SEVILLE Grove resident Blake McCarthy is the 2009 Australian Apprentice of the Year, taking top honours at the recent Australian Training Awards.
As part of the prize, Mr McCarthy is now an ambassador for training and part of a Canberra-based team to advise the Federal Government on training matters.
He also won $5000 and will receive an overseas scholarship next year.
Mr McCarthy (20) finished his apprenticeship with Electrical Group Training and host employer the Water Corporation in January, then continued to work for the Water Corporation.
He won the WA Apprentice of the Year award earlier this year, then attended a judging day in Canberra to compete for the national awards.
During his apprenticeship, he chose to complete an additional qualification in instrumentation on top of the standard Certificate III required to become an electrician.
This meant he worked full-time and attended TAFE two nights a week.
Mr McCarthy was also a member of the Armadale Volunteer Fire and Rescue Service.
His message to other young apprentices was to work hard and with good training, the sky was the limit.
Mr McCarthy has just celebrated another career success, securing a traineeship next year in the oil and gas sector with Woodside Energy through Apprenticeships Australia.