Through our partners and sponsors we jointly aim to:
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Celebrate the achievements of the county's apprentices at all levels of apprenticeship;
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Recognise the critical role played by employers, providers, parents and others in enabling and supporting apprenticeship provision;
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Promote and advance the social and economic role, impacts and contribution made by apprentices, providers and apprentice employers;
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Work with key partners and sponsors to deliver a unique prestigious celebration ceremony for graduates, their families and employers;
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Collaborate and share good practice in order to improve and raise the profile of apprenticeships as an education and training option;
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Maximise the partnership's collective influence to advance and increase apprenticeship activity through advocacy and lobbying;
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Extend the Apprentice Graduation concept to other counties;
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Engage with other organisations to access additional funding to support the annual Apprentice Graduation Ceremony.
Sponsoring Employers
& Organisations
Sponsoring Employers and Organisations 2022
The Careers & Enterprise Company work to inspire and prepare young people for the fast changing world of work, The Kent & Medway Virtual Apprenticeship Graduation Ceremony allows people to see the large amount of opportunities within the world of apprenticeships.
Canterbury Christ Church University is proud to collaborate with the Kent and Medway Apprentice Graduation ceremony partnership in celebrating the achievements of our region’s apprentices. From engineering and chartered management, to nursing and social work, our apprenticeships offer a dynamic, industry-led route to higher education, unlocking individuals’ potential while developing skills and talent for the South East. The Apprentice Graduation ceremony is an invaluable opportunity to recognise the importance of these pathways for both apprentices and employers.
CXK has engaged in the planning and development of the Apprenticeship Graduation. We understand the importance and benefits of apprenticeships to both the apprentice entering the work place and the employer recruiting and training staff. The Apprenticeship Graduation 2020 is a fantastic way to celebrate the success of recent apprentices completing their apprenticeships and recognise the role employers have contributed. We would like to congratulate all the apprentices graduating today along with their employers and training providers.
The Education People are passionate about apprenticeships and wants to recognise the value apprenticeships bring to young person and showcase their achievements. It’s also important to acknowledge the employers who are committed and support their apprentices in achieving their goals.
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) is a proud sponsor of the Kent and Medway Apprentice Graduation Ceremony 2020. Area Leader Deborah Turner says, “We know that for so many small businesses, apprenticeships are a great way to preserve important skills, transfer knowledge and keep key trades and professions alive and prospering. Recruiting an apprentice makes good business sense. It gives firms a way to find raw talent that can be shaped to the organisation and add value to the business. Without question, the future success of the apprenticeship continues to lie with the UK’s smaller companies. We would like to congratulate each apprentice on their completion and wish them all the best in their careers.”
KFE colleges provide apprenticeships to the whole county, from Level 2 to Higher Level across a wide range of industry sectors and subject areas, annually to over 2,500 young people and adults. Kent and Medway’s FE colleges are extremely proud of their role in delivering apprenticeships and the role they play in the technical skills agenda. The FE colleges engage with thousands of employers every year who know that Apprenticeships are a high quality and highly valued solution for businesses, and apprentices seeking the best way to develop their skills, careers and employability now more than ever.
Medway Council was recognised as one of the Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers in 2020. As an organisation we place huge value on apprentices and apprenticeship programmes. We are delighted that, although we are still working through unprecedented times, a virtual celebration event will go ahead again this year. It is extremely important to continue to showcase the importance of apprenticeships, their value to our economy and recognise the hard work and resilience our apprentices have demonstrated, in order to successfully complete their qualifications this year.
The Wire Belt Company has been recruiting apprentices since 1978 and have built our long-term employment strategy using this, the foremost method for work-based training. We are delighted that for the first time our successful employees are being acknowledged with a formal graduation ceremony. This accolade acknowledges the hard work and commitment to learning that are the essential elements to graduate as an apprentice. This is why the Wire Belt Company Ltd. is pleased to both sponsor and be an active member of the organising committee.
Kent County Council is passionate about apprenticeships and as an apprenticeship levy payer have been able to invest in high-quality training to develop our skilled workforce and recruit apprentices. We are committed to helping prepare Kent's young people. As well as supporting KCC apprenticeships, we are also working with Kent businesses to maximise apprenticeship opportunities across the county. We can transfer up to 25% of our apprenticeship levy funds which gives us an opportunity to support employers to improve the knowledge and skills of the wider Kent workforce. This is why we also offer expert advice and support from start to finish, as well as signposting to relevant funding. We are pleased to be able to support this event and the achievements of our apprentices.
The health and care sector are on an exciting journey that will transform how they work together across Kent and Medway. We have an ambition to make Kent and Medway a great place to work, live and learn. The most important part of this ambition is the people who work in this sector. Apprenticeships provide a fantastic opportunity to widening access into more than 350 job roles. They provide high quality, flexible and professional pathways that will improve patient care. Across clinical, professional and non-clinical programmes we have apprentices from Level 2 through to Level 7. They bring innovation, fresh thinking, system working, live projects and have the ability to build lifelong careers. The Graduation Ceremony allows us to acknowledge, celebrate and champion future health and care apprentices.
The Kent Invicta Chamber of Commerce is proud to support the Graduation Ceremony for the first time in 2022. Given the ceremony returns to the wonderful Rochester Cathedral the Chamber will be able to be central to this year's VIP pre-ceremony reception. Through its work in supporting the county's businesses the Chamber recognises the key role that apprentices play in so many of our employer organisations. Our recent and on-going work on the Local Skills Improvement Plan consolidates this understanding across so many industry sectors. The Chamber congratulates all the apprentices graduating at the ceremony this year, confident that they should be proud of their achievements and equally their contribution to the success of their employers' businesses and to the county's economy.
Berry Gardens is a co-operative of British berry growers and the UK’s largest supplier of the nation’s berries and cherries. As a business we understand the real value and inspiration apprenticeships can bring to young people who are looking to enter the work place, but equally how it can help us find talent to shape the future of our business. Founded over 49 years ago, we are a dynamic year-round business supplying most retailers, food service and wholesalers with award-winning fruit. As such a diverse business we offer apprentices the chance to experience, learn and train across a variety of different areas such as HR, IT, supply chain, marketing, planning and sales, providing a rich environment to learn more about our unique ever-changing industry. Apprenticeships are invaluable to our business so will continue inspire and educate young people on the diverse career paths available the UK soft fruit industry.
Grain LNG Importation Terminal is part of the National Grid Ventures portfolio and is of strategic national importance to UK energy infrastructure and it’s security of supply with the ability to meet over 20% of UK gas demands. We are the largest terminal in Europe and eighth largest in the world by tank capacity with a site that spans over 600 acres in total. Grain LNG aims to be the foremost LNG importation terminal in the world, with a first-class team delivering high performance for our customers, communities and National Grid, through unparalleled safety, reliability and efficiency. This requires a high standard of workforce to run and maintain the terminal and the contribution the Advanced Apprenticeships we’ve invested in and run has enabled us to give local young people an opportunity to learn new skills and provided us with our own home grown talent for the future of the terminal.
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The University of Kent is proud to be supporting the Kent and Medway Apprenticeship Graduation ceremony and look forward to celebrating the achievements of apprentices, employers and training providers. Our higher and degree level apprenticeships have been growing since 2011 and we are passionate about widening access to higher education in innovative ways. The Apprenticeship Graduation ceremony is a chance to bring together apprentices and celebrate individual successes, as well as showcasing the fantastic opportunities that all levels of apprenticeships can offer.
