The Northern Lighthouse Board yesterday (5 February 2020), welcomed Maritime Minister Nusrat Ghani, onboard its vessel PHAROS, at Babcock’s Rosyth facilities.
During the visit the Minister was given a tour of the vessel which is in the early stages of a refit, and met members of the crew, including recently qualified Deck Rating Apprentice, Lewis Thomas. Lewis started his Apprenticeship with the Northern Lighthouse Board in June 2016 and after successfully completing the two year Apprenticeship, he was promoted to Seaman in 2018.
Nusrat Ghani Maritime Minister said:
“I was delighted to visit the NLV PHAROS at Babcock Rosyth facilities today, to meet the fantastic crew and apprentices who form part of our 186,000 strong maritime workforce. “Maritime is a truly fantastic place to build a career, and we are determined to help our young people lead the charge towards a bright future for the sector.”
Mike Bullock, NLB’s Chief Executive said:
“It was a great pleasure to welcome the Minister onboard PHAROS again to show her the vital work we do to keep mariners and the environment safe around Scotland and the Isle of Man.
“We also welcomed the opportunity to talk to the Minister about NLB’s vessel replacement project which is in its early stages and our Deck Rating Apprenticeship Scheme which has been running since 2016. The introduction of the Scheme has had the obvious benefit of selecting and nurturing young talent to join our workforce. And more particularly, ensures that by the end of their training, the young people have the combination of specialist skills and knowledge that are bespoke to NLB’s requirements such as deck work, buoy maintenance, helicopter operations and lighthouse storing operations.”
Pictured left to right: Caitlin Thomson Phase 1 Electrical Technical Design apprentice with Babcock; Nusrat Ghani MP; Gordon Bowers, Phase 4 Pipefitter apprentice with Babcock; Lewis Thomas recently qualified Deck Rating apprentice with the Northern lighthouse Board.
