Praise for top apprentice plumber

8th September 2014

The success of an apprentice plumber from Dornoch who won the Student of the Year 2013/2014 title for SVQ 3 Domestic Plumbing 2nd Year from Inverness College has been recognised by Highland Councillors.

At the start of the recent Community Services Committee, members learned of Andrew Fraser's success and took the opportunity to congratulate him and pay tribute to the support and training given by council staff.

As well as attending block training at Inverness College covering a variety of practical and theory subjects, Andrew, who was recruited by the Council in August 2012, forms part of the Dornoch Building Maintenance Team. During his training he was mentored by a qualified plumber, carrying out day to day and other works on Highland Council domestic properties.

The Council's Building Maintenance Service runs a very successful apprentice programme with 24 apprentices going through their training at any one time. Over the summer six were appointed to work in depots located in Caithness, Ross and Cromarty, Sutherland, Inverness and Lochaber.

Chairman, Graham MacKenzie said: "We are committed to nurturing young people and helping them to develop the skills necessary to build successful careers and invest in the region of £500K each year into our apprenticeship programme. Our scheme, which is geared towards finding home-grown talent and turning learning opportunities into permanent jobs, is proving to be very effective with the majority of young people securing employment with the council following the completion of their training. I would like to congratulate Andrew and all our other apprentices and trainees who are working hard and I wish them all a very prosperous future."

The Council's apprentices are based throughout Highland and ‘earn while they learn’ which is an important point in relation to protecting fragile communities both socially and economically as it keeps skills and young people in their local communities.

Caroline Campbell, Performance and Building Maintenance Manager with the Council added: "Building Maintenance is proud that it is playing its part in upskilling young employees in the Highlands. We are delighted with Andrew’s success. It not only reflects his own achievements but is testament to the training and coaching he receives from his colleagues."

The Council’s next apprentice recruitment drive will be in May and June next year and staff will be particularly encouraging more females to apply to join the apprentice scheme.