AN INNOVATIVE 20-year-old apprentice topped off a year to remember scooping the award for Young Person/ Apprentice.

It was the third award of the year for Neal Wareing who works for wax experts Kerax Ltd in Chorley.

He has been recognised for going the extra mile and his supervisors have been amazed at his progress.

He received his apprenticeship training through Alliance Learning in Horwich.

The training provider made him Apprentice of the Year for electrical engineering and overall Apprentice of the Year – beating 50 others for the title.

Despite his success earlier this year his award on Thursday came as a surprise to him.

He said: "I'm really pleased but very surprised. It has been a great year for me, picking up three awards.

"I'm still not used to winning though, it is very nerve-wracking getting up there in front of all of those people.

"It was a preferred route for me than college and it shows to people that you don't have to follow the usual routes.

"I really enjoy what I do and I have learnt so much, I'm looking forward to the rest of my career."

Neal beat Ashley Haslam from Wilsons Autos and Victoria Stigwood from Bolton College to win the prestigious award.

His supervisor, Steve France, said he was "amazed at how well Neal has progressed."

One example of his excellent work is that he made a working model of one of the company's machines which took him more than 50 hours of his own time.

This was then presented at an exposition in Paris.

Neal regularly stays after work thinking out of the box to complete tasks to the highest standards.

Mr France added: "Neal has made numerous contributions in the workplace. His quality of work like that of someone who has decades of experience."