August Apprentice of the Month
Maria Hill
We are pleased to announce that the winner of the LDN Apprentice of the Month for August is Maria Hill @ London Borough of Havering.
Nominated by Skills Coach Devina Ferrulo, Maria is halfway through the Community Engagement Academy programme and has made a remarkable impact.
From championing better outcomes for care leavers to supporting the decarbonisation of buildings, Maria’s passion for community and environmental change is inspiring. Her dedication, creativity, and reliability have made her a standout member of the Community Engagement Academy.
Check out all the awesome nominations we received in July, as well as Howie’s winning nomination below.
Maria’s Skills Coach:
Maria is an exceptional apprentice who consistently stays ahead of the curve. She brings thoughtful ideas to improve the apprenticeship offer and actively contributes to its development. She has a strong commitment to learning and she always submits work of an exceptional standard on time and remains consistently on track with her progress. She is so well organised that she would be brilliant at running workshops on how to plan ahead and stay on track with goals.
Maria also genuinely cares about the community she serves, often going above and beyond to support others (think dashing around 17 floors after hours to ensure people are fairly consulted). Maria has championed better outcomes for care leavers and helped to develop projects that support this group in Havering. Maria has such a passion for ensuring that people feel listened to and involved in their community.
She doesn’t just fly the flag for social impact, she is also an environmental champion who is actively supporting the decarbonisation of buildings within her borough. Maria is a true asset to the Community Engagement Academy and to her team at Havering.
Maria’s Line Manager:
How have they improved/impacted the business and the team since they started their apprenticeship?
The role of the Senior Resident Liaison Officer is to act as an advocate for our residents, and to steer a difficult path between meeting. their needs and expectations, and the obligations and restrictions of service delivery.
Since starting on her apprenticeship, Maria has become an expert in that high-wire act.
She has introduced Stakeholder Engagement Strategies for every workstream, working with the project managers, and has embedded customer care into the values of the service, leading by example.
What three words best describe them?
Caring – Maria genuinely cares about our customers and will take as long as it needs to respond to questions and reassure individual residents about our planned works
Creative – Maria is adept at finding the right communication and consultation approach to each situation, and creating her own communication aids, whether that is on the Council’s website, producing internal newsletters, holding public meetings or driving the consultation bus out to meet residents on their estates.
Dependable – Over time, Maria’s role has grown and changed over time but whatever she is asked to take on I know she will deliver professionally, competently and conscientiously.
An example of an outstanding piece of work, project or task they have worked on.
Quite recently, Maria was asked to review how we obtained resident satisfaction feedback on Planned works, to increase the number of surveys returned. Maria completely revised the approach, making the questionnaire far shorter and simpler, designing an attractive postcard reminder for residents instead of a boring formal Council letter and revamping the back-office collation and reporting on results. Her approach was so successful that she was then asked by five other teams within the Council to help them adopt the same approach.
Here’s what was said about the other brilliant nominees:
Maria Radeva @ MKM Building Supplies
Corporate Responsibility & Sustainablity
Maria has simply been incredible from the very start of her course, even joining a daunting In-Person Development Day within the 1st few weeks of being on board – testament to her willingness to learn from the start. At work, she wrote a Community Playbook for all branches to use, which has inspired and encouraged others with their community activity and has impact on over 130 communities. Maria has also supported a team member in Central Support with fundraising activities for the Pancreatic Cancer charity, which is close to their heart. She leads from the front with her Apprentice peers, representing the Apprentice Ambassador role with exemplary commitment and drive. Simply outstanding.
Nadine Stewart @ University Of Warwick
Digital Learning Designer
Nadine has shown impressive initiative and perseverance throughout her apprenticeship.
Having just moved into the role during a period of uncertainty, she initially encountered limited direction, and her early projects were restricted to a narrow set of tools and skills. However, she proactively sought out opportunities to grow—exploring industry-standard tools, shadowing the video team, and creating interactive learning experiences. Her portfolio submissions have been consistently exemplary—meticulously structured, clearly written, and demonstrating a high level of critical thinking, professionalism, and a strong grasp of the required standards.
Janai Yearwood @ Riverside
Digital Learning Designer
Janai may be at the beginning of her apprenticeship, but she’s already making a remarkable impact. She’s confidently presented her work to senior leaders — no small feat — and is establishing a strong professional presence within the organisation. She’s also volunteered to represent her team on the Riverside Voice Forum, ensuring colleagues’ voices are heard. On top of that, she’s chosen to step up as an Ambassador for the DLD programme, showing real initiative and a willingness to support others. Janai’s enthusiasm and drive to make a difference truly stand out. She’s a fantastic role model and thoroughly deserves this recognition!
Lia Bishop @ Amazon
Multi-Channel Marketer
Lia has been an exceptional apprentice from day one and 12 months down the line, nothing has changed. At Amazon, she has gone from strength to strength and has also become the apprentice ambassador, showing the newly onboarded apprentices how they can benefit from really putting their all into their apprenticeship and the opportunities that brings. She attends every session with confidence, drive and an ability to adapt to whatever is needed and is also incredibly humble in her approach. On the apprenticeship, she has continually demonstrated her drive with a really strong work ethic and is one of the first to nearly complete a very thorough portfolio. The future for Lia is pretty much however she wants it to go and she has been a real asset at work and an absolute pleasure and support for others around her on the apprenticeship programme.