East of England top apprentices and apprentice employers announced

Regional winners have been announced at the East of England celebration of the National Apprenticeship Awards 2017.

The National Apprenticeship Awards, now in their 14th year, showcase the successes and benefits of apprenticeships across England in the last year. We announced the winners and the highly commended entries at an awards ceremony held at Newmarket Racecourse.

Apprentices and employers fought off tough competition by demonstrating how businesses are growing their own talent pool with apprenticeships and how apprentices have made a significant contribution to their workplace.

This year’s winners for East of England are:

Apprentice categories:

• Intermediate Apprentice of the Year: Billy Wells, intu
• Advanced Apprentice of the Year: Matthew Pike, Teledyne e2v
• Nuclear Decommissioning Authority Site Licence Companies award for Higher or Degree Apprentice of the Year: Charlotte Hughes, GlaxoSmithKline
• Apprenticeship Champion: Julie Honour-Jones, Sir John Lawes School

And highly commended:

• Advanced Apprentice of the Year: Keith Fletcher, Martson’s PLC
• Nuclear Decommissioning Authority Site Licence Companies award for Higher or Degree Apprentice of the Year: Naomi Lee, British Telecommunications Plc and Matthew Frost, British Telecommunications Plc
• Apprenticeship Champion: Michael Pearson, Brown & Carroll (London) Limited

Employer categories:

• Small Employer of the Year: Ginger Nut Media
• Medium Employer of the Year: Maycast-Nokes Precision Engineering Ltd
• Large Employer of the Year: Teledyne e2v
• The Open University award for Macro Employer of the Year: Greene King
• BAE Systems award for Newcomer SME Employer of the Year: Bury St Edmonds Canine Creche

And highly commended:

• Small Employer of the Year: Forensic Healthcare Services Limited
• Medium Employer of the Year: Brown and Carroll (London) Limited and Metalcraft
• Large Employer of the Year: Keepmoat Regeneration Ltd and Domino UK Ltd

Following the 6 regional ceremonies taking place across England, winners from each category will have their entries sent for national judging. Three from each category will then be selected as national finalists. The very best employer category entries are also in the running to feature in the prestigious Centrica sponsored Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers list 2017.

Skills and Apprenticeships Minister Anne Milton said:

The National Apprenticeship Awards are a fantastic way to demonstrate the incredible benefits and contributions of both apprentices and their employers across the country.

My personal congratulations go out to everyone who has taken part in the National Apprenticeship Awards so far and also to those heading to the national finals. You truly are worthy ambassadors for apprenticeships.

Sue Husband, director, National Apprenticeship Service, added:

The National Apprenticeship Awards allow talented apprentices and committed employers from across our regions to receive well-deserved recognition for their apprenticeship achievements. In turn I hope that the exposure given to winners encourages more employers and individuals to get involved.

Winners recognised today in the East of England show the range of sectors and variety of job roles apprenticeships are available in, and how they can deliver the skills employers need. I congratulate all winners and highly commended finalists on their success. For those heading to the national finals, I wish them the very best of luck for the next stage of the competition.

National award winners and the Top 100 Employers will be announced at a ceremony to be held on 18 January 2018 in London.

This year’s sponsor for the East of England awards is Cambridge Regional College and West Suffolk College.