Becketts Foods manager recognised for apprentice mentoring
An engineering training specialist at one of the UK’s leading food processing companies has been recognised for his mentorship of young apprentices.
Bob Pratt, Becketts Foods’ engineering systems training specialist, won the Mentor Recognition Award at the recent MGTS Awards in Coventry. MGTS is an educational charity which trains and develops the next generation of engineers.
Becketts Foods has been based in Coventry since 1983 and Bob has been with the business since 2017. MGTS is the training partner for Becketts Foods apprentices.
Becketts managing director, Joe Cornes said Bob Pratt is well known throughout the business and everyone is very proud of what he achieves.
“The role of the mentor is so important in the training and development of our apprentices,” Cornes said. “People like Bob are the unsung heroes of apprenticeships in developing the next generation of our engineers.
“Bob’s work within Becketts has made us all up our game by positively challenging the way we have done things in the past and changing how we work in the future.”
Becketts is committed to training and developing apprentices across its business. Bob’s work sees him use his own experience across a long career to provide support on all aspects of engineering from electrical to mechanical. Alongside his work with apprentices, Bob also supports the wider engineering team with training sessions.
Speaking of his award, Bob said: “It’s always fantastic to be recognised for my work. I started as an apprentice at 16 so can really relate to the team. For me, I just see it simply as giving confidence and leadership to the future stars of the business. Becketts is growing and we need an excellent workforce to support us. The apprentices can develop with the business if we train them in the right way.”
Becketts Foods is part of the hugely successful CPC Foods in the UK and the international food company Tönnies. The company is a leading supplier of bacon to the food service and retail industries in the UK, and throughout Europe.
