Dental apprentice scoops regional award

A dental apprentice training with Midlands training company Performance Through People (PTP) has scooped the top trophy in the Greater Birmingham Apprenticeship Awards 2022, held at Edgbaston stadium.

Summar Wilkes, from Smile Style Dental Care Centre in Stafford, has been crowned Greater Birmingham Apprentice of the Year 2022.

Judges praised 18-year-old Summar for the way she has tackled personal setbacks to excel in both her studies and on-the-job training for her Level 3 Dental Nursing apprenticeship.

Summar, who juggles her studies, work and being a home-carer, won the Health, Education and Care category at the awards, and was then crowned overall Apprentice of the Year.

Rob Colbourne, chief executive of PTP, part of the BCTG Group, said: “We 're so proud of Summar who worked weekends and sacrificed her social life to manage her studies and training, while also taking on caring duties for her mother at home.

“She has shown exceptional maturity for someone so young and is a credit to her employer by not letting any setbacks affect her work, where she is due to finish her apprenticeship next spring. ”

Speaking at the awards ceremony, Summar said she felt “really overwhelmed ” by winning the two awards.

She said: "I care for my mother, which has been quite challenging at times, and I've not always been able to meet deadlines but my tutor has been really helpful with pushing them back for me.

“I've enjoyed being able to work and study at the same time and learn on the job - it's a lot more helpful than trying to learn sitting down in a classroom.

"My goal is to qualify as a dental nurse and then train in the field of orthodontics which I will also be able to do on the job via more courses. My long-term aim is to work up to becoming an orthodontist, I would really love that."

The awards were run by BirminghamLive in partnership with the Ladder for Greater Birmingham campaign, which was launched in 2018 and has created thousands of new apprenticeship opportunities across Birmingham and Solihull.

Kevin Davis, chairman of the Ladder for Greater Birmingham campaign and chairman of the judging panel, said: "While all our winners are worthy of the title, I and my fellow judges were blown away with the commitment, resilience and dedication shown by our overall Apprentice of the Year Summar. ”