Three Sellafield apprentices have collected gongs at a prestigious awards ceremony.

They triumphed at the National Apprenticeship Awards in the section for Liverpool, Cumbria and Lancashire and will now go forward to become overall winners.

Peter Inwood, a health physics monitor apprentice from Whitehaven scooped the intermediate apprentice of the year.

The 20-year-old said: "Being an apprentice enabled me to experience different situations while doing hands on work and having new opportunities to gain more knowledge.

"The enthusiasm from colleagues and team leaders has only made the experience that much more enjoyable. Due to this I have high prospects for the future aiming to become a team leader. "

He added that he will advise people on the benefits of choosing apprenticeships and support those who do.

Mechanical design engineer Adam Sharp scooped the advanced apprentice of the year.

The 22-year-old from Cockermouth said: "My decision to undertake an apprenticeship has been the best decision of my life. It's given me absolutely everything I could have hoped for and more. The reason I chose one was because it seemed a no-brainer."

The third apprentice to be awarded was Deanna Pearson, 22, from Cockermouth who completed her training last year and is now a health physics monitor.

"To have been recognised in a category of such high standard is an accomplishment in itself," she said. "I feel all the hard work and dedication I put into my training and promoting apprenticeships has really paid off and helped me stand out to the judges."

Jemima Armstrong, 19, of Millom was highly commended in the advanced level apprentice of the year section.