CCTAL Christmas Lunch 2025

On Wednesday 26 November 2025, we hosted our annual Christmas Lunch and networking event at the Diplomat Hotel in Llanelli, bringing together CCTAL members, industry professionals, and partners from across the region. While the afternoon included our traditional festive meal, this year’s gathering was primarily a celebration of a remarkable milestone: the Shared Apprentice Scheme has now supported over 1,000 apprentices.

Originally conceived by CCTAL – then known as CCTA – the Shared Apprentice Scheme has since been rolled out across the region under the leadership and guidance of Cyfle Building Skills, where it has become a cornerstone of construction skills development in South West Wales.

The event opened with a warm welcome from our Chairman, Delwyn Jones. Before the main course, guests were shown the first of two specially produced videos featuring past and present apprentices, as well as members of our team, highlighting the scheme’s origins and its growth to the 1,000-apprentice milestone.

A second video was shown before the dessert was served, again celebrating apprentice achievements and showcasing the real impact the scheme has had across the region.

Following the meal, Lynette Anthony, our Training Manager, delivered her speech, sharing key updates on CCTAL’s work and reaffirming our commitment to supporting the construction workforce

Further speeches were then delivered by Owain Jones, our Executive Officer, and Anthony Rees of Cyfle Building Skills, each reflecting on this year’s progress, new opportunities within our network, and our shared ambitions for the future.

As part of the celebrations, Anthony Rees from Cyfle Building Skills was presented a specially engraved trophy to mark the Shared Apprentice Scheme’s achievement in surpassing 1,000 apprentices.

We rounded off the celebrations with a festive raffle, which raised over £300. This total will be increased with an additional donation from CCTAL, and the combined funds will be used to purchase food for local food banks in the lead-up to Christmas. A big thank you to everyone who contributed – your generosity will make a meaningful difference to families in our community.

We would also like to extend our thanks to all the companies and individuals who joined us on the day and contributed to its success: Alpha Safety, Carmarthenshire County Council, Castle Scaffolding Wales Ltd, CITB, Coleg Sir Gar, Copefield Construction Ltd, Cyfle Building Skills, Jones and Maher Ltd, Jones Brothers (Henllan) Ltd, Mike Hiorns Building Contractor Ltd, Morgan Construction Wales Ltd, Morganstone Ltd, Oren Construction Ltd, Seren Global Media, TAD Builders Ltd, TRJ Ltd, Vaughan Construction Ltd and Westward Energy Services Ltd, J G Hale Group Ltd, Sustainable Fuel Solutions, Sterling Construction, IWEC, Thermal Earth and our newest member, GS6 Developments Ltd.

Thank you once again to everyone who attended. We look forward to continuing to support our members and champion skills development across the construction industry, both nationally and within our community, in the year ahead.