Calling all employers who fire up their business with apprenticeships, inspirational apprentices who blaze their own trail, rising stars with the drive to succeed and individuals who champion apprenticeships with passion: the National Apprenticeship Awards 2019 are now open for applications – until Friday 24 May.

The National Apprenticeship Awards 2019 are a brilliant opportunity to highlight business and individual success in apprenticeships. Apprentice employers, apprentices and apprenticeship champions from all industries are invited to enter. The awards are open to everyone, across all workplaces, from Agriculture, the Arts to Science and Mathematics.

This year, the Apprenticeship Champion category has been transformed, with the application process starting with a nomination, aimed at those who know someone who champions apprenticeships with passion. After writing a short reference, the nominee will complete the application.

The award categories open to apprentices and individuals include:

Apprentice of the Year categories:

• Intermediate Level (level 2)
• Advanced Level (level 3)
• Higher or Degree Level (level 4 or higher)

Last year’s Higher or Degree Level winner was Jordan Coulton, a Paralegal undertaking the Level 6 Chartered Legal Executive Apprenticeship with Weightman’s LLP. Jordan was not only Weightmans’ first apprentice but also the first higher Legal apprentice in the country.

Commenting on the benefits of entering the awards in 2019, Jordan said:

I would urge other apprentice’s who have made a valid contribution to their company and the wider apprenticeship movement to make an application for this year’s awards. I never realised how much of an impact actually winning would have – I have widened connections both within and outside Weightmans LLP as well as being recognised by my peers and colleagues alike. It will take 1 hour of your time and could change your life, do it!

Apprenticeship Champion of the Year

Recognises individuals who go ‘above and beyond’ to champion apprenticeships. And, new for 2019 – the initial nomination is now made by a colleague or contact who recognises an individual’s ‘champion’ credentials.

The Rising Star Award

Nominated by their employer, this award recognises apprentices that have made impressive progress in their career to date, and have the potential to go even further. The selection of the national winner will include a public vote.

The award categories open to employers include:

Employer of the Year categories:

• SME Employer of the Year (for organisations with 1 to 249 employees)
• Large Employer of the Year (for organisations with 250 to 4,999 employees)
• Macro Employer of the Year (for organisations with 5,000+ employees)

The Recruitment Excellence Award

The winner will be selected from Employer of the Year award entries, and will be awarded to an organisation that has recruited a diverse and high quality apprenticeship workforce.

Troup, Bywaters + Anders (T, B + A) won the SME Employer of the Year in 2018 and want to encourage employers, of all sizes, to enter the National Apprenticeship Awards.

Terry Canty, Partner at TB+A said:

We were absolutely delighted to win SME Employer of the year award; getting recognition at the highest level for our commitment to apprenticeships. We see apprenticeships as a positive way of tackling the technical skills gap, and a real addition to the established graduate route into the profession, with the added benefit of gaining valuable work experience along the way.

By entering the awards, employers and apprentices will be joining the best in the industry, showcasing your talents and learning from others. Just by taking part it sets you apart from the rest.

Apprenticeships and Skills Minister, Anne Milton concluded:

The National Apprenticeships Awards is a fantastic opportunity to recognise and celebrate apprentices, their employers and the many apprenticeship programmes and their champions across the country.

Apprenticeships change lives of people of all ages and apprentices help businesses grow and thrive. I am thrilled that we are now seeing more and more employers large and small offering people of all ages and backgrounds the chance to start their apprenticeship journey and get on the path to a rewarding job and career.

If you know an amazing employer, apprentice or someone who is a passionate supporter of apprenticeships then please enter them and help celebrate this year’s successes. I wish everyone the best of luck and look forward to the award ceremony later this year!

A series of free to attend webinars to explain the awards process in more detail, including hints and tips on completing your application. There are two versions of webinars available, one for individuals and one for employers and each will last approximately 30 minutes. To find out more about the awards and to register to attend a webinar, visit the App Awards website.

National Apprenticeship Awards 2018

You can watch the National Apprenticeship Awards 2018 national ceremony highlights, follow @Apprenticeships on Twitter and the National Apprenticeship Service page on LinkedIn to keep up to date with all the latest awards information.

The UK will provide up to £3 million of UK aid to support the victims of Cyclone Kenneth which hit northern Mozambique and southern Tanzania late last week, International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt announced (29 April).

Cyclone Kenneth has destroyed thousands of homes and displaced tens of thousands of people, coming just weeks after Cyclone Idai hit southern Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe. Further flooding is expected.

The UK is due to send tents and shelter kits to Mozambique for immediate distribution, to help provide immediate shelter for up to 33,000 people forced to flee their homes.

Four UK aid experts have also arrived in Pemba, Mozambique, the centre of the response which has already experienced more than two metres of rain and flooding, to determine how aid can be delivered as quickly as possible to those affected and to assess what further aid is needed.

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said:

It is terrible to see the devastation that Cyclone Kenneth has brought to the people of Mozambique and Tanzania, as the region still reels from the aftermath of Cyclone Idai.

The UK is well prepared to respond and I have made £3 million of UK aid available to provide emergency aid to those who have lost their homes and livelihoods.

We already have experts on the ground assessing the situation, and are due to send out more shelter kits and tents. World Food Programme supplies funded by UK aid means food is already getting to those in need.

In addition to today’s new support, UK aid has been partnering with UK experts at the University or Reading and University of Bristol, as well as the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), to use cutting-edge satellite technology to predict which areas are most vulnerable to flooding. It was used for the first time in response to Cyclone Idai.

UK aid is using this state-of-the-art flood risk analysis to guide its preparations and response, and is sharing information with partners to allow them to do the same. This includes the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA), the Mozambique Disaster Management Team (INGC) and NGOs delivering aid on the ground.

Notes to editors

• Today’s announcement of up to £3 million of UK aid is new money from the CHASE Contingency Fund.
• The Government of Mozambique has indicated at least five confirmed deaths so far, with 3,000 houses destroyed and 32,000 partially destroyed. Over 100,000 people are estimated to be displaced from their homes in the north of the country.
• The UK expects to send up to 100 tents, up to 6,500 shelter kits and 1,750 large plastic sheets for emergency shelter to Mozambique tomorrow (30 April). This is based on DFID’s ability to transport the items and assessment of needs on the ground. This could change as the situation on the ground evolves.
• There are four UK aid experts in Pemba currently assessing the developing humanitarian need and determining how aid can best be delivered to those affected by flooding.
• DFID is using the latest flood risk analysis to guide its distribution and coordination of aid in response to Cyclone Kenneth and to understand where the weather will have the greatest impact.

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The UK is to send tents and shelter kits to Mozambique for immediate distribution, to help provide immediate shelter for up to 33,000 people.

New UK aid package through the World Bank will enable the Government of Colombia to access low interest loans.

A new UK aid package will help Colombia host over a million Venezuelans forced to flee their homes because of their country’s ongoing economic crisis.

UK aid, through the World Bank, will enable the Government of Colombia to access low interest loans. These will generate growth in sectors with low carbon emissions, give access to jobs and improve essential services such as health and education.

The support will help the Venezuelan migrants and refugees it is currently supporting, and enable Colombia to boost its own economic stability and growth.

This builds on the close bilateral relationship between Colombia and the UK, with Colombia an important partner for trade and stability in the region.

The UK is already one of the largest donors to the Venezuelan economic crisis, providing emergency aid to malnourished children in Venezuela, as well as vaccinations and clean water to its most vulnerable communities.

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said:

Colombia has shown tremendous generosity in helping the citizens of its neighbour Venezuela. This package will help support the region as it copes with providing help for Venezuelans forced to flee their homes. And it will also help foster trading partners of the future for the UK.

This UK aid support will allow the World Bank to provide low interest loans to the Government of Colombia to:

• build economic stability and increase the Government of Colombia’s ability to invest in crucial public infrastructure and services;
• bolster growth and productivity by increasing trade, innovation and activity in sectors with low carbon emissions; and
• improve access for Venezuelans and Colombians to jobs and basic services, such as health and education.

The Global Concessional Financing Fund (GCFF) was launched in 2016 by the World Bank, the United Nations and the Islamic Development Bank as a global platform to provide concessional funding to middle-income countries, which are hosting large numbers of refugees. The UK has previously supported the World Bank to provide loans of this kind to build stability in the Middle East, boosting the economic resilience of Jordan, which is home to many people displaced by the Syria conflict.

This UK aid programme is in line with the bold new vision for UK aid announced by Prime Minister Theresa May in a speech last year in Cape Town. She spoke of her plan to use the UK aid budget to help build economies in the developing world.

Notes to editors

• The UK will be the second largest donor to the World Bank’s Global Concessional Financing Fund (GCFF) for Colombia, through an £8 million contribution of UK aid. The UK contribution brings the total donor pool to US $31.5 million, which will unlock US $750 million in low-interest loans.
• Colombia became eligible for accessing the GCFF in January 2019 due to its response to the crisis in Venezuela. The GCFF grants and concessional loans will support the Government of Colombia’s moves to integrate Venezuelan refugees and migrants.
• To date, the GCFF has been used to help Jordan and Lebanon address the influx of Syrian refugees. In two years, the Facility has approved US $500 million in grants, which, due to its leveraging power, has unlocked more than US$2.5 billion in concessional financing for development projects, whose aim is to improve the lives of refugees and their host communities.

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