CPA Bulletin

10 CPA Bulletin > February 2022 www.cpa.uk.net Stars of the Future Plant Operative of the Year 2021 Prize The Stars of the Future awards programme was set up 10 years ago, originally in partnership with the Further Education (FE) colleges, to recognise the achievements of apprentices on Plant Mechanic courses at Level 2 and Plant Technician courses at Level 3. At the outset, one of the principal elements of the awards was providing suitable prizes that not only recognise each winner’s achievements, but offered something that supports and enhances their chosen career well into the future. For the Plant Mechanics and Technicians, the prizes consisted of high-quality tool kits and specialist tools, kindly supported by Snap-on Tools. As the number of Stars of the Future awards categories has increased, prizes were subsequently sought that maintained the key ethos of providing assistance to a winner’s working career. For example, iPads are awarded to Hire Controller of the Year winners which supports their day-to-day role, whilst visits to overseas crane production facilities have been organised for Lifting Technician of the Year winners, kindly provided by Liebherr. In the case of the Plant Operative of the Year category, winners are given the opportunity to undertake a training course and add a category of plant of their choice to a skills card e.g. CPCS, etc. which provides a greater range of plant and allows them to be more versatile in their future career. The training course prize has been kindly donated by ACOP Group since the introduction of the Plant Operative of the Year category, and co-sponsored for 2021 by L Lynch Plant Hire. ACOP Group has a well-respected and established plant training centre in South West Wales that specialises in mid and heavy plant, as well as lifting operations and is an accredited CPCS and NPORS centre. The centre is owned by Siôn Morgan Jones, who further acts as the Vice Chair of the CPA Council and as a judge for the Stars of the Future awards. In Siôn’s own words: “As one of the judges for the CPA Stars of the Future awards and with my company, ACOP Group co-sponsoring the Plant Operative of the Year award, I have become increasingly aware of its relevance within the construction industry. “It provides both essential recognition and encouragement to individuals for their skills and effort at the early stages of their career, which is essential for developing our future leaders. And each year, I am delighted to welcome the winner of the Plant Operative of the Year award to complete a course of their choosing at our training centre in South West Wales.” The Plant Operative of the Year 2021 award winner was Jim Baraclough from L Lynch Plant Hire, who is also known as ‘the bearded plant operator’ to his 1000+ Instagram followers. Jim had a number of different jobs in the past, including being a car mechanic and a security guard before he joined Lynch’s Careers in Plant apprenticeship scheme in 2019. He says he’s been buzzing ever since and now in his ‘happy place’. He already held a number of plant categories owing to the ASSOCIATIONNEWS: 3