Published on: 22 July 2021

Falmouth-based superyacht builders and refitters Pendennis Shipyard were recognised at the Further Education Week and AELP(Association of Employment and Learning Providers) Apprenticeship Awards last week, receiving the award for 'Apprentice Employer of the Year' in the Small Employer category.
Joint Managing Director, Toby Allies, explained: 'The national award recognises organisations with an outstanding commitment to apprentices and apprenticeships, so we are honoured to have been selected - it's a fantastic reward for all of our staff, whose dedication and passion makes our apprenticeships what they are. Our strongest asset is our team, and with a healthy forward order book we're currently actively recruiting across all trades, to expand our workforce and keep up with increasing client demand for superyacht services in Falmouth.'
The award win coincided with Pendennis welcoming 14 new apprentices to their General Engineering Apprenticeship scheme in the first week of July.
Training Manager Steve Hancock was keen to highlight the achievement of each of the new candidates, saying: 'Each apprentice has had to work extremely hard to gain their place on the scheme amongst tough competition, so congratulations to them all for their fantastic achievement - we wish them all the best as they embark on this exciting journey. We're very proud to welcome them into the Pendennis family.'
As part of the apprenticeship scheme, Pendennis apprentices are encouraged to participate in and contribute to local community support initiatives. Over the past few months a team of apprentices has been working to create custom furniture for a newly built race office at Flushing Sailing Club, as part of the long-running total redevelopment of their clubhouse. The bespoke furniture was one of several donations from local businesses which helped provide finishing touches to the building.

The voluntary project provided an exciting opportunity for Pendennis' apprentices to hone their skills in a new setting as well as to try their hand at project planning.

Flushing Sailing Club's Dave Owens praised the apprentices' work and attitude: 'What really impressed the experienced Flushing Sailing Club Build Team was the skill level of these young apprentices, their sheer enthusiasm and their attention to detail. They also demonstrated a very strong ability to listen to the 'client' and add value with their own enthusiastic input and ideas. This team was absolutely top drawer, a pleasure to work with and a real credit both to apprenticeship scheme and Cornish maritime skills.'

Head to the Pendennis website or check out the Pendennis apprenticeship program directly.