Three students from East Anglia have joined the 2017-18 cohort of the Lloyds Bank Social Entrepreneurs Programme, run in partnership with School for Social Entrepreneurs and jointly funded by Big Lottery Fund, as three others graduate from the 2016-17 programme.
Laura Rolph-Willis from Harwich, Alison Hunt from Eye and Lucy Elkin from Occold have all started on the programme this autumn.
The graduates from the last programme include Liz Jenkins from Brandon, Tim Melvin from Bury St Edmunds and May Anne Barclay, also from Bury.
The year-long programme equips entrepreneurs with the skills to grow a social business to help solve some of the most pressing social issues within their communities.
Entrepreneurs on the programmes receive financial support, a comprehensive learning programme with the School for Social Entrepreneurs and a Lloyds Banking Group business mentor.
The programme is part of Lloyds Banking Group’s Helping Britain Prosper Plan 2017 to help people, businesses and communities across the UK by supporting skills and training and will support 2,350 social entrepreneurs by 2020.
Paula Rogers, head of Social enterprise at Lloyds Banking Group, said, “It has been fantastic to witness the progression of the entrepreneurs who have been supported by the Lloyds Bank Social Entrepreneurs Programme, in partnership with School for Social Entrepreneurs and jointly funded by Big Lottery Fund, over the past
“We’re thrilled to welcome a new cohort of social entrepreneurs to the programme and look forward to seeing their ideas grow over the next year to create positive social change, as part of our commitment to help Britain prosper”.
Alastair Wilson, chief executive of the School for Social Entrepreneurs said, “It has been so inspiring to see our students develop their social business over the past year and find innovative ways to tackle prevalent social issues within their communities.
“I’m excited to see how our new students shape their social enterprises with the support of the Lloyds Bank Social Entrepreneurs Programme, in partnership with School for Social Entrepreneurs and jointly funded by Big Lottery Fund over the next year”.
•Writtle University College has added Mark Williams, a coach to the Great Britain basketball senior squads, to its sports staff.
Mr Williams is head of strength and conditioning for both the senior men’s and women’s squads, working alongside the national team medical and coaching staff and monitoring the individual training of players.
He designs individualised strength and conditioning programmes in accordance with the needs of the player and their respective club schedules. He also contributes towards the rehabilitation programming and return to play of injured players.
Mr Williams, who has an MSc in strength and conditioning, a PGCE and a Sports Science degree, previously worked at Southend United FC.
He will be teaching modules on Writtle’s Sport and Exercise Performance Degree and Diploma of Higher Education, as well as Foundation Degrees in Cycling Performance, Aerial Performance and the newly-launched Sports Science with Outdoor Activity.
He said: “In addition to providing academic skills and theoretical principles, it is imperative that students are provided with applied knowledge and understanding, as well as other pertinent industry-based skills. By forming links with industry and being able to expose students to environments and scenarios they will likely face in the field, it will better prepare them for their careers upon completion of their studies, as well as enriching their experience while studying at Writtle.”
•Cambridge Epigenetix (CEGX), based at Little Chesterford, near Saffron Walden, has added epigenetics-based therapeutics specialist Professor Mark Dawson to its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB).
Epigenetics is the study of changes in gene function which can ben inherited without involving any change in the DNA sequence.
Prof Dawson is professor at the Sir Peter MacCallum Department of Oncology and Centre for Cancer Research at the University of Melbourne, where he is head of the Translational Haematology Programme, group leader of the Cancer Epigenetics Laboratory and consultant haematologist in the Department of Haematology.
Dr Jason Mellad, chief executive at Cambridge Epigenetics, said: “Innovation and scientific rigour are at the heart of what we do at CEGX, which is why we’ve appointed a panel of advisors consisting of several high-profile individuals who have a list of notable achievements across our key areas of interest, to aid us in maintaining these core values and continuing to drive the development of epigenetics-based technologies.
“Profr Dawson has significant research and clinical expertise in epigenetics, therapeutics and oncology so we are delighted he has agreed to join our SAB.”
Prof Dawson added: “CEGX is a pioneer in the field of epigenetics and I look forward to helping the company harness the power of epigenetics to develop the next generation of diagnostics and therapeutics.”
•Four apprentices from TMJ Interiors, based at Bildeston, near Stowmarket, have been recognised at the Building Crafts College’s annual graduation ceremony.
Luke Auton, Austen Virr and Daniel Willis all graduated at the event, at the Carpenters’ Hall in London, with Level 3 NVQ Diplomas. Austen also received the Worshipful Company of Joiners and Ceilers’ Year 3 Best Bench Joinery Apprentice award, for a hand-made chair, and then went on to win the top prize of the evening, the Sir Banister Fletcher award for Student of the Year.
In addition, Daniel Baxter won the Worshipful Company of Joiners and Ceilers’ Year 1 Best Bench Joinery Apprentice award, for a table made from a selection of off-cuts which would otherwise have been disregarded.
A spokesman for TMJ Interiors described the results as “a fantastic achievement”.
Also at the event were TMJ’s production director Pat Coll, training manager Cheryl Hardacre and one of its experienced joiners, Adam Prime.
•A young bricklayer from Lowestoft has been named the Trade Apprentice of the Year in a national awards scheme.
Dylan Butcher triumphed in the Persimmon Homes Young Achievers Awards, beating hundreds of apprentices from across the builder’s 30 divisional businesses.
The 19-year-old was nominated by Persimmon Anglia’s senior contracts manager Ray Winney for putting an unsatisfactory school experience behind him and emerging as a star student.
“It is clear that Dylan has found his true vocation and we are all very proud of his achievements,” said Mr Winney. “Not only has he completed his apprenticeship six months early, he has also taken advantage of the opportunities to improve his maths and English skills at college.
“His hard work has paid off with the most improved construction student and the construction student of the year prizes from his college, and now Persimmon’s national Trade Apprentice of the Year title.”
Dylan is currently working at the Woods Meadow development at Oulton Broad. Also nominated for the national awards scheme were regional finalists Scarlett Calver from Bungay, Ayesha Orriss from Carlton Colville and Kegan Charlesworth from Hellesdon.
Scarlett Calver was nominated for the Duncan Davidson Award, named after Persimmon’s founder and recognising exceptional service to the company. The 22-year-old joined Persimmon two years ago as a trainee quantity surveyor with no previous training but a hunger to learn and demonstrates excellent negotiating skills and understanding of budgets.
Trainee sales advisor of the year nominee Ayesha Orriss, 23, joined Persimmon in 2016 at the Beckets Grove development in Wymondham, making excellent progress in her training programme and demonstrating her readiness to work independently at her own development.
Kegan Charlesworth started with the company as a labourer and was rapidly offered the position of trainee assistant site manager. Astute enough to take on additional responsibilities and willing to work extra hours to ensure his site is running efficiently, the 25-year-old has also made an excellent start to his site supervision course, being a well-liked member of the group.
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