UK Boardroom Apprentice Programme Demonstrates Impact in Expanding Access to Public Board Roles

The UK Boardroom Apprentice programme has released a three-year impact report revealing its success in broadening access to board positions and enhancing confidence among aspiring board members across the UK.

Covering the years 2023 to 2025, the evaluation summary details outcomes from three cohorts of participants, showing rising demand, strong completion rates, and increased involvement from host boards. The report highlights that participants consistently gain improved knowledge, confidence, and readiness to assume board responsibilities.

Eileen Mullan, founder of Boardroom Apprentice in 2017, stated: “Across these three years, the evidence is definitive. When people are provided with the right support, the right learning and the right opportunity, they do more than participate — they advance with conviction. They build capability, they strengthen their confidence, and they recognise that board service is not a distant ambition but a credible, attainable step in public leadership.” She added, “This is why the Boardroom Apprentice matters. It is driving systemic change – deepening the understanding of the boardroom; it is widening the pathway into public life and ensuring a strong, diverse talent pipeline of board leaders across the UK.”

During this period, the programme received 737 applications and selected 176 individuals to participate. Boardroom Apprentices submitted 177 applications for board roles, resulting in 52 appointments to date. The initiative partnered with 101 host boards, providing practical governance experience to aspiring members.

The twelve-month programme combines structured learning, mentorship from a Board Buddy, and placements with host boards. This approach allows participants to gain hands-on experience in a supportive environment before taking on formal board roles.

Applications to UK Boardroom Apprentice have more than doubled, rising from 182 in 2023 to 342 in 2025. Evaluation results indicate consistently high satisfaction, with 96% of participants in 2025 rating the programme’s relevance to boardroom settings as excellent or good, 96% acknowledging its role in building board-level confidence, 95% praising the quality of delivery, and 93% reporting that their expectations were fully met or exceeded.

Mandy Martin, a programme alumna and Public Appointed Board Member of Peak District National Park Authority, commented: “The programme removed the ‘invisible barriers’ around how boards recruit and choose members. It helped me articulate my board-ready skills and experience with confidence and shifted my own mindset from waiting to be ready to knowing I was ready. Programmes like this create access, confidence and credibility for people who might otherwise be overlooked, while strengthening boards through a wider range of perspectives.”

The report also emphasises the programme’s role in attracting applicants from diverse backgrounds, supporting wider participation in public life and reinforcing the pipeline of future board talent nationwide.

Baljit Dhillon, alumna and Public Appointed Board Member for the Chilterns Conservation Board, said: “The programme played a valuable role in bridging aspiration and reality by providing exposure, credibility and insight. Securing a board role also required personal commitment, refining my narrative, building relationships and continuing to invest in my own development. Having already been actively applying for board roles, I was able to use the programme as a platform to accelerate this, resulting in securing a role within six months.”

Beyond knowledge gains in governance, finance, and legal duties, participants reported increased confidence to contribute effectively at board level. Many finished the programme with a stronger appreciation of their own value, a clearer understanding of board operations, and a firm belief in their readiness to advance.

The evaluation underscores the programme’s wider benefits for boards seeking fresh perspectives, broader representation, and well-prepared members. It positions UK Boardroom Apprentice as a crucial pathway for cultivating future board-ready leaders in the public and third sectors.

Recommendations for the programme’s future include continuing to support board diversity and capability, exploring hybrid and consecutive learning formats to enhance accessibility, strengthening alumni engagement, and reviewing content to better support practical application.

The full UK Boardroom Apprentice three-year evaluation summary is available at https://uk-boardroom-apprentice.webflow.io/.