The nominee Salaheddine can truly be described as a young achiever.

He first arrived in this country as a refugee in 2016. He spoke very little English having only learnt the basics. He realised that to achieve any success in life he needed to ensure he received an education.

He enrolled at Llangatwg Community Comprehensive School joining it at year 6. Through hard work and determination he improved his command of the English language, gaining the respect and admiration of the staff and his fellow pupils. During his time at the school he won many awards ranging from Learner of the Week, Pupil Support Centre Mentor and the prestigious award of Reach for the Stars. He also received an award sponsored by the Neath Rotarians. Not to mention the ‘Biggest Smile Award’ and the 2019 Prom award ‘School Hunk’ .

Educationally he has passed both his GCSE and A level Arabic receiving an A* in both and at the time of preparing this nomination form is awaiting the results of GCSE in Maths, Numeracy, Additional Maths, Statistics, Triple Science, IT and French. He then intends to continue his A level studies at Gower College and I have no doubt he will succeed in his ambition to become a Doctor.

Not only as Salaheddine worked hard to improve his own chances in life, but he has used the education he has received to help others in Neath’s refugee community. He translates Workplace and Health and Safety Training Manuals from English into Arabic allowing fellow refugees to gain skills and qualifications to find work and to integrate into our local community. He also helps in translating and completing documentation to enable benefits and housing to be accessed.

One refugee and his family found themselves subjected to racial hate crimes. He assisted them by liaising with the police and other authorities, resulting in them being safely rehoused in the Mount Pleasant area of Neath.

I think it is right and proper that he be nominated for this award.