William Bradley, 19, from the Orkney island of Westray has been named the Apprentice of the Year and awarded the James Birnie Award for Craft Excellence at the 2013 SBATC Apprenticeship Awards.

William received the award at a special ceremony at the Scottish Parliament on the 10th December.

The coveted title is awarded annually to Scotland's best traditional craft apprentices undertaking a four year SVQ Level 3 programme.

William, who is studying Brickwork at Orkney College, moved from his home island of Westray to Kirkwall in 2011 to secure an apprenticeship. Since then, he has been described as the "perfect apprentice" by former employer R.S. Rendall Building Contractors. William recently moved back to Westray to begin working for Daniel Harucs Construction, a building company based on the island.

Now in their 14th year, the SBATC Apprenticeship Awards are organised by the Scottish Building Apprenticeship and Training Council (SBATC) to recognise the considerable talents, skills and abilities of construction apprentices working across Scotland. The Awards assess candidates according to their practical and academic ability alongside other important skills such as organisation, communication and the ability to perform in a team.

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Speaking at the ceremony, William said: "It is a real honour to have won this award. Since first starting my apprenticeship in Kirkwall, I've had lots of great, practical, on-the-job experience.

"It's been great to be able to move back to Westray and apply the skills I've learned. I'm really excited about the future and looking forward to a long-term career in the industry."

Elsewhere, Scott Cunningham, a 25-year-old roofer from Girvan in South Ayrshire, was named Adult Apprentice of the Year, with Craig Harvey, a 21-year-old from Wick in Caithness, who works in construction contracting operations, received the 2013 Scottish Civil Engineering Apprentice award. In addition, 19-year-old Amy Underwood, a plant operations apprentice from Dalmally in Argyll and Bute, secured the title of Construction Specialist Apprentice of the Year, a new award category introduced in 2012.

Event host and Convener of the Scottish Parliament's Cross Party Group on Construction, Nigel Don MSP, said: "The last four years have been tough for the industry and young apprentices like William have had to work particularly hard to build their careers. William has demonstrated enthusiasm for his job and a first rate commitment to craft excellence. I know he has a bright future ahead of him working in the construction industry."

Vaughan Hart, Scottish Building Federation Managing Director and Employers' Secretary for the Scottish Building Apprenticeship and Training Council (SBATC), added: "The exceptional calibre of all the candidates just goes to prove that Scotland's high quality building apprenticeship programmes are delivering fantastic craftspeople.

"It is important that we recognise their talents as demonstrating our industry's continuing commitment to championing excellence in apprenticeship training."

(JP/MH)