A plant technician at Oldbury site in South Gloucestershire, Keely won the intermediate level apprentice of the year award at the UK Nuclear Skills Awards, before also going on to be named overall UK nuclear apprentice of the year 2025.
The UK Nuclear Skills Awards, organised by the National Skills Academy for Nuclear and Cogent Skills, take place to highlight excellence in the sector and showcase stars of the present and future. Winners were announced at an event in Manchester on 20 March 2025.
Chris Lloyd from Ureno, host Colin Murray and NRS mentor Sav Lagana present Keely Salter with her intermediate level apprentice of the year award
Keely, who focused on health physics and radiation protection during her apprenticeship, said
To have won these awards shows that hard work doesn’t go unnoticed. I am appreciative and grateful for everyone who has supported my journey in the nuclear sector.
NRS Chief People Officer John Vickerman added
We are truly proud of Keely for the work she’s put in to make her apprenticeship such a success. She deserves all the recognition these awards bring, alongside her mentor Sav Lagana and all the Oldbury team who show commitment to support and develop those who will take forward delivery of our nationally important decommissioning mission in the future.
Our NRS apprenticeship programme represents a strong investment in our early careers skills pipeline, supporting the national nuclear skills goal to double the number of apprentices and graduates every year.
Hear from Keely as she talks about her apprenticeship and how she aspires to take her nuclear decommissioning career much further.
Recruitment is currently open for apprenticeship opportunities at NRS sites across the UK, with up to 40 positions available in 2025. This is in addition to 23 opportunities already advertised for the Dounreay site in Caithness. The full list of vacancies and information about how to apply is available on the Energus website here.
