Medal-winning apprentice Jonathan Bourne meets Prime Minister Gordon Brown at a 10 Downing Street reception for WorldSkills competitors. Photograph source: www.pm.gov.uk, Cabinet Office. © Crown copyright material is reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO and Queen's Printer for Scotland.

 

 

Amos Group apprentice receives PM's praise

January 21st 2008

Congratulations from Prime Minister Gordon Brown have topped off the achievements of star bricklayer Jonathan Bourne.

The medal-winning apprentice chatted with the PM during a special Downing Street reception for members of the UK’s Skills Olympics team and their employers.

Jonathan – who has worked for the Amos Group since leaving school – gained a Medallion of Excellence when he was one of 22 UK trainees competing in the WorldSkills 2007 contest in Japan.

Giving his “heartfelt congatulations” to the UK team, Gordon Brown told the Downing Street event that ensuring the nation had a skilled workforce was fundamentally important to our future economic growth.

“What these young people have been able to achieve, and their commitment and determination to do well, places them as outstanding role models for other young people,” he said.

Twenty-one-year-old Jonathan, whose trowel skills landed him the title as the country’s top apprentice bricklayer, said he was thrilled to meet Gordon Brown.

“It was a real honour to meet the Prime Minister. He was full of praise for how well the UK team had done and congratulated me personally,” said Jonathan.

“We were allowed to look round all the state rooms at 10 Downing Street, which were very impressive.”

Amos Group Director, Will Thomson, who accompanied Jonathan to the reception, said that the event had been a memorable occasion.

“It was quite an experience not only to meet the Prime Minister and other ministers, but to be able to explore such an historic building.”

During the event, Mr Thomson had the chance to tell John Denham, Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, of the Amos Group’s commitment to training its 100-plus workforce in the Moorlands.

“We are very supportive of our trainees like Jonathan because we realise that’s where our future lies,” said Mr Thomson. “One in six of our workforce is currently in recognised apprenticeships, a considerably higher proportion than many national construction companies.”

Earlier in the day, Mr Thomson met with Staffordshire Moorlands MP Charlotte Atkins at Westminster. Ms Atkins praised Jonathan Bourne’s achievements during Prime Minister's question time in the House of Commons following the WorldSkills event in November.