Keeping Up With Kerry - Build The Future
Many of you who read my blogs will now I started my career as a Business Administration Apprentice in the FE sector over 20 years ago! So, it felt only right to write about the massive achievements of our amazing and apprentices and employers as part of the the 15th annual week-long celebration of apprenticeships and businesses across the country. This years’ theme for National Apprenticeship Week was 'build the future'; reflecting on how apprenticeships can help individuals to develop the skills and knowledge required for a rewarding career, and businesses to develop a talented workforce that is equipped with future-ready skills.
This year in particular means a lot to us at DBC, as it offered the first opportunity, post pandemic to properly celebrate the achievements of our apprentices and amazing employers, and also showcase their resilience and commitment to apprenticeships during the pandemic. Our last Apprenticeship Awards ceremony was held during National Apprenticeship Week in February 2020, just prior to the first Covid lockdown. Due to Covid restrictions our 2021 awards were understandably postponed.
One thing that really stood out to me was the determination and commitment to succeed shown by so many of our apprentices, battling through challenging circumstances such as home working but also personal barriers and difficulties to achieve the highest level of achievement in their apprenticeship, a Distinction. DBC are proud to say that 86% of our apprentices achieve a Distinction, and even more remarkably 100% of our own internal apprentices at DBC have also achieved a Distinction in their apprenticeship. What an amazing achievement and something that simply could not be done without the amazing work our team of Development Coaches do on a day to day basis, whilst also working in challenging times having to adapt to fully remote learning at times during lockdowns and home working guidance.
There were some truly inspirational stories and it was really hard to pick the winners. Our Celebration was co-hosted By Hollie Arnold MBE, who spoke about her journey to Gold and her struggles with mental health within her family. Our chosen charity for this year is Young Minds and, on the day, DBC raised over £420 for this fabulous charity.
The winders for each category were as follows:
Business Administration Apprentice of the Year - Liam Chamberlain (iGem)
Customer Service Apprentice of the Year - Charley Dutton (Victory Designs)
Recruitment Apprentice of the Year - Jayne Flower (Places for People)
Supply Chain Apprentice of the Year - David Davies (PHS)
Leadership & Management Apprentice of the Year - Lainey Parkin (Places for People
Digital Marketing Apprentice of the Year - Megan Good child (Roger Bullivant Ltd)
Apprenticeship Ambassador OfThe Year - Kate Schofield (Ford & Stanley)
Employer of the Year - Digital Space
Commitment to Apprenticeships - John Ghent (Property Fox)
Partner of the Year - Orbital Recruitment
Young Apprentice of the Year - Leah Monteath (SIPCAM UK)
Apprentice of the Year - Madeline Ingall (Parity Legal)
If you would like to find out more about how DBC’s award winning Apprentice programme can help you and your business, contact us on: info@dbc-training.co.uk