The Worcestershire Apprenticeships Hub has confirmed exciting news for their 2023 annual awards evening, taking place later this year on 16 November.
Comedian, performer and TV and radio star, Lucy Porter, has been confirmed as the host for this year’s Worcestershire Apprenticeship Awards.
Lucy has been a huge hit with comedy audiences up and down the country for over ten years with her distinctive, bouncy, feel-good comedy. Lucy is a regular face and voice on TV and radio panel shows and is a glutton for a good quiz show. She remains amongst the most sought-after comedy writers in Britain and was one of the lead writers on ITV1’s prime-time Sunday night satirical animation series Headcases.
Alongside the announcement of Lucy as the host of this year’s Worcestershire Apprenticeships Awards, the finalists for this year’s awards have also been confirmed.
Over 30 finalists have been announced across the 11 categories. These finalists signify the great and the good of all things apprenticeships in the county. This year marked the highest number of online entries ever received for the Worcestershire Apprenticeships Awards, with a large number coming for degree apprentice of the year.
This has resulted in a new category being introduced to ensure that degree apprenticeships can be properly celebrated due to the large uptake in degree apprenticeships in recent years.
Alongside the announcement of Lucy and the finalists, the Worcestershire Apprenticeships team are also delighted to share details of the sponsors for this year’s awards. The sponsors of the Apprenticeship Awards allow the prestigious celebration to be possible and are key supporters of the apprenticeship agenda.
The 2023 Worcestershire Apprenticeships Awards will again take place at the West Midland Safari Park and will celebrate the most successful apprentices, employers, schools, and training providers across 11 categories over the last year.
The 2023 award categories are:
Apprentice Awards
- Intermediate Level Apprentice of the Year – sponsored by FAUN Zoeller (UK) Limited
- Advanced Level Apprentice of the Year – sponsored by Phosters (FM) Ltd
- Higher Level Apprentice of the Year – sponsored by Yamazaki Mazak UK Ltd
- Degree Level Apprentice of the Year – sponsored by University of Worcester
Employer Awards
- Small and Medium Apprenticeship Employer of the Year (< 50 employees) – sponsored by Herefordshire & Worcestershire Chamber of Commerce
- Large Apprenticeship Employer of the Year (> 250 employees) – sponsored by The Development Manager VLE Middleware
Support Awards
- School of the Year – sponsored by Heart of Worcestershire College
- Training Provider of the Year – sponsored by West Midlands Apprenticeship Ambassador Network
- Apprentice Champion of the Year – sponsored by Worcester Bosch
The popular celebration event will culminate in the two illustrious overall awards of ‘Worcestershire Apprenticeship Employer of the Year’ sponsored by Sanctuary, and ‘Worcestershire Apprentice of the Year’ sponsored by Redspeed International Ltd.
Lucy Porter, Comedian, performer and TV and radio star and host of this year’s apprenticeship awards said: “It is with great pleasure that I am able to be the host for the 2023 Worcestershire Apprenticeships Awards. Apprenticeships offer a pathway to start, develop and reinvent a career and there are so many fantastic individuals and organisations who work tirelessly to deliver and support apprenticeships.
“I am thoroughly looking forward to the awards and celebrating the amazing work of all those involved in making apprenticeships a success in Worcestershire.”
Mark Fitton, Strategic Director for People at Worcestershire County Council, said: “I am thoroughly looking forward to celebrating this year’s Worcestershire Apprenticeships Awards. I would like to congratulate all of this year’s finalists for their brilliant efforts to drive the apprenticeship programme forward in the county.
“Worcestershire County Council looks forward to celebrating the exemplary work of all those involved in apprenticeships later this year.”
Gary Woodman, Chief Executive of the Worcestershire Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “It is brilliant news to have Lucy Porter confirmed as the host for this year’s Worcestershire Apprenticeship awards. As well as this I would like to wish all the finalists the best of luck ahead of the awards evening in November, you should all be immensely proud of what you are doing to champion the apprenticeship pathway.
“I’d also like to thank all of our sponsors, without their support, this awards evening would not be possible, and we would not be able to celebrate all those involved with making apprenticeships a success in the county.”
The finalists for the 2023 Worcestershire Apprenticeships are:
Apprentice Awards
- Intermediate Level Apprentice of the Year
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- Haydn Williams – PG Brickwork
- Katie Davies – Sanctuary
- Katie Hellaby – Wychavon DC
- Advanced Level Apprentice of the Year
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- Cameron Gallamore – Doncasters
- Courtney Tuckey – Open GI
- Dominic Jones – Hewett Recruitment
- Jacob Carswell – Wienerberger
- Josh Harvey – Olpro
- Higher Level Apprentice of the Year
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- Ciara Murphy – Phosters
- Gaynor Roberts – Herefordshire and Worcestershire NHS Health and Care Trust
- Matthew Wright – Sanctuary
- Degree Level Apprentice of the Year
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- Danni Simmonds – TDM
- Georgia Little – Citizen Communications
- Jodie Purser – Iso Quality Service Ltd
Employer Awards
- Small and Medium Apprenticeship Employer of the Year (< 50 employees)
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- Blackwell Adventures
- Olpro
- Bransford Garden Plants
- Large Apprenticeship Employer of the Year (> 250 employees)
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- Open GI
- H&W Health and Care NHS Trust
- Phosters FM
- Worcestershire County Council
- Community Housing
Support Awards
- School of the Year
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- The Chase High School
- Hanley Castle High School
- Stourport High School
- Training Provider of the Year
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- Heart of Worcestershire College
- HWGTA
- Kidderminster College
- Pershore College (Warwickshire College Group)
- The Development Manager (TDM)
- Apprentice Champion of the Year
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- Danny Pardoe – Kidderminster College
- Michelle Wood – Sanctuary
- Sheri Moule – Herefordshire and Worcestershire NHS Health and Care Trust
To find out more about the Worcestershire Apprenticeships Awards, please visit the Worcestershire Apprenticeships website. www.worcsapprenticeships.org.uk
Join and follow the conversation around the Worcestershire Apprenticeships Awards on social media by using the hashtag #WorcsApprentice