The renewed interest in apprenticeships and earning while you learn will be celebrated at this year's CoventryLive and WarwickshireLive Business Awards.
A new category has been created for the 2022 event - Apprentice of the Year - which will recognise a rising talent in the business community who is following the apprenticeship path.
In recent years, employers from small businesses to major corporations have either launched new apprenticeship schemes, or expanded their existing programmes, in order to ensure they have access to staff with the right skills they need.
And job seekers, particularly young people, are shunning university and turning to apprenticeships as a way of getting started on a career path with on-the-job training while avoiding the burdensome debt that higher education can bring.
Our Apprentice of the Year category is open to anyone studying an apprenticeship programme or who has recently completed one - click through here for full criteria.
It is sponsored by Ladder for Coventry and Warwickshire, an initiative launched last year to connect employers with apprenticeship candidates and training providers.
It is one of 12 different categories on offer at this year's awards alongside overall Company of the Year which is chosen from the winners on the night (scroll down for the full list)..
|
The deadline for submissions is Wednesday September 21 - click through here to read all the category criteria and to submit an entry The ceremony will be held on Friday October 28 at Coombe Abbey Hotel in Coventry If you have any questions or to enquire about sponsorship please email paige.jackson@reachplc.com and follow the hashtag #CLWLBizAwards for updates on social media |
Kevin Davis, who is chairman of the Ladder for Coventry and Warwickshire campaign, welcomed the addition of the new category.
He said: "We have seen in recent years a huge upturn in both inquiries and actual take up of apprenticeships in Coventry and Warwickshire and we can only see these numbers going one way.
"As family budgets get squeezed more and more, not taking on thousands of pounds of university debt but earning while you learn instead makes even more sense as job seekers assess their options for the next stage of their education and career.
"So it is only right that we recognise the high quality of apprentices in the area at this year's business awards with this new category."
Following Coventry's year as City of Culture, we also have a new award for 2022 which will recognise a cultural organisation or business which has shown innovation in any area over the past 12 months such as fundraising, investment or community engagement.
And regular categories for small and new business and those in the property sector are included once again for 2022.
The awards are run by CoventryLive, WarwickshireLive and the Coventry Telegraph in partnership with BusinessLive.
We are grateful for the support of our sponsors without which we would not be able to host the annual ceremony and celebrate your achievements.
This year's award categories and sponsors are:
- Small Business of the Year
- New Business of the Year
- Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya Award for Manufacturer of the Year, sponsored by Made Smarter West Midlands delivered by CWLEP Growth Hub
- Diversity and Inclusion Award
- Professional Services Firm of the Year
- Property and Construction Business of the Year, sponsored by Kings Real Estate
- Retail Business of the Year
- Third Sector Organisation of the Year
- Innovation in Cultural Sector Award, sponsored by Coventry City of Culture
- Green Business of the Year
- International Trade and Export Award, sponsored by Coventry & Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce
- Apprentice of the Year, sponsored by Ladder for Coventry and Warwickshire
- Company of the Year (chosen from the category winners)
