Joshua Stacey from Pershore College has received Wyevale Nurseries’ Peter Williamson Travel Award.

The 21-year-old, who is in his second year of a Level 3 Extended Diploma in Horticulture, impressed the judges with a written submission and an interview.

The award is designed to encourage a student towards a career in nursery stock production by assisting with a practical placement at a nursery in the Netherlands. Steve Ashworth, director at Wyevale Nurseries in Hereford, said: “Joshua won the award from among an excellent standard of student applications due to his determined interviewee skills.”

The award was founded in memory of Wyevale Nurseries former owner and chairman, Peter Williamson, who died in 2011.

 The award is presented annually to a student Pershore College, which was Peter’s own seat of learning in the 1960’s. The award facilitates a period of work in the Netherlands during the college summer vacation, as Peter also did.

Joshua will spend three weeks with Henk Huibers at Batouwe Nurseries and three weeks with Frank van Helvert and Derk van Dorland at Huverba Nurseries, both suppliers to Wyevale Nurseries. Peter Williamson also visited these two nurseries in 2009.

Wyevale Nurseries also presented Joshua with £500 to help pay for his travel costs.

Joshua said: “It will be my first trip abroad and straight to the hub of European horticultural excellence. I will be keen to learn about the nursery world and will be ready for anything.”