Mechanical and electrical services specialist J S Wright has won a top national award for championing equality, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace.
The company beat off competition from scores of other nominations to be named as Construction Services Employer of the Year at the finals of the 2020 BAME Apprenticeship Awards.
The awards ceremony, presented on YouTube and Facebook, celebrated the work and achievement of black, Asian and minority ethnic apprentices and the support provided by employers.
J S Wright was also celebrated as a finalist in the Small Medium Employer of the Year category at the Awards, while one of its Plumbing and Heating apprentices Shaun Donaldson was applauded for reaching the shortlist for the Construction Services Apprentice of the Year Award.
The awards were hosted by TV and radio presenter Remel London and actor and comedian Tez Ilyas, and the winner of the Construction Services Employer of the Year Award was announced by Surju Kanani of Kaplan Financial.
Addressing viewers live, Remel London says that J S Wright “prides itself on the training of its staff, giving them the opportunity to develop their career with the help of their development programmes and the support of senior staff, who have been with the organisation since they were apprentices”.
Paul Millington, J S Wright Associate Director and Leader of the J S Wright Academy, comments: “This is brilliant and a tribute to the success of our training programmes and the quality of our apprentices.
“Special congratulations to Shaun Donaldson, an outstanding apprentice who represents our values of quality, responsibility, collaboration and integrity. This has enabled him to become a role model.”
Phil Leech, Managing Director of J S Wright, exclaims: “As a company, we have always been fully committed to nurturing an inclusive workforce in which everyone is given the opportunity to progress.”
The prestigious event was run by Pearson, the world’s learning company, and its partner Thinkfest, and the judging panel included head judge Olga Bottomley, CEO of Straight4ward Solutions; Errol Ince, Vice Principal for STEM at London South East Colleges; former National Union of Students President Shakira Martin; and NOCN Managing Director Graham Hasting-Evans.
Olga Bottomley says the year had been “fantastic” and the quality of the apprentices has been “phenomenal”. “It has been a pleasure to be a part of such an amazing cause that really highlights diversity in apprenticeships,” she adds.
J S Wright’s mechanical and electrical apprentices are all members of its Academy, which helps develop their communication skills. The company’s trainees also follow an Experience programme, involving being mentored in its values, processes and procedures by senior colleagues.
J S Wright’s apprentices benefit from work-based college courses through training provider JTL, which was shortlisted for the Training Provider of the Year title at the Awards. The company supported finalist Shaun Donaldson, who is about to embark on his final Level 3 NVQ Plumbing course with the provider while also working on a multi-million pound project to fit out hundreds of new apartments at The Timber Yard development in Birmingham.