Grantham apprentices reach East Midlands Finals

Two apprentices from yes – part of Grantham College – reach the East Midlands finals of the LSC Apprenticeship Awards

Celebrations took place last week when the East Midlands Learning and Skills Council (LSC) Regional Apprenticeship Awards were held. This annual event rewards and recognises skilled and talented young people from across the region, and dynamic employers who are passionate about learning and Apprenticeships.
 

Over 300 finalists and guests gathered at the East Midlands Conference Centre in Nottingham to see winners in nine categories collect their awards. These included a winner and runner-up from yes, Luke Kemp and Kirsty Garton, and two successful local employers who collected awards for their commitment to the Apprenticeships programme.

On the night there was recognition for Luke Kemp, an Engineering Young Apprentice (YA) who combines his Engineering Young Apprenticeship with attending The Grantham Church High School, when he was announced the winner in the Young Apprentice of the Year category. Luke is keen to pursue a career in CAD, and in his school holidays has worked for local employer, BGB Engineering, who were victorious in the Medium Employer of the Year category. Their approach to Apprenticeships has had an enormous impact on their growth, and allowed them to develop a high quality, skilled workforce. James Shaw, another yes Engineering YA who attends St. Hugh’s C of E Mathematics and Computing College, also made the East Midlands regional final – further testament to the quality of local Engineering Apprenticeships.  

Hairdressing apprentice Kirsty Garton achieved the accolade of Runner-Up, Apprentice of the Year, for her work at Scots Hair Design (who also collected a Runner-Up award in the Small Employer of the Year category). Kirsty has now progressed onto an Advanced Apprenticeship and feels that being an apprentice has changed her life. The real life experience of working with clients and applying her training to these situations has benefited her, and this has been possible due to the support that Scots has given her.

With Apprenticeship numbers rising and industries recognising the value of employing an apprentice, Tom Crompton, Regional Director, LSC East Midlands, summed up the importance of the event, “With the Government’s recent announcement about Apprenticeships and how they will play a central role in its plans for growing skills in the economy, it’s clear to see how vital apprentices and those companies supporting them are in helping to combat the skills shortages across the region.  The economy depends upon skilled individuals across the whole spectrum of vocational learning and it is important that we recognise the high achievements in these fields.”