Winvic trainee scoops regional skills award

The East Midlands T Level Student of the Year trophy has been awarded to Viktoriia Grachova, a T Level student at Winvic Construction.

Grachova received the accolade at a regional ceremony for the Department for Education’s (DfE) National Apprenticeship and Skills Awards. She will now join the winners from the eight other regions in England at a ceremony on 27 November to find out who will be awarded the national award.

After being displaced from Ukraine, the 17-year-old trainee undertook her GCSEs in the UK as the first step towards becoming a construction site engineer.

Grachova secured a placement at Winvic for her Construction: Survey, Design, and Planning qualification and has had the opportunity to work on one of the contractor’s most complex projects: the 33-storey purpose built student accommodation (PBSA) scheme, Crown Place Birmingham. 

Grachova has also volunteered to work closely with HP SitePrint – a robotic printer that negates the need for manual setting out tasks – and has become one of Winvic’s on-site experts on the technology.

“Many people have said to me that you get recognised and rewarded for your hard work here at Winvic, but I didn’t think it would be in this kind of way,” commented Grachova. 

“My team’s reaction has been amazing and without them I wouldn’t be here. I’d like to thank them all for supporting me to learn and thrive every day. 

“I’m very proud to be the East Midlands T Level Student of the Year and whether I win at the national final or not, I’m excited to attend the ceremony and keep working hard to finish my qualification.” 

Winvic was also highly commended in the T Level Employer of the Year category.

The contractor has been recognised for its Winvic Enrichment Programme (WEP), which provides students with insight into various roles within construction.

In addition to supporting students’ course content, Winvic works with trainees to improve their communication, listening, IT and overall employability skills.

Winvic’s talent development manager, Kayleigh Merritt, said: “It’s not that long ago when people hadn’t heard of T Levels, so it’s wonderful that the qualification is beginning to shine as a respected career route and that Winvic is being recognised for its commitment to providing truly beneficial on-site experiences for students. 

“We’re honoured to have been highly commended for East Midlands T Level Employer of the Year and we’re very excited about Viktoriia’s regional win, which means she’s made it to the finals of the National Apprenticeship and Skills Awards. 

“Viktoriia has shown outstanding commitment to her dream career, and when you consider her age and the challenge of relocating from Ukraine, it’s almost unbelievable. The whole Winvic team wishes her the best of luck for the big ceremony in November.”