Gwent firms were among the winners at a high profile awards ceremony at the Celtic Manor Resort, Newport.

The Apprenticeship Awards Cymru brought together the cream of learners, employers and training providers across Wales, who have shown total dedication and commitment to skills development and business improvement.

Showcasing excellence in skills development in Wales, the awards were organised by the Welsh Government in partnership with the National Training Federation for Wales (NTfW).

The winners were: Small Employer of the Year: Maes Manor Hotel, Blackwood; Large Employer of the Year: Mabey Bridge Ltd, Chepstow; Macro Employer of the Year: Airbus Operations Ltd, Broughton; Apprenticeship Provider of the Year: ISA Training, Bridgend; Apprenticeship provider for Social Responsiveness: Acorn, Newport; Higher Apprentice of the Year: Alex Birbeck, Airbus Operations Ltd, Broughton; Foundation Apprentice of the Year: Paula Blundell, Ysgol Mynydd Isa, near Mold; Apprentice of the Year: April Davies, Dolfor, Newtown; Entrepreneurial Apprentice of the Year: Nick Petrakis, ‘nickymichaels’, Cardiff;

Traineeships Learner of the Year (Engagement): Dominic Evans, Celtic Manor Resort, Newport; Traineeship Learner of the Year (Level 1): Lucy Price, Bangor; Jobs Growth Wales - Outstanding Achiever of the Year: Ffion Malwala, Prestatyn; and Steps to Employment Learner of the Year: Nicola Sanigar, Barry.

Deputy Minister for Skills and Technology, Ken Skates said: "These awards allow us to celebrate the range of skills that our young people have to offer as well as the dedication shown by employers and training providers and I’d like to congratulate all of the worthy winners.

“It was a real pleasure to meet such hard-working and ambitious young people who have all achieved so much, as well as the employers and training providers who have gone that extra mile in supporting young people to fulfil their potential. They are all a credit to themselves and an inspiration to others.

"Our recent budget announcement has confirmed an additional £12.5m to extend our Jobs Growth Wales programme for a fourth year. This means that we can create more than 4,000 extra job opportunities for 16-24 year olds in 2015-16. The Welsh Government will also be investing a further £20m in 2015-16 to support apprenticeships. This is excellent news for our young people and our employers and will allow us to make a real difference."

Arwyn Watkins, NTfW chief executive, said: “The award winners and finalists are excellent examples of a partnership approach to skills development in Wales by employers, apprentices, training providers and the Welsh Government working together to deliver a high quality workforce.

“I commend both the Welsh Government for its continued commitment to apprenticeships and the NTfW network for continuing to deliver high quality work-based learning programmes that have put Wales in the premier league. The Apprenticeship Awards Cymru are a critically important showcase as we strive to achieve parity of esteem between vocational and academic learning routes.”