The company received the Employer Apprenticeship Award from Leicester College for creating four apprenticeships at its Melton Mowbray head office in the last 18 months, and taking three of the apprentices onto its full-time staff.

The first three apprentices joined the company in January 2015 and, having completed their training, have now been employed full time, two as customer service advisors and the other as an accounts assistant.

The one remaining apprentice, who joined the company earlier this year, is also likely to be offered a full-time role as a customer service advisor, once the training is completed.

Prestige operations director Nick Hutton, who has been responsible for the running of the apprenticeship scheme, commented: “We take the provision of apprenticeships very seriously in our company, and see it as an excellent way of bringing in new young talent, typically school-leavers, and training them to a satisfactory level so that they are able to play a meaningful role in the business.”

Linda Bignall, trainer assessor at Leicester College, said: “We felt Prestige’s approach to apprenticeships was fully deserving of this award. They weren’t simply looking for a cheap labour source, and then letting the apprentices go.

“Instead, they were very keen to see them progress and develop, with lots of encouragement and confidence-building, so that their skill-sets could then be channelled into the areas where they could best be used.”