The Shropshire Telford & Wrekin Apprenticeship Awards open for 2026
The 2026 Shropshire Telford & Wrekin Apprenticeship Awards have officially launched, with organisers looking to build on the incredible success of the past two years.
The competition will once again celebrate the brightest and best workers who are ‘earning while they are learning’ – as well as recognising employers driving ambition and education through their support of apprenticeships.
There will be an overall star apprentice crowned for the Shropshire Council area, and an overall champion for Telford & Wrekin. There are also awards for small, medium and large sized employers.
Individual apprentice categories this year include Construction & Civil Engineering, Health & Social Care, Engineering & Manufacturing, IT & Digital Industries, Creative & Media, and Business Legal & Finance.
New for 2026 is a ‘Rising Star’ award for an apprentice in any sector making a huge impression, and a ‘Mentor of the Year’ award for someone who nurtures emerging talent and plays a pivotal role in supporting apprentices to thrive.
The competition – which is free to enter - is backed by some of the county’s biggest and best names, led by headline sponsor Telford College with support from the Marches Careers Hub.
Category sponsors include In-Comm Training, McPhillips, Pave Aways, Purple Frog Systems, J&PR, Shrewsbury College, iconsys, Housing Plus Group, and Keele University.
The competition was officially launched at this year’s Telford Skills Show by the team behind Shropshire Business Live TV, which is once again the media sponsor of the event.
To qualify for an individual award, apprentices must be on a current programme with a company which is based in either the Shropshire, or Telford & Wrekin local authority areas.
To qualify for a company award, businesses must have at least one operational base in either Shropshire or Telford & Wrekin, and employ current or past apprentices.
Shortlisted finalists will be notified in July, and the awards will be handed out at a glittering presentation night in front of the SBLTV cameras at the Mercure Telford Centre Hotel on October 8.
Carl Jones, producer and presenter at SBLTV who comperes the awards night, said: “We have had a brilliant response over the past two years, with nominations exceeding all our expectations, and a sell-out awards dinner.
“With some exciting new categories for 2026, we’re hoping this year will be even bigger and better. We’d like to say a huge thanks to all the sponsors who are backing the competition to make it all possible.”
For all the details – including a few remaining sponsorship opportunities – log onto stwaa.co.uk.
Watch
Carl Jones and Chris Pritchard chat to some of this year's awards sponsors.
