Gregg Scott was delighted with the honour and dedicated the award to the entire Realise team.

He said: “It was an incredible night and to be crowned Apprenticeship Provider of the Year is a huge achievement for everyone associated with Realise.

“To support over 7,000 learners and many hundreds of employers right across the country is not something which happens without a huge amount of hard work and commitment and the Realise team has displayed that in abundance.

“The success is also testament to the flexibility shown by the entire team in dealing with unique challenges posed by the pandemic and transitioning to remote learning virtually overnight.

“We’d never faced a scenario like that before and hopefully never will again, but the way everyone at Realise adjusted both personally and professionally helped us maintain our high standards and level of delivery to our learners.”

Gregg is now determined to continue the impressive rise Realise has enjoyed in recent years.

He added: “While this is an outstanding accolade, we will certainly not rest on our laurels and will instead use it as motivation to continue to grow.

“There are exciting times ahead for Realise and all the learners and employers we work with.”

Last night’s Annual Apprenticeship Conference Gala Dinner and Awards Evening was held at the ICC in Birmingham.

The other shortlisted organisations for the Apprenticeship Provider of the Year award were Manchester Metropolitan University, Myerscough College and Remit Training.