VerkehrsRundschau award for BPW’s Political Education training programme

• Trade journal honours BPW in the ‘Apprenticeships and Further Training’ category
• BPW offers its junior staff much additional knowledge and expertise
• Apprentices learn the basics of democracy and experience politics at first hand

Wiehl, 7 February 2020 --- At BPW, apprentices learn far more than just a profession – for example, they also organise political discussion groups and hold their own meetings in Wiehl’s town hall. This is all thanks to the company’s own Political Education programme, through which the company gives these young people a basic understanding of democracy, explains politics to them and even allows them to experience it directly. In honour of this extraordinary commitment, BPW has now been awarded the VerkehrsRundschau award in the ‘Apprenticeships and Further Training’ category.

Michael Pfeiffer, personally liable managing partner of BPW, accepted the award: ‘I am delighted that our political programme has been recognised, since I am convinced that peace and economic prosperity are based on the pillars of democracy. It is therefore more important than ever to offer young people the opportunity to engage with democratic values and behaviours in a very practical way. For us, it is an integral part of our efforts to provide a wide range of apprenticeships and further training for young people, whom we support by offering many extracurricular activities as they embark on their careers.’

Training at BPW is designed to promote holistic learning: apprentices can gain their own experience, try things out for themselves and work in a team with other apprentices. The Wiehl training centre with its well-equipped workshops ensures they have access to the best possible conditions for this. They also receive a great deal of personal support. In addition to political education, there is a wide range of offers, including their own sports programme called ‘Azu-be-fit’, tips on healthy eating, finance seminars and courses on etiquette. Moreover, they have an opportunity to live and work abroad for a period during their training. BPW offers apprenticeships for over 20 different professions and gives around 30 young people the chance to launch their careers every year. 

The Political Education programme has been offered for around four years; so far, a total of 135 apprentices have taken part in 11 modules. The content is refreshed and adapted to current topics in the media every year. For example, apprentices have already looked at issues surrounding retirement, illegal car racing and the legalisation of cannabis. Time and again, the focus has also shifted to be more regional: ‘Being young in Wiehl – your, my, our perspective’ was the title of an evening event for which a political debate was organised in the style of the ARD’s political talk show Hart aber fair. At the event, BPW apprentices were able to discuss issues with the mayor of Wiehl, among others. Another project was designing a concept for a new childcare centre in Wiehl. Participants presented their ‘creative and visionary proposal for a childcare centre of the future’ to the city’s youth welfare committee. Marvin Henze, a technical product design apprentice at BPW, took part in the programme: ‘It was very exciting to experience how politics works so directly – I really learned a lot, and I now see the world through different eyes to a certain extent since I am now aware of connections that I was simply not aware of before. Politics has an effect on so many issues in day-to-day life – it’s important to get involved.’