THIS year's Modern Apprentice of the Year for Wrexham council is Shelley Smith who was presented with her award at a World of Learning event at the Memorial Hall.
Shelley, 18, started as a modern apprentice in September 2005 and gained a placement with finance and performance the following month and quickly progressed through her Level 2 NVQ in IT.
Shelley was nominated by her manager Carol Lewis Moreton who manages the council's benefit fraud and verification visiting team.
The criteria used for nominating a candidate includes customer care, flexibility, initiative, teamwork, the ability to meet deadlines, professional knowledge and time keeping and attendance.
Carol Lewis Moreton said: 'Shelley quickly settled into working in our team and was always happy to work early mornings or weekends and evenings as the work demanded.
'She worked well as a team player, offering to help any other member of the team and was very willing to carry out any tasks in order to achieve targets. Her verbal and written communication skills are excellent and she has a very friendly outgoing nature and always remained calm and polite with our clients'.
She added: 'Shelley's new appointment in housing benefits has been a loss to our team but we all congratulate her and wish her every success in her future employment with Wrexham council.'
Shelley's assessor throughout her apprenticeship was Melanie Evans of Wrexham ITeC.
After receiving the Award Shelley said she was delighted to have been named the outright winner and thanked everyone for their help.
She said: 'Being a modern apprentice has been a great opportunity to gain qualifications and has allowed me to secure a full-time position with the council's Housing Department.
'I have enjoyed the experience and am now looking forward to studying for further qualifications and to contributing positively to my new role.'
