Adam Dent, who lives in Woodhouse, is undertaking an apprenticeship with city-based planned and responsive maintenance specialist Lovell Respond. The 20-year-old was chosen by the Business Gateway for his outstanding performance while working towards an NVQ Level 2 qualification in Business Administration, which he has successfully achieved with the company’s support.
Sheffield College Business Gateway’s Apprentice of the Year awards recognise the efforts of students enrolled on 16 of the vocational courses it offers, with an overall winner being chosen for each course. Being unable to attend the awards ceremony, Adam didn’t find out that he’d received the top prize until the following day when Joanne Bullock, training and assessment facilitator for Sheffield College Business Gateway, contacted him with the news.
“It was a bit of a shock when Joanne told me that I’d won – I thought she was joking at first,” explains Adam. “It’s the first time I’ve ever received an award and I’m thrilled. It’s great to be rewarded for something that I enjoy doing so much.”
Adam joined Lovell Respond, the response and planned maintenance business of national affordable housing developer Lovell, in 2009. In addition to gaining practical administrative experience at the company’s Sheffield office in Don Road, he attended Sheffield College on a day release basis to complete the theoretical side of his NVQ studies.
In the Sheffield office, Adam is responsible for administrative tasks including the distribution of company mail, creating electronic copies of contract documents, and producing weekly site reports. He is supported by office manager Sarah Holmes who acts as his training mentor and oversees his progress.
“I love what I do – there’s always lots of variety and no two days are ever the same,” says Adam. “I’ve recently achieved my NVQ Level 3 qualification and am now continuing to build up my experience in the office. I’ve always been interested in human resources and would eventually like to pursue a career in HR.”
“We’re all delighted that Adam has won this award – he thoroughly deserves to be rewarded for the effort and dedication he has put in throughout his studies,” says Lovell Respond operations director Steve Kirk. “He’s setting an excellent example for other young people to follow and I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate him on this outstanding achievement.”
“Adam thoroughly deserves this award; he has showed commitment and enthusiasm to achieve both the Level 2 and Level 3 awards in a remarkable timescale,” says Joanne Bullock, training and assessment facilitator for Sheffield College Business Gateway. “Adam represents apprenticeship at the highest level and it has been a pleasure to work with both him and his company.
“Staff at Lovell Respond have been so supportive to Adam at the college; I now have another apprentice who will now hopefully follow in his footsteps. I wish Adam every success for the future.”
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