The Department for Transport’s Head of Road Infrastructure Technology will praise the next generation of highways professionals when he addresses the winners of the inaugural DfT Special Recognition Inspirational Apprentice Awards.
Darren Capes, who is also Senior Vice President of the Institute of Highway Engineers will introduce the awards ceremony held during the 2025 LCRIG (Local Council Roads Innovation Group) Innovation Festival in Warwickshire this week.
The awards are designed to shine a spotlight on some of the most dedicated and inspiring apprentices in the highways and transport technology sector. There is also the Inspiring the Future Competition, which called on apprentices to share their ideas for encouraging more young people into careers in highways and transport.
Mr Capes, who manages of the Transport Technology Forum, started his career as trainee technician at Humberside County Council and rose through the ranks of local government before joining the DfT in 2017.
“I know first-hand how brilliant apprenticeships, and formal training programmes can be,” he said. “I look forward to welcoming the winners, and indeed all nominees, to recognise their work and to hopefully prove to them that, if they work hard and are good at what they do, the sky’s the limit. It’s also great that the gender balance in our sector improving – it’s not there yet and there is more for us as an industry to do, but I am pleased to see in moving in the right direction. Having been a judge of the awards, I know just how high the calibre is and therefore feel reassured our industry is in really safe hands.”
The awards will be presented at the LCRIG Innovation and Learning Festival on Wednesday 2 July 2025, celebrating the impact apprentices are having across organisations around the UK.
The nominations are:
- Alex Doe – Salford City Council
- Arran Trousdale – Breedon Group
- Avalon Page – CORMAC
- Bryn Rigarlsford – Eurovia
- Callum Missons – Eurovia
- Charlie Ralph – Project Centre
- Chloe Kirkby- North East Lincolnshire Council
- Christian Maude – CORMAC
- Connor Webb – Waterman Group
- Eleanor Hockenhull – A E Yates Ltd
- Ella Bardgett – CORMAC
- George Buchanan – Portsmouth City Council
- George Pegler – CORMAC
- Hannah Black – Citisense
- Jacob Baker – Salford City Council
- Jacob Camden-Redding – Highway Care
- Jess Banbury – Amey Staffordshire
- Jonathan Reynolds – CORMAC
- Joseph Webster – Transport for West Midlands
- Joshua Battersby – Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council
- Joshua Bennett – Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council
- Kizito Brady – Salford City Council
- Leo Marsh – Leeds City Council
- Louis Rodell-Grenow – CORMAC
- Luke Howells – Breedon Group
- Saffron Powell – Leeds City Council
- Shaun Brecknell- Breedon Group
- Stacie Scott – United Utilities
- Taran Murva – Breedon Group
- Tom Williams – WJ Group
Inspiring the Future Competition
- Leanna Dinnegan – Islington Council
- Joseph Webster – Transport for West Midlands
- Jonathan Reynolds – CORMAC
- Luca Parry-Paxton – Liverpool City Council
- Sayed Nazir – Pell Frischmann
(Picture – TTF)
