MP congratulates winning Brathay challenge apprentices

South Lakes MP Tim Farron has met Brathay's 'apprentice team of the year' in Westminster.

Tim met the winners of the Apprentice Challenge organised and hosted by the Ambleside-based charity Brathay. The worthy winners were a team from PepsiCo, who have spent a gruelling six months competing for the coveted award. The accolade came after a heated finale, involving a whaler boat race across Lake Windermere, which saw the group push teams from QinetiQ, British Airways, and e2v Technologies into the runner-up slots.

The Brathay Apprentice Challenge 2014 is the search for the apprentice team of the year, supported by the National Apprenticeship Service. Entrants have to prove their team building, leadership, logistical and communications abilities.

Entrants compete in a series of work-related challenges to develop new skills, benefit their local communities as well as raise the profile of their employers and Apprenticeships.

Since January, the competitors have staged more than 360 school visits to talk about the benefits of Apprenticeships and delivered 60 community projects. In the finals, the teams also recruited over 50 new businesses to offer Apprenticeships.

Tim said: "I'm happy to meet and congratulate the winners of the Brathay Apprentice Challenge.

"As a team, they have shown the genuine difference an Apprenticeship can make to enable young people to pursue a dream job as well as helping businesses throughout the country grow and prosper.

"I've been campaigning hard to encourage more businesses to offer Apprenticeships so we can ensure Britain's long term success, building a stronger economy and fairer society for this generation and the next."