It's in at the deep end for eleven hand-picked trainees as they struggle to come to terms with what is expected of them in the workplace. Some are reprimanded for bad language, turning up late and persistently calling in sick. Can they make it to the end of the first week without getting sacked?
One week into their placements and the honeymoon period is over. Adam is given a final warning and after celebrating their first payday with a night on the tiles, model apprentice Carl oversleeps and is five hours late for work at the butchers. It's an eventful week as 11 trainees become nine.
Approaching the halfway mark in their placements, the trainees' tempers start to fray. For many, this is their first time living away from home and, as the dishes pile up, so do the arguments. When home life affects work the trainees turn to their mentors for support. Before the week culminates there's another sacking.
Two new young trainees arrive in Christchurch and move into the shared house to take up the opportunity squandered by others. The arrival of new blood sparks romance for Nottingham bad boy Adam, but, with his mentor Robin away on holiday, Carl hits the wall in the butchers with repercussions for both his work life and his home life.
With the end of their placements looming and the possibility of being offered a permanent job, the young trainees challenge their preconceptions of old people on a day out with the elderly members of Christchurch's Widows Club. But this pensioner's paradise isn't for everyone, and another trainee is given their marching orders.
It's the final week of placements and just nine of the original 13 trainees remain. With the possibility of a permanent job on offer for those who impress, the mentors set each trainee a task to test their newly learned skills. Who will go back to the dole queue and who will be offered a permanent job, move to Christchurch and start a new life?
