It is fabulous to be able to announce the result of the pitches for JGA’s 2026 Charity of the Year!

Thank you to everyone who entered. Every charity which was pitched will receive at least a £100 donation and overall initial donations will total £6,900.

Once again, the standard of entries this year was exceptionally high. The judging panel had a very difficult task in selecting the winners. All of the causes were incredibly worthwhile and for many entries, the personal connection and passion truly shone through.

Here are the results:

First place: Abi Porter, of Somerset Passenger Solutions Ltd. delivered a compelling pitch for Somerset Sight to become JGA’s Charity of the Year and won. A donation of £2,500 has already been made and we look forward to working with Abi, Digital Community Manger, to raise even more funds throughout the year.

Second place: Chris Betteridge, Systems Thinking Apprentice, secured a £1,500 donation for another deeply personal cause, Teenage Cancer Trust.

Third place: Lara Johnson, Spectator Safety Apprentice, won a donation of £1,000 for Alzheimer’s Society.

Supporting Even More Incredible Causes

In total, there were 22 entries, with additional donations now going to the following charities:

Great Chart Friends Association, Lancashire Women, The Wish Centre BDDWA, Derbyshire Children’s Holiday Centre, Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, Mind, The Survivors Trust, Young Lives vs Cancer, Air Ambulance Charity Kent Surrey Sussex, Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People, Adanna Women, Black Voices Cornwall CIO, The Aortic Dissection Charitable Trust, Crohn’s & Colitis UK, Cats Protection, Libby Mai’s Little Angels, and Society of St James.

Thank You to Our Judges

Finally, a big shout out to our judges for their time and expertise:

Anthony Milner (Content Professional), Joel Voysey (Fundraising Professional), Leigh Torrance (Director of Skills) and Richard Goodwin (Group Chief Executive).

Friday 27th February was a night to remember at the West London Business Awards. Held at the Allianz Stadium, Twickenham our provision was represented by four outstanding apprentices.

Amy Reeves (Historic Royal Palaces, Event Assistant), Molly Smith (Kingston Council, PR & Comms), Lauren Davidson (British Airways, Content Creator) and Zillay Usman (DfE, Policy Officer) were shortlisted for the prestigious Apprentice of the Year Awards – a fantastic achievement that highlights the impact JGA apprentices make across leading organisations.

Lauren (in black) won the 16-29 age group. Amy (in purple), Molly (black & white) and Zillay were highly commended. Pictured with other apprentices and Jonathan Seymour of Moore Kingston Smith.

Lauren – APPRENTICE OF THE YEAR!

Lauren is a content creator within the British Airways Comms and Engagement team and a Content Creator apprentice with JGA.

The judges commented: “With a very difficult and challenging background she has used this to influence and inspire the people around her in a fantastic way. Demonstrating real initiative in her role we couldn’t help but feel humbled and emotional reading her profile. A well-deserved and worthy winner.”

To crown the evening JGA won a Highly Commended award for Education & Training Provider of the Year. This reflected our 2025 Outstanding’ Ofsted judgement and the amazing support we provide to learners and employers.

The overall winner of the title “2026 Education & Training Provider of the Year” was the MAMA Youth Project – which amongst other things is a subcontractor of ours for film & TV training. Congratulations Bob Clarke and the MYP team!

The Creative Sector award was dedicated by West London Business to our former colleague Bill Boler who sadly passed away last year.

We are proud to announce our new partnership with Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR), the world’s only Royal Chartered body for public relations professionals.

As part of the CIPR’s commitment to professional standards and lifelong learning and supporting members’ careers, it is working with JGA to develop the apprenticeship route into the industry.

JGA’s communications apprenticeships are now officially delivered “in association with CIPR,” apprentices will receive 2 years of CIPR membership plus access to its resources and networks.

Apprenticeships offer a structured, inclusive, and practical route into the fast-paced world of PR, digital engagement and communications. They facilitate diversity and professionalism and are for both new recruits and training more experienced staff in new roles, and sometimes in management roles.

JGA x CIPR comms apprenticeships:

• PR & Communications Assistant (Level 4) For those starting out in PR, media relations, or internal comms roles.

• Digital Community Manager (Level 4) For professionals managing online communities, social media, and digital engagement.

• Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability (Level 4) For those working in ESG, CSR, or sustainability communications (from January 2026)

• Marketing/Communications Manager (Level 6) For experienced professionals stepping into strategic or leadership roles.

What this means:

For employers:
• A pipeline of skilled, motivated talent
• Improved staff retention and engagement
• Support for social value and diversity goals
• A cost-effective way to develop new or existing team members

For learners:
Apprentices also receive two years of free CIPR student membership, helping them build networks and stay up to date with industry trends.

Looking to recruit or upskill within your company?
Whether you’re an employer looking to invest in your team or an aspiring apprentice ready to launch your career, get in touch with us to find out how JGA can help you succeed in communications: sales@jga-group.co.uk

About the Chartered Institute of Public Relations

Founded in 1948, the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) is the world’s only Royal Chartered professional body for public relations practitioners with over 11,000 members.

The CIPR advances professionalism in public relations by making its members accountable to their employers and the public through a code of conduct and searchable public register, setting standards through training, qualifications, awards and the production of best practice and skills guidance, facilitating Continuing Professional Development (CPD), and awarding Chartered Public Relations Practitioner status (Chart.PR).

The JGA Group is thrilled to announce the results of the latest Ofsted inspection: we’re Outstanding!

Not only has JGA been judged outstanding, it’s a full sweep – outstanding in all areas of training and operation.

Read the full report here.

Ofsted also praised our curriculum relevance, responsiveness to stakeholder needs and expert teaching. Tutors and coaches were commended for their subject knowledge, interactive methods and ability to help learners build complex skills over time.

Thank you to all of our team – payroll, freelance, part time, full time, delivery, non-delivery – each and every one of you has made a difference.

Whether you’re an employer looking to invest in your team, a potential learner ready to start or develop your career, or simply interested in learning more about JGA’s programmes, check out our web pages:

Apprenticeships, Adult Care, Creative & Events, 16-18s Studies

The Public Policy Note 002 Social Value Model, published in February 2025, sets out eight social value outcomes and criteria that public sector organisations can use in their procurement.

In scope organisations are already using this framework and it will be mandatory from 1 October 2025.

Outcomes 1 and 2 in the new Social Value Model include the delivery of apprenticeships as a measure to create high quality jobs, support growth sectors and address skills gaps. Outcomes 6 and 7 include the use of apprenticeships to address barriers to employment and opportunity.

There are apprenticeships for almost every role and level today, not only the traditional engineers, builders and hair dressers but ranging from bid and proposal co-ordinator or comms assistant, through sales and marketing to degree-level service designer. Apprenticeships don’t have to be new starters either. They can be used to develop the skills of your existing team.

Apprenticeship training is free to larger organisations and at a 95% discount to smaller companies. The business must set aside a minimum of six hours per week study time for formal seminar sessions and learning activities. 86% of employers said apprenticeships helped them develop skills relevant to their organisation. Apprenticeships also support diversity. There is extra funding from the Government to train neuro diverse apprentices and those with physical disabilities. According to the government over 20 years the proportion of people of black, Asian and mixed ethnicity apprentices has trebled. People of black and mixed race heritage are apprentices at double their proportion in the population as a whole.

Two ways apprenticeships can help your social value score in public procurement.

Commit to apprenticeships that contribute towards skills development related to the contract

Identify the required skills for the contract. Can you use apprenticeships to develop a more highly skilled workforce?

Think about how you can support diversity and equality by offering higher level apprenticeships to members of your existing workforce who may not otherwise have an opportunity to progress.

The HR/L&D functions of many large organisations are only too pleased to receive creative ideas from functional teams about ways to spend the levy – if it isn’t spent then it is lost to the company and at present, HM Treasury is holding nearly £800 million of unspent levy funds!

Use your apprenticeship levy funding to support smaller organisations

The Levy can be drawn down to pay for your company’s apprenticeship training. Alternatively up to 50% of your company’s Levy funds can be transferred to support other businesses and charities to pay for their apprenticeship training and assessment. This will enable you to support businesses in a specific geographic area, sector where skills development is needed or provide opportunities to promote economic equality. Think creatively about what your firm can do to use this to satisfy the requirements of the social value model and strengthen your tenders.

Examples include:

Things to remember

Make sure you will have sufficient levy funds in future financial years to pay for the apprenticeship(s) over the course of the duration, as this can be more than 12 months – be aware though, most employers underspend their levy, so your HR team will love you!

Your transferred funding can only be used to pay for apprenticeship training and assessment, it does not cover salary, but there are some other benefits such as reductions in employers National Insurance Contributions.

You can find details of how to transfer your apprenticeship levy funds on the Gov.uk website Transferring your apprenticeship levy to another business. Many parts of the country have existing not for profit bodies to take any pain from the process. The best known is perhaps London’s Workwhile, but simply google for others across England, or as the BBC or BT have done, organise your own!

For more information check out the Cabinet Office’s Social Value Portal or PPN2, original source material.

Choosing an apprenticeship provider

You can search the full range of apprenticeships available on the Skills England website. The Gov.uk website will then help you find a suitable apprenticeship provider.

The JGA Group is a Queen’s Award-winning training provider; priding ourselves on our high-quality and inclusive programmes. Our range of apprenticeship solutions for marketing and sales teams is one of the most comprehensive in the country. JGA skills coaches and tutors are not just teachers. They are professionals with current experience in the role, often maintaining a portfolio of consulting positions alongside their training/coaching responsibilities.

90% of employers and 95% of apprentices this year rank us Excellent or Good!

Looking to recruit or upskill within your company?
To find out more about apprenticeships, speak to our helpful team: sales@jga-group.co.uk

The JGA Group is proud to have become an associate member of the UK Skills Partnership – a collaborative network of leading training providers, awarding bodies, and education experts working to advance vocational education across the UK and internationally.

The UK Skills Partnership plays a vital role in shaping workforce development strategies, promoting inclusive training models, and sharing best practice across borders. As part of this network, JGA will contribute to global conversations on employability, curriculum innovation and apprenticeship design.

So, what does this mean?

The United Kingdom has a worldwide reputation for excellence in our specialist sectors: crowd management, TV/film production, marketing/sales and the disciplines of machinery of government such as policy, communications, service design, systems thinking and health care intelligence, from entry level to senior management.

We will collaborate with other providers to explore new delivery models, support emerging markets to develop apprenticeship and other frameworks, and share insights into UK standards that can be adapted globally. This work strengthens our own programmes and ensures that learners benefit from training that’s not only relevant locally, but respected internationally.

Whether you’re on our film and TV production bootcamp, undertaking a PR and communications or a policy officer apprenticeship, or are on one of our many other courses, you’re gaining skills that are shaped by global best practice and designed for real-world success.

To learn more about our work with the UK Skills Partnership or explore how our programmes can support your career or organisation, contact our Managing Director richard.goodwin@jga-group.co.uk.

We are proud to announce that that, after extensive due diligence, The JGA Group has been awarded Industry Approval by the National Skills Academy for Food & Drink (NSAFD).

This highlights our role as a trusted, industry-approved provider of apprenticeships to food and beverage organisations. We offer a comprehensive range of marketing and communications apprenticeships, but it is our sales executive course which has proven the most popular with the sector.

A family-owned training provider which delivers apprenticeships nationally, more than 70 apprentices (from 20 food & drink employers) have undertaken our programmes.

The achievement rates on our courses are well above national averages. In recent years this has led to leading brands such as Premier Foods, AB Foods, Westmill, Cranswick, Nichols, Suntory, Innocent Drinks, Kingsland Drinks and most recently Yum! to trust JGA’s apprenticeships to boost capability, drive productivity, and improve staff retention.

Apprentices at all levels use new learnings to transform the way they work and, in some cases, even the way they view the world outside work! See our Case Studies.

Here are just some of the apprenticeships which the sector finds the most useful:

Looking to recruit or upskill within your company?
Find out more about apprenticeships for the food and drink industry or speak to our helpful team: sales@jga-group.co.uk