It’s not too late for councils to apply for new trainees
The LGA’s flagship graduate scheme – Impact: The Local Government Graduate Programme – has provided a pipeline of more than 2,500 high-calibre graduate trainees to the sector.
Previously known as the National Graduate Development Programme (NGDP) for more than 20 years, the scheme has helped councils across England and Wales to build crucially required capacity while providing a platform for ambitious graduates to springboard their budding careers.
After running a rigorous multi-stage recruitment campaign annually on behalf of councils, the LGA matches driven and highly capable graduates with participating authorities.
Graduates are given the opportunity to work on high-level pieces of work over a two-year period through a minimum of three placements at their host organisations.
They also undertake a bespoke learning and development programme, culminating with a Level 7 postgraduate qualification accredited by the Chartered Management Institute.
The structure of the programme, coupled with the benefits of a national network of peers, enables trainees to add value early on and deliver real change.
The 2024 Local Government Chronicle Workforce Awards highlighted a noteworthy example of this, as a recent alumna of the programme, Shona Galt, won the ‘Graduate of the Year’ award.
Shona is a Project Manager in the People Delivery Team at the London Borough of Redbridge, having successfully completed the Impact (NGDP) programme in 2023.
The award is testament to her extraordinary dedication and tireless efforts to support care leavers in Redbridge.
Shona has spearheaded numerous high-impact projects, including embedding the Care Leaver Covenant throughout the borough.
Her innovative approach, compassionate leadership and commitment have significantly improved the lives of young people transitioning out of care (see box, below).
At a time when local government is facing considerable challenges, attracting top talent, like Shona, to the sector has never been more important.
Impact has received more than 8,000 applications from graduates across the UK for the autumn 2025 intake, attracting diverse candidates from all regions of the country with a range of backgrounds and academic disciplines.
Demand appears to be growing, with more and more graduates interested in fast-tracking their careers in local government.
To ensure increasing demand is met, the number of places offered needs to increase in line with this; councils are encouraged to partner with Impact to take on as many graduates as possible each year.
Graduate experience
Shona Galt is a Project Manager in the People Delivery Team at the London Borough of Redbridge
I’m so grateful to the Impact graduate scheme for the opportunities it afforded me at Redbridge Council: first, working with UNICEF UK on the Child Friendly Cities and Communities programme; then in the Exploited Children’s Team, bidding for Home Office grants to implement local modern slavery and gang exit support measures; and then in Housing Needs, working on homelessness prevention.
These placements, and the qualification, laid invaluable foundations for me when I became a project manager in our People Directorate Delivery Team, working across adult and children’s social care to improve outcomes for residents.
Without my breadth of experience gained through Impact, I wouldn’t have had my existing network within the council and across local partners, which was crucial to joint working and delivering on the objectives set out by our care-experienced young people.
- Find out how Impact could help your council build capacity and develop the future leaders of your workforce, or, for an informal chat with the team, email [email protected]. Councils have until 28 February to confirm their interest in taking on at least one Impact graduate trainee in 2025