Finley Gregory with his William Davis Homes ‘Apprentice of the Year’ award
A young bricklayer who has been named Apprentice of the Year by an award-winning housing developer says his ultimate ambition is to build his own house.
Nineteen year old Finley Gregory is a third year apprentice bricklayer with Loughborough-based William Davis Homes. He was presented with a trophy at the company’s annual Apprentice of the Year awards ceremony by Managing Director Guy Higgins.
Finley, a former pupil at the Cedars Academy in Birstall, currently lives with his parents but said he would love to build his own property in the future. “My ultimate ambition is to build my own house one day,” he said. “Ideally it would be a family home with plenty of room.”
Guy Higgins praised Finley’s strong work ethic as well as the support of the entire apprenticeship team and the training providers.
Mr Higgins named the runner-up as 20 year old Cole McManus, who is a third year apprentice scaffolder. As well as thanking the apprenticeship team, Cole said his biggest supporter was his dad, Liam, who is also a scaffolder.
William Davis Homes’ apprenticeship scheme has been running for more than 50 years and has received many awards during that time, including at the national Housebuilder Awards and the East Midlands Property Dinner.
The scheme is helping to counter skills shortages in the construction industry. There are currently 36 trade apprentices along with five technical trainees who work in the head office in areas such as surveying, engineering and data analysis.
“Our apprenticeship scheme is a long-term commitment that the company makes to train young people,” said Mr Higgins.
