May 30, 2021 - 1113 views
Promising chef Sion Wyn Owen has been named Grŵp Llandrillo Menai Work-based Learning Consortium’s ‘Overall Apprentice of the Year 2021’ after partially learning has trade at the Rhos-on-Sea campus.
He was selected from an elite group of 10 ‘Apprentices of the Year’ who were, for the first time, chosen to represent their industry or trade by a public online poll.
Sion, from Anglesey, was named ‘Overall Apprentice of the Year 2021’ by a panel of work-based learning experts from Arfon Dwyfor Training (ADT), Grŵp Llandrillo Menai and North Wales Training.
The North Wales Apprenticeship Awards are sponsored by Babcock International Group, the multinational defence supplier who have an Aeronautical Engineering Apprenticeship Programme at RAF Valley run in partnership with Grŵp Llandrillo Menai.
Speaking about the award Sion said: “My original plan in life was to become a musician but it’s hard to earn a living, so I got myself a job washing dishes. When I was washing pots, I could see the chefs doing what they were doing and I became really interested, it made me want to become a chef as well.
“The apprenticeship helped me gain a lot of confidence, my plan now is to move on to the Level 3 Apprenticeship in Professional Cookery, work hard, progress and learn as much as I can.
“My dream is to eventually have my own restaurant which I’ll call ‘Sylvia’s’ after my nain who inspired me to follow my dreams and become a chef.”
Sion is no stranger to winning awards, in 2019 he won the annual ‘Seafish’ seafood competition which usually takes place annually during Seafood Week.
Sion recently joined the team at Ty’n Rhos Country House Hotel at Saron near Caernarfon. His new boss Laura Murphy, Owner Manager commented:
“We are delighted for Sion, this award is a lovely boost at this point in his career. He is new to Ty’n Rhos and we hope to see him grow and develop his skills here. We are a country house with a fine dining restaurant, so he’ll be learning and perfecting classic French and modern cooking styles.”
Paul Bevan Executive Director - Commercial Development at Busnes@LlandrilloMenai was on the expert panel that selected Sion as ‘Overall Apprentice of the Year’, he commented:
“Deciding who would be our apprentice of the year from amongst the amazing candidates was incredibly difficult – they all are worthy winners.
“As judges we were looking for someone who really embodies the attributes of an apprentice. Sion is not only a young professional in his field he is also continuing to develop his skills and to promote apprenticeships to others. Sion should be especially proud as he was also voted Apprentice of the Year in Hospitality as well as winning the Apprentice of the Year - Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol.
“The academic year 2019-2020 has been challenging for our apprentices, particularly those like Sion who work in the Hospitality sector. When we decided to hold our apprenticeship awards online, we had no idea that we would get over 6,500 public votes - we are delighted with the response.”
If you or a member of you family would like to find out more about Apprenticeships call 08445 460460 or visit www.gllm.ac.uk/apprenticeships.
