It was a night of celebration at the Best Secretary on Tyneside Awards on 6th August 2008. On top of the Best Secretary Award, Pitman Training Newcastle celebrated its first birthday at the awards event and also recognised the success of some of its students with the presentation of the first annual Pitman Training Student Awards.
“It’s been a fantastic year,” explained Jill Stevens, Director of Pitman Training Newcastle, “and what better way to celebrate than by recognising the achievements of our students. We were especially delighted that Claire Lister, Managing Director of Pitman Training Group was able to come up to Newcastle to present the certificates.”
The top award this year went to Rebecca Lucas, who completed her Executive PA Diploma of 15 courses, with a fantastic 11 at Distinction grade. “Rebecca studied for her Diploma alongside her final year at Newcastle University, where she also achieved a 2:1 Honours Degree in Politics,” continued Jill. “Rebecca has now landed a job with a charity in London.”
Other students studying towards the Executive PA Diploma were presented with Awards – Sharon Docherty received a Gold Award for completing eight courses so far and Eleanor Cook was presented with a Silver Award for completing five courses. Claire Veit d’Marcier, working towards her Legal Secretarial Diploma also received a Silver Award. All are well on their way to achieving overall Distinctions.
“We launched the Best Secretary on Tyneside Award to recognise the best that the North East has to offer,” explained Jill. “Not surprisingly, what we found is that the starting point for all of the finalists was the core skills of fast, accurate touch-typing, mastery of Microsoft Office and excellent communication skills. All of these skills are covered in the Pitman Training secretarial and PA Diplomas.”
Combining the Best Secretary on Tyneside Awards with the Pitman Training Newcastle Student Awards meant that Pitman Training’s students could see at first hand what it takes to be the best. “It was a great motivator for everyone,” concluded Jill. “I’ve no doubt that those receiving Pitman Training Newcastle Student Awards will become the stars of the future.”
