YMCA'S Kellie named employee of the year in awards ceremony
A YMCA Black Country employee has been named 'Employee of the Year' by the Black Country Chamber of Commerce.
Kellie Simcox is the area manager of YMCA Day Nurseries in the Black Country and beat off the challenge of some of the region’s most talented individuals to win the main prize in front of 500 people at Dunstall Racecourse in Wolverhampton recently.
Having dedicated the last 12 years to helping children in their development journey with the charity, she impressed judges with her unwavering commitment to the success and wellbeing of her team, as well as achieving a host of operational successes in 2023.
They include recruiting new staff, launching the organisation’s apprenticeship academy and helping get the latest nursery on St James’ Road in Dudley, up and running.
Kellie’s work in developing the bespoke YMCA Early Years curriculum was also praised and highlighted as a key factor in helping those in disadvantaged communities to progress developmentally, outperforming many of their more affluent peers.
Steve Bavington, the chief executive of YMCA Black Country Group said: “I can’t think of a more worthy recipient for the award than Kellie – she is more than just a manager, she is a guiding light for her colleagues and the entire early years team.
“She always just says she is doing her job, but it’s so much more than that. Her determination to give children the best possible start in life has made a positive difference to hundreds of young lives in the Black Country and that number is only going to increase as we widen our network of nurseries.”
Sarah Moorhouse, the chief executive of the Black Country Chamber of Commerce said: “The winner of this award had to embody the organisation they worked for, and Kellie ticked all of those boxes.
“She’s dedicated 12 years of service to YMCA and champions its values every single day without ever really understanding how important and highly regarded she actually is.”
The awards night saw double success for the West Bromwich and Wolverhampton based YMCA Black Country as it also picked up the highly commended title in the Business Commitment to the Community category.
Pic Caption: (l-r) Robin Tong (MET Recruitment), Kellie Simcox (YMCA Black Country Group) and Dicky Dodd
