Nominations for the very successful CPA Stars of the Future Awards are open for the 2025 event. Stars is designed to showcase promising apprentices and trainees in the construction plant sector who, in the eyes of their employers, are likely to become tomorrow’s leaders of the sector.

The awards are importantly, open to both non-CPA members as well CPA member and nominations are welcome from all employers across the plant sector including plant-hire companies, manufacturers, contractors, suppliers and others operating in the construction plant sector with apprentices and trainees in their workforce. Nominees do need to be on an approved apprenticeship scheme or an employer in-house learning programme.

To make a nomination, employers can download a nomination form from the CPA website at  https://www.cpa.uk.net/skills-training/stars-of-the-future/stars-nomination-forms  and complete and return it to the CPA by the nomination deadline of 21st March 2025.

The winners will be announced at a prestigious awards ceremony at the Heart of England Conference and Events Centre in Fillongley, near Coventry, on 10th July 2025. The event will be hosted by construction industry journalist and vlogger Peter Haddock.

In recognition of the growth of the awards over the last 12 years, a new awards category has been added for the 2025 awards - Technical Support Person of the Year and is being made for apprentices or trainees who are in a role that has a plant technical focus and who are supporting other plant-focussed operations of their business such as: data handling and supply; hiring activities; sales and marketing activities; parts and/or resources/equipment supply; machine/equipment systems programming/maintenance; site operational planning; supporting external customers etc.

Awards will also be made for the well-established categories of Plant Mechanic (Level 2), Plant Technician (Level 3), Young and Plant Operative, Plant Installer, Lifting Technician, Hire Controller and Apprentice Mentor. Additional awards are also made for College of the Year, the Judges’ Special Award and the Best Personal Statement Award.

Steve Mulholland, CPA Chief Executive Officer said: “We urge employees - both small and large - to nominate apprentices and trainees who they see as being the industry’s future leaders, as it means the world to them to be nominated for an award. The awards are open to all employers across the industry, so nominating organisations needn’t be a CPA member to put someone forward. “Stars of the Future is becoming more high profile every single year and last year’s winners received national recognition and won some fabulous prizes, including tool kits, machine training courses, iPads, an overseas trip to visit a Liebherr crane manufacturing plant in Germany, another overseas trip to one of Wolffkran’s manufacturing facilities in Luckau, Germany, and a VIP day courtesy of JCB.

"We know that many previous Stars of the Future winners have been fast-tracked to supervisory and management positions. At the CPA, one of our primary objectives is to encourage new blood into the construction plant sector, and Stars of the Future helps us to achieve this. The standard of entries gets higher every year and last year we received 80 nominations from across the industry. We anticipate even more this year,” he added.

More information of the Stars of the Future Awards can be found at: https://www.cpa.uk.net/skills-training/stars-of-the-future