Apprentice Mathew Wins Award

Apprentice Mathew Davies, who worked in fabrication and welding at Shufflebottom of Cross Hands, has won a top apprentice award from Coleg Sir Gar and, watched by partner Emma, collected the Final Year Fabrication and Welding Level 3 Apprentice Award on March 7, right in the middle of the 2018 National Apprenticeship Week.

Mathew (30), of Llwyd Road, Ammanford, who has served the community as a retained firefighter, changed careers from plastering  nearly five years ago.

"I enrolled at Coleg Sir Gar for fabrication and welding, spent a year there, then Shufflebottom took me on as an apprentice," he said. "After another year I worked at Tata Steel, Port Talbot, for about eight months, thinking I would gain wider experience, but I have been back at Shufflebottom for two years, and have benefited because we now tackle larger and more complex projects which are interesting to work on."

During his apprenticeship Mathew continued at Coleg Sir Gar, on day release, and at the time of the presentation was about to qualify with an NVQ level 3 extended diploma in fabrication and welding. His next ambition? "I would really like to train as a welding inspector," he says.

Mathew was one of six apprentices in fabrication and welding at Shufflebottom, which employs 86 people at Cross Hands and in the 2018 Swansea Bay Business Awards won the category 'Business of the Year' for firms with between 26 and 149 employees.