THE first engineering apprentice at the Diamond project at Harwell says it is his dream job — “like something out of a James Bond movie”.

Si Beazley, a former pupil of Matthew Arnold School, Botley, he has just finished a nine-month placement at the giant light source, and he says it was the best part of his three-year training so far.

He said: “Working on this site is brilliant. The high-end science can sometimes be difficult to grasp but it's great to see what goes on and to play a part in it. The facility itself is fascinating — like something out of a James Bond movie.”

Diamond is Britain's largest science project for more than 40 years, and hosts ground-breaking research into everything from new drugs to metal erosion on the wreck of the Mary Rose.

Mr Beazley, 23, said many of his friends had gone to university, but he had no regrets. “You get all the debt, whereas with an apprenticeship you get paid while you are learning.”

He's hoping to complete his apprenticeship later this year and find a permanent job at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory as an electrical engineer.

Si and four other engineering apprentices will be talking to potential recruits at an open day on March 9.

For details, call Lisa Faircloth on 01235 445857 or email lisa.faircloth@stfc.ac.uk.