Furniture components manufacturer and distributor HPP has helped an apprentice overcome mental health challenges.

Ryan Griffiths, who suffered anxiety so severely he did not finish his education. has now embarked on a Level 2 Supply Chain Warehouse Operative apprenticeship at the Oldham-based business.

It will include additional examinations in maths and English equivalent to the GCSEs he never sat, having dropped out of school in year 10 at the age of 15.

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He commented on his anxiety: “It got so bad I couldn’t leave the house for nine months. I had it for six or seven years, and I still don’t like travelling.

“The bus to work is only five minutes but it’s still a tough thing to do, you tell yourself nothing is going to happen.”

And he has this advice for anyone facing similar mental health struggles: “Don’t let it grasp you. You have to beat it before it beats you.

“Anything you don’t want to do is just your brain telling you not to do it. It’s not good – you have to do what you don’t want to do to get out of it.”

Ryan Griffiths met UK sales manager Chris Essex and sales office supervisor Deon Phoenix at Oldham Jobs Fair, before emailing his CV to HR Manager Carole Hamnett-Sadler

He was invited in for an interview which led to a referral to HPP’s regular apprenticeship providers – North Lancs Training Group in Accrington.

HPP’s marketing and business development director Dan Mounsey said: “Ryan having no qualifications isn’t really an issue for us. It didn’t put us off in the slightest – we’ve learnt from experience that sometimes you need to give people a chance.

“We see people, we speak to them and make our own judgement. And we’re not just doing it for Ryan, we think he can contribute to our business.”

Ryan Griffiths has being joined on his level two apprenticeship journey by 18-year-old Warren Booth, who started at HPP on a Government-funded, 8-week traineeship after realising a bricklaying course at Oldham College was not for him.

Booth said: “Within a week of applying I was working here. It was very quick and very efficient. I’m hoping to come out of the apprenticeship with a good qualification in the future and have a better future progressing to more senior jobs at work.”

They are following in the footsteps of former apprentice Ellie McCartney, who has just completed her Level 3 Business Administration qualification.

She had been studying with Oldham College for 18 months following on her from her Level 2 qualification at Tameside College, which she passed with a distinction.

She added: “HPP has been really good to me. If I’ve needed any extra time to do college work, they’ve made sure they’ve catered for that.

“They’ve been the best company I could have asked for to do an apprenticeship with. I’d recommend an apprenticeship to anyone.”