Leeds poster girl for apprenticeships

Paige Flynn stars in material to promote Get in Go Far, which launched this month and was designed to show young people the value of an apprenticeship.

The 20 year-old apprentice, who works for Premier Inn, won the company’s National Apprentice of the Year in 2015.

She then beat off competition from hundreds of other apprentices from across the UK and was selected as one of 13 stars of the campaign who will appear in various national advertising.

Paige, who works as a hospitality supervision and leadership apprentice for Premier Inn, said: “The apprenticeship scheme has been really beneficial to my career at Premier Inn and it’s great that I now have the opportunity to encourage others to follow this route.”

Paige left education before finishing sixth form but has since completed her Level 3 qualification while working at Leeds Central Premier Inn and now manages her own team and is a qualified host at the hotel.

Skills Minister Nick Boles MP said: “Leeds apprentice Paige and the other stars of the Get in Go Far campaign are sharing their success story so that young people can see how to fast track their career and still learn while they earn. Talented school leavers now have more opportunities to get on the career ladder and still learn while they earn.”

Sandra Kelly, Whitbread’s head of education, said: “We are incredibly proud of Paige at Premier Inn, she’s an invaluable member of our team in Leeds and she deserves all this recognition. It’s really important to us to be able to offer employment with education through apprenticeships for local people who may not have achieved relevant qualifications at school or college.”