Search
05 Sept 2025
Search
05 Sept 2025
Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content.
Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist.
If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter .
Support our mission and join our community now.
To continue reading this article, you can subscribe for as little as €0.50 per week which will also give you access to all of our premium content and archived articles!
Alternatively, you can pay €0.50 per article, capped at €1 per day.
Thank you for supporting Ireland's best local journalism!
Apprentices Garret Brennan, sous chef at Avalon House Hotel Castlecomer; Keith Hickey, toolmaker with Carlow Toolmaking Services Pollerton; and Joanne Cooney, electrician with Excel Engineering Callan
More than 360 talented apprentices across Carlow, Kilkenny, Tipperary, Waterford and Wexford will graduate at the inaugural National Apprenticeship Awards 2022, for the south-east region, taking place in Kilkenny next Monday, October 17.
Organised by Kilkenny and Carlow Education and Training Board (KCETB) for the region, the National Apprenticeship Awards recognise the achievements of apprentices who have completed four years of study and are now driving new career standards of leadership, teamwork, creativity and problem-solving in their sectors.
The graduates will mark the completion of 21 different apprenticeships from five industry sectors: engineering; electrical; motor; construction; hospitality and food.
The ceremony will be the first to include commis chef apprenticeship graduates, following its introduction by KCETB in 2016. The graduate chefs are: Garret Brennan (Avalon House Hotel, Castlecomer); Cormac Donal Keane (Woodford Dolmen Hotel, Carlow); Stuart Dunne Maher (Newpark Hotel, Kilkenny); Peter Thorpe (Talbot Hotel, Wexford); Hannah McCann (Ballinahinch Castle, Co. Galway) and Michael Gaule (Kelly’s Hotel, Rosslare).
The executive head chef at Kelly’s Hotel, Eugene Callaghan, will be a guest speaker at the awards.
The National Apprenticeship Awards 2022 will also recognise the first Phase 2 electrical apprentices from the south-east region who commenced training in 2018 in the very first Kilkenny-based course.
“Apprenticeships form the basis of an exciting career choice for school leavers. Combining hands-on, practical workplace training with learning in a further education and training (FET) centre, they provide huge opportunites for those who want to learn and work concurrently,” said Mary Prior Butler, head of training services at KCETB. “This prestigious ceremony highlights the excellence, hard work and resilience shown by the recipient apprentices, particularly in light of the significant challenges and disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic,” she added.
“We are delighted that the National Apprenticeship Awards ceremony can take place in person this year to recognise the tremendous achievements of so many apprentices who have completed their training in a range of disciplines and whose skills are so valuable to our economic progress”, said Eileen Curtis, CE of KCETB.
Subscribe or register today to discover more from DonegalLive.ie
Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People's Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal's premier news titles.
Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.
Follow us on
This publication supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice of the Press Council. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at www.presscouncil.ie, Lo-call 1800 208 080 or email: info@presscouncil.ie.
