Chevelle Marie Jamison, 26, of Ballycastle, scooped a coveted City & Guilds Medal for Excellence, presented at a prestigious ceremony in Belfast by Sir Reg Empey, Minister for Employment and Learning.
Only five of Northern Ireland's 30,000 City & Guilds qualified learners achieved a Medal for Excellence this year, marking Chevelle out as a truly exceptional individual.

City & Guilds, the UK's largest awarding body for vocational skills, awards medals to people who have shown exceptional performance during their studies, and Chevelle, a student at Northern Regional College, impressed the judges with her hard work and dedication.
Chevelle achieved her success in studies for an NVQ for Classroom Assistants.

She said: 'I'm absolutely delighted about winning this award, and so pleased to receive acknowledgement for my hard work and effort. I'm also thankful for the incredible support provided by my tutors, assessor, teachers and pupils.'

Chevelle is no stranger to success, having picked up an award in 2004 for a piece of artwork she submitted to Craft Connections, a Ballycastle venue. Now she is turning her attention to her burning ambition to support young children's education.
'I've always been focused on working with children because it gives me a real sense of fulfilment and satisfaction,' she said.

Trevor Neilands, Director of Northern Regional College, said: 'This is a wonderful achievement for Chevelle. The Level 3 NVQ for Supporting Teaching and Learning in the Classroom is a very popular programme and highly valued by the principals and staff in local Primary and Secondary Schools. I would like to take this opportunity to thank them for their ongoing support and thank the dedicated teaching team at the College. This course addresses the particular skills required in the classroom and enjoys a high employment success rate.'

Helen Bready of City & Guilds Northern Ireland said that Chevelle was inspirational. 'Many people work incredibly hard to achieve vocational qualifications,' she said. 'But Chevelle really has impressed us with her dedication, enthusiasm and hard work. She clearly works very hard with young people at the moment, and with her energy I can see her becoming an exceptional teacher or classroom assistant. I want to join her in thanking her tutors, assessors and judges, who have poured all of their energy into helping her to succeed. I'm sure Chevelle will inspire others to improve their own skills, and I offer her my most heartfelt congratulations on behalf of City & Guilds.'

Sir Reg Empey, who presented medals to the five winners at City & Guilds' offices in Belfast, was impressed by their hard work. Congratulating the recipients, he said: 'The achievement of these Medals for Excellence demonstrates that Northern Ireland's students and providers can, and do, prepare the workforce to compete at international standards. The achievement of each medal recipient demonstrates that Northern Ireland has the people and systems to deliver internationally recognised standards.'