This year’s South Eastern Regional College’s (SERC) Fire Engineering Apprentice of the Year, sponsored by Nittan Europe, was recently named as Megan Davidson, who was presented with the trophy alongside 2020 winner Adam Smylie who was unable to collect his award last year due to Covid restrictions.
Stuart Rankin, Deputy Head of School for Construction, Engineering Services and Skills for Work at SERC, said “Both of these students have represented the college and their employers at regional and national level. They are excellent apprentices within the college and a real asset to their employers. Both were very deserving of the award”. He added: “On behalf of the college I would like to send my thanks to Nittan for support and arranging the ‘Nittan Shield’.”
SERC, based in Northern Ireland, provides a range of courses, apprenticeships and professional development training. The college has close links with fire and security companies, which enables students and apprentices on relevant programmes to gain valuable knowledge and experience.
Tutored by Fire and Security Lecturer Robin Hamill, the fire alarm apprenticeship programme requires students to attend SERC one day a week for four years whilst working towards Level 2 and Level 3 City & Guilds in Electronic Security and Emergency Systems qualifications. To recognise the apprentice who has worked the hardest and excelled in all levels – but not necessarily the person who has the highest grades – the Fire Engineering Apprentice of the Year award was introduced in 2020 and will be sponsored by Nittan until 2025.
Nittan Regional Sales Manager (North) Steve McCarley said: “Now more than ever, we need to ensure young people have the training resources they need to be able to learn and develop their skills. The fire industry represents a good career choice with engineers always in demand. We value the work being done by SERC, and by our Elite Partner installers such as Solutions for Systems who take the time to support these apprentices.”
