Council.” 

The work placement was part of the Exeter Politics Internship Programme, which offers second year students the chance to gain internships and work placements with MPs, NGOs, Local Authorities, Newspapers and Companies.

We hope that following on from the success of the placement with Exeter City Council we can develop our links with this and other local authorities, giving students the chance to gain experience doing meaningful work in areas of policy research, while providing the Council with intelligent students, eager to learn and develop their skills.  

For more information on the Exeter Politics Internship Programme, click here.