Case Study
APHA: Building Enterprise-Wide Data Capability in the Public Sector
Client profile
APHA plays a vital role in protecting animal and plant health across the UK, supporting food security, public health, and international trade. Much of this work depends on making the right decisions at the right time, and increasingly, those decisions are driven by data.
As the volume and complexity of data across the organisation grew, APHA recognised that teams needed more than access to information. They needed the skills and confidence to work with data day to day, ask better questions, and apply insight directly to their roles.
APHA’s Data Capability Programme
In 2025, APHA partnered with Cambridge Spark to launch Level 3 Data Citizen and Level 4 Data Analyst apprenticeship programmes.
The initial plan was to enrol 20 learners. Demand quickly exceeded expectations, leading to the launch of two cohorts between November 2025 and January 2026, with 41 learners joining the programmes.
The focus was clear:
- Build data literacy across roles and functions
- Align skills development with APHA’s long-term data and AI ambitions
- Encourage learners to apply new skills directly in their work
- Create lasting, internal capability
Early Impact
Growing confidence and engagement as learners apply data skills in the role
Enterprise Alignment
Data skills embedded within a wider performance improvement programme
41 Learners
Enrolled across the Level 3 and Level 4 data apprenticeships
2 Cohorts
Launched within three months