Youngest Member of Grounds Team Receives Prestigious Award

Luke Roberts, the youngest member of the Grounds staff at the School recently received a prestigious award from the Institute of Groundsmen (IOG) in recognition of his academic achievements whilst still an apprentice.

Luke managed to complete his NVQ Level 1and 2 in Sports Turf Management and PA1 and PA6 spraying certificates in record time and with exceptional scores the best in the whole of the Midlands Region.

Luke was invited to Villa Park, the home of Aston Villa Football Club, for a presentation ceremony which was carried out by Jonathon Calderwood who is the Head Groundsman at Aston Villa. Luke received the Bert Bond Memorial Award for Best Student which was presented as a framed certificate and a small cash sum.

Luke was the Apprentice Groundsman at the School between 2008 2010 and studied at Walford College near Baschurch on a day release scheme. A vacancy arose within the grounds team at Ellesmere at about the same time that Luke was qualifying so fortuitously he became a fully fledged member of the team in 2010.

Ian Morris, Head Groundsman who accompanied Luke to the presentation ceremony at Villa Park said, We are all extremely proud of Luke and he has become a valuable addition to our team.

1st June 2011  Back to News