College apprentices and tutors shortlisted in the University of Oxford Apprenticeship Expo & Awards 2020

Staff and apprentices from Abingdon & Witney College will be sharing the same spotlight at the annual University of Oxford Apprenticeship Expo & Awards, after it was revealed that 8 apprentices and 3 staff members are finalists.

Apprentices from across the University’s vast workforce and many departments can be nominated, along with their managers and tutors.

The Awards, now in their second year, recognise the very best from the current cohort of apprentices at the University, where the College has helped place and train in diverse areas such as business, landscaping, and customer service.

Nominations could be made across seven categories. The College apprentices who are finalists, and their category, include:

1st year (Beginner) Apprentice Award:

Freya Cooke – Accounting apprentice in Engineering Science

Romi Barnett – Business Administration apprentice in Estates Services

2nd year (Intermediate) Apprentice Award:

- Jasmin Irscheid – Business Administration apprentice in the Faculty of Music

- Teya Agnese – Business Administration apprentice at NDORMS

3rd year (Advanced) Apprentice Award:

- George Griffiths – Horticulture and Landscape apprentice at Saïd Business School

- Kerrie Cope – Business Administration apprentice with NDM Experimental Medicine

The Apprentice Ambassador of the year Award, recognising apprentices who have joined the ambassador network and taken part in events to help promote apprenticeships, sees both Business Administration apprentice Sam Jones from the Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team (KEIT) and Teya Agnese, her second nomination, in the running to win.

“I was so excited when I heard that not only had I been nominated for an award, but I got into the top 3!”, said Freya Cooke on her shortlisting.

“I am loving my apprenticeship so far, being able to learn and complete qualifications whilst also working in the real world is such a valuable experience. I didn’t expect to even be nominated as I only started in September 2019, but it has given me a massive confidence boost and shows that my hard work is appreciated around the workplace.

I am very thankful for everyone at the University and at the College who have helped me succeed and I look forward to the rest of my apprenticeship.”

Romi Barnett commented on the nomination: "I was very surprised but pleased to hear that I had been nominated for an award! My apprenticeship is coming to an end and I can definitely say it has given me the experience and confidence to start a career while also gaining qualifications along the way.

Working for the University of Oxford has shown me how many job opportunities are out there and given me the confidence to learn new things. It is a supportive environment so a perfect place to complete an apprenticeship."

In the Training Coordinator/Assessor/Tutor of the year Award category, for a training individual who has gone above and beyond their role to support apprentices, the College is guaranteed to have a winner as tutors Amanda Franklin, Gemma Burgess and Tracey Lee have all been nominated.

Commenting on the nomination, Amanda said “I feel very privileged to have been nominated for this award – as a team we work hard to provide the best experiences for all our apprentices”, whilst Gemma was “very proud of all [the nominees] to have been shortlisted from the many tutors, assessors and training coordinators that the University of Oxford use across a range of training providers.

I am very much looking forward to the awards ceremony and expressing my thanks to the apprentices I work with which make my job so enjoyable.”

Tracey said: “What a complete surprise! And to be nominated for this award by a student makes it even more special. That all three finalists are from the College is testament to the work that we put in as a team to supporting our apprentices."

The finalists will discover if they have won on 11 March at the Sheldonian Theatre in Oxford. More details on the Awards can be found at: apprenticeships.ox.ac.uk/apprenticeship-expo-awards