And the winner is! Brightest Black Country talent dazzles judges at apprenticeship awards

Hundreds of talented hopefuls gathered at The Hawthorns football stadium in West Bromwich at the Ladder for The Black Country Apprenticeship Awards 2024, sponsored by Compass Group UK & Ireland.

Hosted by BBC Apprentice finalist Scarlett Allen-Horton, the event shone the spotlight on the rising stars from across six sectors of industry, ranging from construction and trades to healthcare, tech and hospitality firms, while the industry's very best training providers also shone.

Taking the prize for overall Apprentice of The Year for 2024 was Abbie Farr-Smith, who was described by judges as an "inspiring blend of determination and talent", and by her employers at Walsall Council as an "inspiring and valued asset" having started her apprenticeship with the local authority's finance team two years ago. Abbie was also the winner of the professional services category.

"It was definitely a big surprise. I didn't really see it coming, I was just really grateful to be nominated," she said. 

"It's been really enjoyable at Walsall Council, it's a really good workplace and the managers are really exceptional.

"I've always had an interest in finance and I found that the apprentice route was a lot more suitable for me than university route. I think initially when I said I wanted to be an apprentice my mum was a bit like 'oh no, you've got to go to uni!' but I think now she's really happy about it.

"I think I learn better by doing things and I think as an apprentice you can do the thing you're studying, you're not just in a classroom reading the text books, you're actually out there doing the job."

Individual industry winners included "trailblazing" apprentice toolmaker Finlay Attrill of A&M, while Dreamland's Matthew Randle took the top prize in the Hospitality, Retail, Tourism and Leisure category after completing a level 7 senior leadership apprenticeship award combined with a Master of Business Administration(MBA).

"Initially I went on the course thinking the MBA was the most important part but now the apprenticeship has really come into its own and really impacted the business. I'm really happy and surprised to win, the people I was up against were really high calibre." he said.

Star Scaffolding apprentice Harrison Mapley's "exceptional" commitment and work ethic saw him take home the Construction and Property award, while D'arcy-May Jones passion and fresh ideas saw her named as Tech, Digital and Creative apprentice of the year for her work with the Creative Hut in Stourbridge.

"This win is incredibly special, together, as a mother-and-daughters team at The Creative Hut, are passionate about creatively building brands and making an impact," a spokesperson for the company said. 

"This award is a testament to D’arcy’s dedication, talent, and the powerful support network that’s helped us along the way."

Laura Blake rounded out the winners after winning the Health, Education and Care category, saying she was looking forward to celebrating the win with her work colleagues at Sandwell and Birmingham NHS Trust.

"I'm shocked and speechless! I'll definitely be buying the doughnuts tomorrow," she said. 

"I didn't expect to get that far and its such an honour to be put forward. I work with an amazing team, they're my work family and they've always been there for me."

The awards also highlighted the best employers across our region, with businesses, organisations and public sector bodies who go the extra mile to give their early career employees a helping hand recognised for their efforts.

Against a strong line-up which included Marstons, City of Wolverhampton Council and Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust, Sandwell Council took the prize for large employer of the year while West Bromwich firm Star Scaffolding said that nurturing young talent was a key part of their ethos after they were named medium employer of the year.

Emma Chard, Skills and Training manager with the firm said they were "absolutely thrilled" to receive the award.

"We see that young people are the future, you've got to employ them, train them and what we pride ourselves on is that we keep them one afterwards, we see all of our apprentices as our employees of the future," she said. 

"We see it as a career for life and that's how we want it to be and our retention rates really high because of our ethos. We're very proud and very honoured."

TMT First took the top prize in the education and engagement award for their "vital" work engaging with the business community. Meanwhile, Juniper Training, a vocational training group with locations across the Black Country and beyond were named as training provider of the year for their programme, which sees them working with over 800 employers in the region to train up around 2,000 apprentices every year. The City of Wolverhampton Council were winners of the workplace Inclusion and Diversity award for their commitment to inclusion in their career development programme. 

Overall winner

• Overall apprentice of the year: Abbie Farr-Smith

Individual awards

• Construction and Property sponsored by Keon Homes: Harrison Mapley

• Engineering and Manufacturing sponsored by MAKE UK: Finlay Atttrill

• Health, education and care sponsored by Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust: Laura Blake

• Professional services sponsored by Higgs LLP: Abbie Farr-Smith

• Tech, Digital and Creative Industries sponsored by Halesowen College: D'arcy-May Jones

• Hospitality, retail tourism and leisure sponsored by Marstons: Matthew Randle

Employer and training provider awards

• Education and engagement award sponsored by Marstons: TMT First

• Large employer of the year sponsored by Wolverhampton Homes: Sandwell Council

• Medium Employer of the year sponsored by Walsall Councill: Star Scaffodling

• Small employer of the year sponsored by Dudley College: Penny Post Group Credit Union

• Training provider of the year sponsored by Performance Through People: Juniper Training

• Inclusion and Diversity award University of Wolverhampton: City of Wolverhampton Council