A senior manager at Whitchurch's Groconintental is celebrating after he won a prestigious national award.

Steve Plant, 33, is Grocontinental’s head of operations and was awarded the Food Storage & Distribution Federation (FSDF) Future Leader Award.

Steve, who joined the company as a teenager, believes the award will set an example to youngsters entering the workplace.

"I originally joined the company at the age of 13 to pack yoghurts in my school holidays and, following a year of travel after taking my A-levels, I joined Grocontinental on a full-time basis," he said.

"Over the last 14 years, I have held a number of positions in both customer service and warehouse operations before establishing myself as part of the company’s leadership team.

"I hope that my own story will demonstrate to other young people that you don’t have to get a degree to become an effective leader. If you have a positive mind-set, work hard and take advantage of all the chances that come your way, you can really get ahead in your career.

"Today’s apprenticeships provide great opportunities for students coming out of education to follow a similar path.

"Joining a scheme is something I would definitely have been keen to pursue if this had been an option to me at the time.

"There is also the prospect of combining working life with studying for formal qualifications which works well for many people."

In a high-standard competition, Steve was named the outright winner and as part of his award, will accompany Chris Sturman, CEO of the FSDF, to the International Association of Refrigerated Warehouses/World Food Logistics Organisation convention in Florida, USA at the end of April.

Grocontinental managing director, Linda Grocott, added: "We are all thrilled that Steve has won this national award. It is a real achievement to be pitched against other talented young leaders and come out on top.

"Not only is this great for Steve’s profile in the industry, but we also hope his success will inspire the large number of young people he works with."

Steve will be formally presented with his award at the FSDF Annual Lunch and AGM to be held on May 24 at Fishmonger’s Hall, London.