Seventeen-year-old Viktoriia Grachova, a T Level student at Winvic Construction Ltd, has lifted the East Midlands T Level Student of the Year trophy in the Department for Education’s (DfE) National Apprenticeship and Skills Awards. The leading main contractor that specialises in the design and delivery of private and public sector construction and civil engineering projects, was also Highly Commended in the T Level Employer of the Year category.

Viktoriia will now join the winners from the eight other regions in England at a ceremony at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London on 27 November to find out who will be awarded the national accolade.

T Level Student of the Year – East Midlands Regional Winner

After Viktoriia was displaced from Ukraine, she undertook her GCSEs in the UK as the first step towards her dream career of becoming a construction site engineer. The T Level route – combining theory and practical experience – stood out and after securing her placement with Winvic for her Construction: Survey, Design, and Planning qualification, she requested to work on one of the contractor’s most complex projects: the 33-storey Purpose Built Student Accommodation (PBSA) scheme, Crown Place Birmingham.

Viktoriia’s goal has always been to continually learn and develop, particularly in gaining new knowledge and practice with tools and technologies. She volunteered to work closely with HP SitePrint, a state-of-the-art robotic printer that negates the need for manual setting out tasks, and Viktoriia is one of Winvic’s on-site experts on the technology’s use.

BBC Midlands Today visited Crown Place Birmingham in early October to speak to Viktoriia and to report on Winvic being the first UK contractor to use Skyline Cockpit, which enables a tower crane to be operated from a ground control centre.

T Level Employer of the Year – East Midlands Highly Commended

The Winvic Enrichment Programme (WEP) provides students with a rounded insight into the various roles within construction, highlighting the four areas within the T Level alongside other careers such as roles within the supply chain and innovative digital roles. Numerous Winvic departments and subcontractor partners support the five-day WEP delivery as well as all the students that are welcomed on to longer term T Level workplace placements.

In addition to supporting students’ course content, Winvic works with the young women and men to improve their communication, listening, IT and overall employability skills. The holistic approach has been hailed as one of the big successes of Winvic’s approach as well as the contractor’s commitment to working collaboratively with colleges to create bespoke programmes of value to different qualification subjects. The WEP won a 2023 Considerate Constructors Scheme Leading Lights Award for Community Enrichment.

Winvic’s Talent Development Manager, Kayleigh Merritt, who was selected to be an official T Level Ambassador in 2022 and has just been awarded a Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) Top 100 Influential Women in Construction ‘Local Hero’ Award, commented: “It’s not that long ago when people hadn’t heard of T Levels, so it’s wonderful that the qualification is beginning to shine as a respected career route and that Winvic is being recognised for its commitment to providing truly beneficial on-site experiences for students.

“We’re honoured to have been Highly Commended for East Midlands T Level Employer of the Year and we’re very excited about Viktoriia’s regional win, which means she’s made it to the finals of the National Apprenticeship and Skills Awards. Viktoriia has shown outstanding commitment to her dream career, and when you consider her age and the challenge of relocating from Ukraine, it’s almost unbelievable. The whole Winvic team wishes her the best of luck for the big ceremony in November.”

Viktoriia Grachova, Trainee Site Engineer and T Level student at Winvic, said: “Many people have said to me that you get recognised and rewarded for your hard work here at Winvic, but I didn’t think it would be in this kind of way! My team’s reaction has been amazing and without them I wouldn’t be here. I’d like to thank them all for supporting me to learn and thrive every day. I’m very proud to be the East Midlands T Level Student of the Year and whether I win at the national final or not, I’m excited to attend the ceremony and keep working hard to finish my qualification.”

For more information on Winvic, the company’s latest project news and job vacancies please visit www.winvic.co.uk. Join Winvic on social media – visit X (formerly Twitter) @WinvicLtd – and LinkedIn.