Engaging with EMPLOYERS
SCOTTISH APPRENTICESHIP WEEK IS
OUR CHAIRMAN’S FAVOURITE WEEK OF
THE YEAR. THE WEEK IS A NATIONWIDE
CAMPAIGN WHERE WE CELEBRATE
APPRENTICES.
This year our Chair Willie Mackie decided to
take on two challenging apprenticeship roles
for a day!
Willie became an aeronautical engineering
apprentice in the morning, before joining
Cecchini’s in Ardrossan where he was an
apprentice chef in the restaurant kitchen.
Connor Duncan, a first year apprentice with
Spirit AeroSystems, guided Willie through
a basic riveting task at our Aeronautical
Engineering Training Centre.
Willie said “Courtesy of Connor’s skill, patience
and good humour - and excellent coaching
from lecturer John Sloan - I managed to get the
rivets in the right place.”
Ayr Guildry
Apprentice
Of The Year
CARPENTRY AND JOINERY STUDENT
STUART QUEEN WAS NAMED AYR GUILDRY
APPRENTICE OF THE YEAR AT OUR
EXCELLENCE AWARDS CEREMONY FOR THE
AYR CAMPUS.
Each year the Ayr Guildry honours one
apprentice who has excelled in his or her
chosen craft.
Stuart was chosen as the 2016 Apprentice of
the Year after an impressive twelve months
that included being named one of our Students
of the Year at our graduation ceremony,
and placing third in the 2015 Skills Show in
Birmingham.
Michael Hitchon MBE, Dean of the Ayr Guildry
voluntary group which dates back to 1325,
presented Stuart with his eye-catching award
and said “This award recognises people with
craft skills. You can guarantee the workmanship
of a person who achieves this sort of level.
Stuart has demonstrated the highest quality
standards so we are delighted to award him
the title of Apprentice of the Year 2016.”
Congratulations Stuart!
Apprentice chef Emma Tait showed Willie his
way around the kitchen at Cecchini’s.
Willie added “There is no substitute for
meeting face to face our inspiring students
who are directly benefiting from Modern
Apprenticeships.
“The common theme running through these
visits was how the modern apprenticeship
experience was building relevant skills as
well as the confidence and ambition of the
students.”
At the start of Scottish Apprenticeship Week
2016 the College announced that we had
trained a total of 805 Modern Apprentices at
the College in 2014-15. We are delighted to
report that this increased to 873 in 2015-16.
The magazine of Ayrshire College
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