Firstly, I would like to congratulate all 4 of the apprentices that have been shortlisted for this award. Each one of them, and their employers, should be incredibly proud of reaching the final stages of this process.

The decision has been judged on 3 key elements; the employer nomination, AAT exam results and the Director’s interview.

After taking all elements into consideration, I am delighted to announce Josh Soar as our EMA Apprentice of the Year!

Despite Josh still being in the process of completing his Level 4 apprenticeship, he has established himself as critical part of the Alpkit team, with his employer identifying that he is “pivotal to ensuring the smooth running of the finance department.”

Josh has progressed from “an entry-level, process driven, input role, to dealing with more complicated areas of accounts, such as prepayments, accruals, fixed assets, balance sheet control accounts,” and is subsequently now training up another member of staff to perform his original duties.

Josh has passed all exams first time round, achieving exemplary marks and he is on track to achieve his Level 4 in a timely fashion.

Whilst interviewing Josh, it was clear to see that he was incredibly proud of his accomplishments and he has his sights on progressing onto the CIMA accreditations to help him fulfil his aspirations of specialising in Management Accounts.

Josh has a promising career ahead of him, and who knows, one day his may be able to afford a full pair of jeans…