An 18-year-old man from Wallington has been shortlisted for the National Apprentice Technician of the Year Award.

Heritier Djamba is one of six apprentices shortlisted with the winner being announced at a ceremony on October 12.

The teenager is a member of the Kwik Fit's apprenticeship scheme which has trained over 2,000 young people over the last 15 years.

Routes into management and technical careers are encouraged from completing the scheme.

“I am delighted to be nominated for this award," Heritier said. "I never thought I would be shortlisted but I’m glad to see my hard work during my time at Kwik Fit recognised by an organisation such as the NTDA.

"I would be happy to win, but there are more than 600 apprentices in our industry at the moment and the calibre of nominees is exceptionally high, so just to be shortlisted is an incredible honour.”

Kwik Fit, an automotive parts, repair and replacement specialist company, train apprentices for around two years and also aims at improving candidates's maths, English and personal skills.

Tom Peterkin, centre manager at Kwik Fit Wallington, commented: "We are incredibly proud of Heritier, not only for being nominated for this award, but for how much he has progressed during his time with us at the centre.

"Our apprentices usually perform well, but Heritier has really raised the bar and continues to impress us daily with his technical proficiency and customer relation skills. We are glad to see his hard work recognised at a national level.”

The tyre industry’s ‘Oscars’ will be presented at the Association’s 88th Annual Dinner to be held in Milton Keynes later this month.