A WIRRAL engineer has spoken out about his life after leaving the Royal Navy.

Luke Gray starting working as a vessel engineer at Mersey Ferries in 2017 when he decided to move back home to Wirral and start a family.

At 18, Luke signed up to the Royal Navy and began an apprenticeship as a Royal Navy Marine Engineer. Travelling around the world, he managed to complete his Marine Engineering apprenticeship and work as a qualified Marine Engineer before giving it all up for a new role on a shipyard in Lagos Nigeria.

He spent a year maintaining a fleet of passenger and work vessels and learnt more about project managing the maintenance of boats, rather than being at sea. 

When it was time to leave, Luke was looking for opportunities to stay in the job he enjoyed, while being close to home and having the chance to start the family he had been dreaming of.

After applying at Mersey Ferries he began his job as vessel engineer.

Seven years after starting his role with Mersey Ferries, Luke was looking for new challenges as his personal life, and two small children, allowed him a little more freedom to explore what the next step in his career would look like.

In November 2023, aged 33, he began his Associate Project Manager Level 4 apprenticeship with Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.

Luke’s apprenticeship will take two years to complete. Upon completion he’ll be a qualified Project Manager and will be able to step into any role accepting applications from new project managers, in any industry.

Luke said: “Do it as soon as you can. Starting an apprenticeship and learning again in your thirties is harder that it is when you’ve just left school.

“That said, if you have the idea that an apprenticeship might be for you, apply. It doesn’t matter how old you are, apprenticeships are open to everyone and give you the chance to learn something new while still working and earning.

“Apprenticeships have given me a career I love and I’m lucky enough to be working for an organisation that values the benefit of apprenticeships and encourages learning and development for everyone.

“Look for a business that will support you, it makes changing your career path much easier - having supportive people around you makes all the difference.”