An apprentice at a Havant manufacturing firm has been praised by local MP Alan Mak after scooping a top prize for outstanding achievement.
Beth Stephens won the The Alex Zemenides Apprentice of the Year Award at a special ceremony organised by the PETA Training and Consultancy Service, recognising her exceptional work for Havant company Smartlouvre.
Since starting at the blind manufacturer based at The Tanneries, Brockhampton Lane, Beth has taken on extra responsibility, and been given the role of office manager.
To get the top award she beat around 350 other apprentices from across the south coast, with the prize recognising “exceptional contributions” to the workplace.
Mr Mak was able to congratulate Beth in person when visiting the firm, hearing about Smartlouvre’s plans for growth and ambitions to take on more apprentices.
He said: “Having met Beth to congratulate her in person, it’s clear she has an amazing passion for business and she thoroughly deserves to be recognised as one of the area’s top apprentices. It was also great to hear that Smartlouvre plan to take on more apprentices and develop young people’s skills in the workplace. As Co-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Apprenticeships I take a great interest in the success of apprentices locally”.
“I am proud of the Government’s record on creating apprenticeships and I am fully behind the ambitions to create 3million more of them by 2020. Just like Beth thousands of young people are developing lifelong skills from apprenticeships.”
Smartlouvre manufactures and exports specialist blinds for buildings out of its Havant operation, which using miniature woven mesh can deflect sunlight saving up to 68 per cent in air conditioning costs.
Although the technology to manufacture the blinds has been in existence for more than 50 years its production dwindled until Smartlouvre owner Andrew Cooper relocated the weaving machines to the UK in 2003. The product was relaunched in 2015 with a new website.
Beth said: “I was delighted to win this award and it was great to show Alan around the business. I started my apprenticeship learning the essential skills for use in an office environment but it developed into so much more.
“I decided to totally immerse myself into the business, getting involved in every aspect I could and this paid off as the managing director decided not to replace the office manager when she left, as he felt I had proven myself capable of developing into this role.
“I have a varied job role which includes tasks such as website development, accounting, marketing, book keeping, sales and general office administration. This variety has given me a real opportunity to develop skills in a range of business practices and put me in a good place for further developing my career.”
Picture: Alan Mak MP with Beth Stephens at the Smartlouvre factory in Havant