The success of ITV Cymru Wales’ Apprenticeship Programme has resulted in the company being named Medium Employer of the Year at this year’s Apprenticeship Awards Cymru.
The company received the prestigious award from First Minister Mark Drakeford at a ceremony held at the International Convention Centre Wales, Newport.
The awards showcased the successes of the best learners, employers, tutors and assessors in Wales who have excelled in contributing to the development of the Welsh Government’s Traineeship and Apprenticeship programmes.
ITV’s Head of News and Programmes Phil Henfrey said:
“It’s a terrific honour to win this award which is something we were not expecting because of the quality of the other nominees. This award recognises our fantastic apprentices and the whole team.
“Speakers tonight said all the finalists should be ambassadors for apprenticeships in Wales. I couldn’t speak more highly about the value of apprenticeships.”
Jointly organised by the Welsh Government and the National Training Federation for Wales (NTfW), the Apprenticeship Awards Cymru had Openreach, the UK’s digital network business, as its premier sponsor this year. The Apprenticeship Programme is funded by the Welsh Government with support from the European Social Fund.
Over the four years ITV Cymru Wales’ apprenticeship programme has been running, 100% of apprentices have gone on to full-time employment within the creative industries and close to 90% of those enrolled have been from disabled, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic or socially disadvantaged groups.
“A key philosophy of our Apprenticeship Programme is that as a business we will learn from our apprentices just as much as we can teach them,” explained Mr Henfrey. “Our approach to inclusion has enriched our workforce and driven innovation.”
Having a member of the deaf community as an apprentice has raised awareness amongst the news journalists about the importance for them to create high quality subtitles and team meetings are now signed as a matter of routine.
ITV Cymru Wales currently has seven apprentices working towards an Apprenticeship in Creative and Digital Media, with the classroom part of the training supported by Sgil Cymru.
“Each apprentice experiences all parts of television production, creatively, editorially and operationally, before then building key production skills that play to their individual strengths,” added Mr Henfrey.
“As a business we actively support our apprentices to tell their story and publish their experience on ITV social media channels to raise awareness about the value of apprenticeships for individuals from all communities and all walks of life in Wales.”
Congratulating ITV Cymru Wales, Minister for the Economy and Transport, Ken Skates, said:
“The Welsh Government’s Apprenticeship and Traineeship programmes are helping increasing numbers of people to gain the skills, knowledge and experience that we know businesses across all sectors of the economy in Wales really need.
“The Apprenticeship Awards Cymru provides an excellent opportunity to celebrate and showcase the achievements of everyone involved in those programmes from our star apprentices and employers, to learning providers and trainees. Each one has played a vital role in setting the standard for vocational training and this is to be applauded.
“Increasing higher level skills and developing skills pathways that benefit the whole of Wales has never been more important.”
