A 20-year-old trainee quantity surveyor from Durham has been named one of Bellway’s apprentices of the year.
Dan Ferguson, who works for the national housebuilder’s North East division, based in Gateshead, was recognised for his hard work and commitment by the company.
He was one of four to be highly commended in Bellway’s annual Apprentice of the Year Awards.
Dan has been with Bellway since September 2019 and is working towards a Charted Surveyor qualification, for which he studies one day a week at Northumbria University.
For the remaining four days a week, he spends his time working in the office alongside his mentor Sarah Dixon, a senior quantity surveyor at Bellway.
Dan said: “I was shocked to receive a call from the Commercial Director congratulating me on the commendation.
“It has been a great confidence boost and it’s nice to know that you are appreciated within such a big company.
“I came into Bellway straight after finishing my A-Levels with very minimal work experience, so to get to this point feels incredibly rewarding.
“I have been enjoying every minute of my time working at Bellway; no two days are the same and I am getting a lot of valuable experience.
“There is a supportive community feel within the company; I get a lot of support when I need it and I genuinely feel like a valued part of the team.”
Managing Director at Bellway North East, Tracey Brady, said: “Dan is a highly motivated and enthusiastic member of the team who has thoroughly immersed himself in learning about all aspects of the role of a quantity surveyor. On behalf of all his colleagues, I would like to congratulate him on this much-deserved achievement.
“At Bellway, we are committed to nurturing the next generation of talent in the construction industry, and we are extremely proud of the role our apprenticeship programme plays in preparing our employees for successful careers in a wide range of disciplines.”
Across the Bellway Group, there are around 180 apprentices employed in a variety of fields, ranging from construction and trade to business and finance roles.
To demonstrate a commitment to supporting apprenticeships, Bellway is also a member of the 5 percent club, a movement of employers working together to drive ‘earn and learn’ skills training opportunities across the UK.
Ashleigh Fenwick, Group Learning and Development Manager for Bellway, said: “We are incredibly proud of all our apprentices and trainees throughout the company, as we encourage and enable our newest recruits into a career within the construction industry.
“We currently have around 180 apprentices working at Bellway across all sectors of the business, from bricklayers to quantity surveyors, and our apprentice of the year awards celebrates each and every one of our future talents.
“This year, perhaps more so than ever, we wanted to say thank you and well done to our apprentices who had been faced with unrivalled challenges in light of the coronavirus pandemic. We received a record number of nominations and it was very difficult to choose our winners thanks to the excellent pool of talent at Bellway.
“We’d like to extend our congratulations once more to each of the winners at this year’s awards event and look forward to another 12 months of building excellence among the next generation of the housebuilding workforce.”
For more information about career opportunities with Bellway, visit bellwaycareers.co.uk.
