Worthy winners
In his first official visit as the new Secretary of State for Education, Rt Hon Gavin Williamson MP visited Leeds Mail Centre with our charity partner, Action for Children.
After meeting some of our 460 Royal Mail apprentices from Engineering, Sales, Fleet and Performance Improvement, Mr Williamson, tweeted: ‘Great to speak with #apprentices at @RoyalMail with @actionforchildren today in #Leeds. Fantastic to see first-hand how apprenticeships can help people land a great job and help our country build a skilled workforce.’
Head of Fleet maintenance, Sally Warren, said: ‘It’s not every day the new Education Secretary gets to congratulate our apprentices. A great example of different teams all working together on the visit.’
Apprentice mechanics from across the country gathered at a ceremony in Tamworth for a celebration of their achievements over the past 12 months. Top performers from one of the UK’s best automotive apprenticeship schemes received trophies, while those who have completed the programme collected their graduation certificates.
The event featured an exciting presentation from head of Fleet engineering, Grahame Bennett – himself a former Royal Mail apprentice – on the changing face of our 48,000-vehicle fleet.
Fleet apprentice manager, Stewart Lawton, said: ‘The standard was very high over the four years, meaning that most of the winners scored between 85 - 95% average in all exams.
‘We set a very high standard for our apprentices and these awards help us recognise their achievement and celebrate those apprentices that have now completed their apprenticeships.’
Worthy winners
- Year One Apprentice of the Year – Thomas Heath, Guildford
- Year Two Apprentice of the Year (joint winners) – Muhammed Waterfall, North London and Michael Baillie, Inverness
- Year Three Apprentice of the Year (joint winners) – Ross Grannon, York, Robert Berg, Wellington and Ashley Walton, Manchester
- Year Four – Jack Dunseith, Newtownabbey
- Apprentice of the Scheme - overall winner – Billy Yipp, Leeds (pictured).
Technician Billy Yipp said: ‘I am pleased to have won second place Apprentice of the Year and very happy to have won Apprentice of the Scheme – overall, as I feel that this is a big achievement over the four years as an apprentice at Royal Mail.’
Royal Mail employs apprentices of all ages and backgrounds across the country in jobs from engineering to finance and logistics including opportunities to train at every level right up to degree.
Royal Mail Fleet see the importance of the apprentice scheme for bringing new talent into our workshops. We are committed to developing their skills not just during their apprenticeship, but throughout their career with Royal Mail.
