The Community Housing Group (TCHG) had a double reason to celebrate at the regional final of the National Apprenticeship Awards 2013.
They were named as the West Midlands’ best apprenticeship employers (Large Employer category) and employee, Karen Lowry-Hall was the West Midlands Apprentice Champion of the Year.
TCHG is now on course to represent the West Midlands at the forthcoming National Awards in November 2013 and they will be competing against organisations including DAF Trucks, Plymouth City Council, Boots Opticians, Selex, Keirs Ltd, ITV PLC, Barclays RBB Technology, Wakefield District Housing, BAM Nuttall Ltd, Liebherr GB Ltd and Aintree University Hospitals.
Their apprenticeship programme is managed by Vestia Training, part of TCHG’s Community Trust and to compliment the programme they deliver Employability Skills courses to unemployed young people from communities across Wyre Forest and wider Worcestershire to get them “job ready”.
This model is unique in the way it weaves together tackling youth unemployment, the needs of the business (including succession planning) and the provision of person centred support to ensure the apprentice has every opportunity to achieve.
The Apprenticeship Champion of the Year category seeks strong advocates of apprenticeships who have been an apprentice themselves. Karen’s success showcases how she promotes apprenticeships and has made exceptional achievements since completing their own apprenticeship.
Karen’s award qualifies her to go through to a public vote to become the National City & Guilds Apprentice Champion of the year and voting opens from Monday 30 September 2013 until Thursday 10 October 2013. You can cast your vote by visiting the website. https://www.apprenticeships.org.uk/awards/nationalapprenticeshipawards/vote.aspx
Ray Brookes, TCHG Group Chief Executive said “We are thrilled to be recognised for our commitment to helping young people to achieve their potential. We are passionate about apprenticeships and have seen first-hand, what a positive career choice they are and the wide range of opportunities they provide. We would ask that businesses, schools, colleges and residents across the West Midlands take a few moments to vote for Karen who is a inspiration to the apprentices of the future”.
The National Apprenticeship Awards celebrate the achievements of the country’s most outstanding Apprenticeship employers and their apprentices. The awards are organised by the National Apprenticeship Service, who received in excess of 1,600 high quality entrants this year.
Jaine Bolton, Divisional Apprenticeship Director, said: “This year’s awards were an exceptional showcase of the outstanding apprentices and employers we have in our region. Given the high volume and extraordinary calibre of entries we received, those who reached the regional final really are the cream of the crop.
"I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate The Community Housing Group and Karen for this superb achievement. They are a shining example of how Apprenticeships can allow employers to grow their own talent, and enable apprentices to build real careers.”
All the West Midlands winners will proceed through to a final national judging stage, and the Apprenticeship employer entries that were judged to be the very best of the best will have the additional honour of featuring in the acclaimed England’s Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers list, which will be produced by NAS in partnership with City & Guilds.
The Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers and the national award winners will be revealed during the opening ceremony of the UK’s largest national skills and careers event, The Skills Show, at the NEC in Birmingham on 14 November.
The Skills Show has City & Guilds and Edge Foundation as its premier sponsors, and is a unique celebration to inspire people with exciting opportunities in further education, skills and Apprenticeships.
Jaine Bolton continued: “I would like to wish The Community Housing Group and Karen the best of luck at the national final. They are both great ambassadors for our region, and I’m sure their success will inspire others.”
Visit apprenticeships.org.uk or call 08000 150 600 to find out more about Apprenticeships. For more information about The Skills Show go to www.theskillsshow.com
