Summer graduation to recognise county’s apprentices

With just over two months to go to the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Apprenticeship Graduation ceremony, apprentices and employers are being urged to book their place.

Now in its eighth year, the graduation ceremony, on Tuesday 27 June at the County Showground, Stafford will celebrate the achievements of the county’s higher level and advanced apprentices.

Last year, almost 100 apprentices took to the stage to celebrate their achievements with their training providers, employers, family and friends., Apprenticeships ranged from Engineering, Beauty, Business Admin, Teaching, Health & Social Care and many others.

Philip White, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Skills and Economy at Staffordshire County Council said: “Our graduation ceremony is always a fantastic event that we look forward to each year.

“The afternoon gives us a great opportunity to recognise the huge achievements of our apprentices and to celebrate with their families, training providers and employers.

“Apprentices are key to growing our economy and attracting more and better paid jobs to the county. They not only provide people with a good qualification, good practical experience and a good career path to their ideal job but also give many of our businesses the opportunity to grow their own skilled workforce.

“Events such as this and the Apprenticeship Ladder really do help raise the profile of apprenticeships and I would encourage graduating apprentices and employers to book their place at the ceremony.”

Sponsors of this year’s graduation ceremony include: KMF Group, Acacia Training,Staffordshire Partnership for Employment and Skills (SPES), Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce, Staffordshire University, Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group (NSCG) and West Midlands Apprenticeship Ambassador Network (WMAAN)

Apprentices can register for the ceremony at www.GraduationCeremony.co.uk and selecting Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Apprenticeship Graduation. People can also find out more information on the Stoke and Staffordshire Graduation Ceromony Facebook page or by emailing apprenticeship.graduation@staffordshire.gov.uk .