Aim Medical leadership is recognised as an essential facet of clinical practice. However there lacks standardised, sustainable training for postgraduate doctors in particular to support the transition from undergraduate medical student to Foundation Year 1 (FY1) doctor. This challenging transition creates significant anxiety amongst FY1s and clinician burnout is a national concern. Through the Government Apprenticeship Scheme NHS Trusts have access to a ring-fenced budget that can provide funded, vocationally based, nationally benchmarked leadership and management (LM) training which can support FY1s during this transition.

Methods In December 2017, through a partnership between the authors, South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Always Consult, a Registered Apprenticeship Training provider, the Foundation Leadership and Management (FLM) programme for FY1s was launched. FLM consists of 12 LM-themed modules which complement the FY1 clinical curriculum and leads to a nationally recognised qualification enabling membership of two leading international LM bodies. Participants are regularly surveyed for their self-rated preparedness for the LM challenges of FY1 practice and resilience through the Brief Resilience Score (BRS).

Results Those on the FLM Apprenticeship showed greater self-rated preparedness for the LM challenges of practice when compared to those not on the Apprenticeship. Participants’ first BRS in October 2018 was taken as a baseline and compared with their last BRS in January or March 2019. Increases in BRS were observed in over 70% of those on the FLM Apprenticeship compared to decreases in over 70% of those not on the Apprenticeship.

Conclusions LM programmes such as FLM can increase FY1s’ self-rated LM preparedness and resilience. Apprenticeships offer an opportunity to establish locally deliverable LM programmes which holistically benefit staff in a resource constrained and challenging environment.