You’re hired – Laura reaches regional apprentice final after landing job at SaTH

8 August 2018

A former apprentice who has gone on to secure a full-time job at The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH) has been named as a regional finalist in the National Apprenticeship Awards.

Laura Sheldon, Executive Administrator in the Chief Executive’s Office, will attend the West Midlands Regional Ceremony at the Macdonald Burlington Hotel in Birmingham on 24 September.

The National Apprenticeship Awards recognise the achievements of extraordinary apprentices, the businesses that employ them, and the individuals that champion apprenticeships.

Laura, 20, joined SaTH last year as an administration apprentice, before going on to secure her current role.

She said: “I am absolutely ecstatic to have made it through to the regional final. They said the applications this year were of very high quality, so I am delighted to have been selected and I’m very much looking forward to the ceremony in Birmingham and meeting all the other finalists.

“I thoroughly enjoyed my apprenticeship with SaTH and have had great support since joining the Trust.

“I’d also like to thank Sarah Aramayo at SBC Training, my training provider, for her fantastic support and encouragement.”

Prior to her appointment at SaTH, which runs the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and Telford’s Princess Royal Hospital, Laura championed young people’s rights in a number of voluntary roles: as a Young Health Champion she worked for several years to engage young people in decision making and giving young people a voice in the NHS and also delivered workshops and trained dozens of young people, passing on the skills needed to allow teenagers to make a difference in their communities.

Laura has also delivered a presentation at the Royal College of Emergency Medicine to a number of paediatric nurses about the importance of consultation around patient experience in children’s wards, and spoken in the House of Commons as a Member of Youth Parliament on the importance of talking about mental health issues.

She sat on the 2015 Youth Select Committee and took evidence from witnesses such as MPs and health professionals around the issue of mental health services, awareness and stigma.

Deborah Hazan, Executive Assistant to the Chief Executive and Chair at SaTH, who nominated Laura for the awards, said: “We are delighted, but not surprised that Laura has been named as a regional finalist.

“She has made a tremendous impact since joining the Trust and we have no doubt that this is just the start of her journey and that great things lie ahead for her.”