Outstanding Apprentice

Reece McCarthy at only 22, was delighted to pick up the Outstanding Apprentice of the Year Award at the Association of Bricklayers and Contractors Awards evening in February.

This nationally recognised award was a huge achievement for Reece who has been a student at Brooklands since 2019. We caught up with him to find out more about his route to winning this top prize.

After studying and completing A-Levels at sixth form including ICT and Business, Reece was not sure that University was the right choice and therefore took some time out to consider his options. He started working as a laborer on a building site and really enjoyed the physical nature of the work, deciding  to learn a trade to enhance his career in the construction industry. He looked around at Colleges and chose Brooklands College, due to its fantastic reputation in both bricklaying and carpentry and links with apprenticeship partners.

He started on the Level 1 Diploma in Bricklaying and tutor Derek Cully has been there from day one and seen his progress. He commented “ You could see from  the start that Reece had real talent and after a year we had recommended he join the Apprenticeship programme at Lee Marley Brickwork which would help with his on-site experience. He was a little apprehensive at the start but with support from the College, he has been going from strength to strength.“

Reece concluded that he would thoroughly recommend an apprenticeship, he is doing something that he really enjoys, is gaining vital skills on-site as well as enjoying his one day a week in College.

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