Dungeness Apprentice wins Award

ECITB announces Regional Apprentice of the Year

Jeremy Hall, a Babcock International Group apprentice working at Dungeness B Power Station has come out tops in the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board’s (ECITB), Apprentice of the Year competition. Jeremy who recently completed an apprenticeship in Mechanical Maintenance has been selected by the ECITB as its South East & East Regional Apprentice of the Year. Jeremy has now been put forward to ECITB’s National Apprentice of the Year competition, which will be announced at an awards ceremony in London in April.

Jeremy was nominated for the award by his employer Babcock International. “Having such an inspirational apprentice and now technician on our workforce has been of great benefit to Babcock, not just because of the benefits his skills bring to the implementation of our projects but to the benefits individuals such as he have on our company profile,” said William Mckie, Babcock International.

"The option to take on an advanced modern apprenticeship at the age of 25 was an amazing opportunity for me, and only made possible by the foresight of the ECITB and Babcock. They put their trust in my performance and I made sure that I gave it my best to repay their confidence through every stage of my apprenticeship and continuing higher education. Gaining this award has given me the best possible closure for my apprenticeship and has left me feeling driven and confident about my future," said Jeremy.

Phil Jefferies, ECITB Regional Account Manager, South East & East said: “ Jeremy is a great example of how an apprentice can benefit a business. An older recruit into the apprenticeship scheme, he is obviously very well valued by his employer and his work team and is inspiring to his fellow apprentices.

“The engineering construction industry is in a position to be able to offer exciting and well paid careers to young people. Our latest manpower forecasts predict a 30 per cent growth over the next ten years with 60,000 more skilled workers needed across all our sectors. It is vital to the future of engineering construction in this country that we raise awareness of the industry and the available careers, with young people,” said ECITB’s Regional Account Manager.

An ECITB apprenticeship is available in 15 different disciplines: - Design & Draughting; Electrical Maintenance; Instrumentation & Control Maintenance; Electrical Installation; Mechanical Maintenance; Mechanical Fitting; Instrument Pipefitting (Small Bore Tubing); Non Destructive Testing; Plating; Pipefitting; Steel Erecting; Project Control; Welding; and Moving Loads.

The career opportunities are numerous. There are currently some 100,000 UK workers in the engineering construction industry in more than 170 different roles. There are good career prospects for all these roles and salaries compare very favourably with other industries.

For example, the minimum starting salary, once a young person has qualified as an electrician or welder is between £23- £28K while offshore workers such as riggers can command salaries of between £28- 30K. Starting salaries for engineers, including design, project, welding, electrical, mechanical and instrumentation are between £30-£40K. These figures don’t include career progression and don’t even include overtime.

“An ECITB sponsored apprenticeship is the best start in the business you can have,” said Phil Jefferies. “Our apprenticeships last between three and four years and from the start, the apprentice is employed by one of our companies. In addition, the apprenticeships have been developed in consultation with our industry’s employers, which means the company the apprentice is training with, knows they need an employee with the skills the young person is learning.”

The next generation of engineering construction workers will play a key role in shaping the future world. Currently, this skilled workforce are working in the nuclear industry; they are also at the forefront in developing renewable energy resources and have played a key role in oil and gas production in the North Sea. Engineering construction workers can also be found in the chemical and pharmaceutical industry where they have designed, constructed and maintained manufacturing plants. In fact there is very little in this modern world that doesn’t rely on the skills and imaginations of engineering construction workers.

01923 402118

ulrika.meegolla@ecitb.org.uk

About the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board

The ECITB is the statutory and charitable body set up to secure engineering construction skills now and for the future. It has delivered training successfully to over one million learners over 20 years, and is led and funded by employers from the industry, ensuring the services are relevant and fit for purposeThe ECITB provides professional advice, information, skills development and qualifications to help individuals in engineering construction and anyone interested in a career in the industry to succeed. A dedicated website has been set up to provide more detailed information http://careers.ecitb.org.uk/ The ECITB sets a range of occupational and training standards, awards industry specific qualifications and invests £20 million each year in support of apprentices and adult learners across a range of skills. From entry level craft and technician programmes through to advanced engineering project management skills. In 2011, 65,000 people were supported through the ECITB’s range of approved programmes delivered by a network of over 200 approved providers. The ECITB strategy is built on three objectives, these are to attract, qualify and develop talented people for the industry. The ECITB operating processes that secure the depth, breadth and quality of service are: employer engagement, identification of skills needs and priorities, stakeholder and provider engagement, delivery and continuous improvement. The ECITB provides support to employers, their employees and apprentices to design, build, maintain and decommission nuclear, power, pharmaceutical, renewables, chemicals, food, water, oil & gas facilities and other processes.

For more information visit www.ecitb.org.uk

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