Harrow College and Uxbridge College (HCUC) celebrated a series of virtual activities for this year’s National Apprenticeship Week.
This included virtual presentation sessions from a range of apprentice employers, careers advice by video link and text, a virtual apprenticeship fair, and an open evening. There was also a virtual presentation delivered at Brunel University London. The week was complemented by two recent Highly Commended awards for HCUC Apprentices at the West London Business Awards, held separately the previous week by the regional chamber.
Employers and business organisations taking part in HCUC’s virtual apprenticeship week included HS2, Menzies Aviation, Willmott Dixon, and Higgins Partnerships. The event also explored how in the Covid era apprenticeships were a good option for school leavers.
HCUC Apprentices have also secured yet another round of successes in the annual West London Business Awards. For the seventh consecutive year, two Apprentices completing their training under HCUC Apprenticeship and Skills – the employer training arm of the college group – have scooped awards at the event.
Two Advanced Apprentices, Sally Sturgess, a Business Administration Apprentice at Anand Financial Architecture in Uxbridge, and Michael Westwood, a Mechatronics Maintenance Apprentice at Reach Printing Services in Watford, received Highly Commended Awards – both are based at Uxbridge College for their on-site and remote learning.
The awards, which this year were presented in a virtual ceremony in place of the customary black tie gala dinner, were announced in advance of National Apprenticeship week.
Harpal Lehal, Head of Apprenticeships and Skills at HCUC, the Employer Services arm of the college, said: “National Apprenticeship Week at HCUC this year has been a real success despite how challenging it can be trying to make virtual events as engaging as real ones. But all our speakers did a fantastic job and we were extremely pleased with attendance levels by parents and students. I’d like to say a huge thank you to all the employers who took part.
“I would like to congratulate Sally and Michael, and their employers Anand Financial Architecture and Reach Printing Services, and to thank West London Business for hosting these wonderful awards for the eighth year,
“As the largest college provider of Apprenticeships in London, with over 400 apprentices across 28 sectors, HCUC is proud to help shape so many students into star Apprentices, and our year-on-year wins in the WLB awards are testament to how successful our partnerships with employers across a broad range of sectors are. We are also pleased to have sponsored the ‘Resilient SME Innovator of the Year’ category of this year’s Awards.”
