The aim of the Jean Venables Medal is to promote awareness of the role and achievements of newly qualified Engineering Technicians. The medal was first awarded in 2011 and is named after Jean Venables, ICE President from 2008 to 2009, who contributed significantly to raising the profile of Technician members.
The Medal recognises and celebrates the best performance by a newly qualified Technician Member at a Technician Professional Review (TPR) and is open to all candidates who have passed their TPR in the year preceding that in which the award is made.
Winners receive the Jean Venables Medal and a £1,000 cash prize.
Who is Jean Venables?
Dr Jean Venables CBE FREng DSc MSc BSc(Eng) CEng CEnv FICE MCIWEM FCGI is a Chartered Civil Engineer and Chartered Environmentalist with an MSc in public health engineering and a long-standing involvement in issues of water and wastewater engineering, water pollution control, water resources issues and flood risk management.
In 2008, she became the 144th president of ICE, marking her as the first woman to hold the office of President in the history of the Institution.
Nomination process
Reviewers nominate candidates who have shown a passion and enthusiasm for civil engineering, demonstrated active involvement in ICE activities, and displayed excellence across all attributes.
The candidate must not hold a qualification eligible for IEng or CEng status.
- Three finalists are selected by the Awards Panel from those nominated in January of each year.
- The finalists are invited to present their professional review report to a judging panel following by a question and answer session which takes place in February.
- The winner of the Jean Venables Medal is announced on the day and receives the Jean Venables Medal and £1,000.
- The winner is invited to receive their medal at the ICE Annual Awards Ceremony.
Most recent winner
Davey Wallace
The Jean Venables Medal panel is delighted to announce that Davey Wallace was chosen as this year's winner.
Davey Wallace works as a trainee civil engineer for BAM Nuttall. He started his career on BAM’s Apprenticeship Scheme in 2021 and has since completed his Level 4 Apprenticeship with a HNC in September 2023, and began his BSC (Hons) in civil engineering: site management.
"I feel honoured to have been awarded with the Jean Venables Medal, I feel it is a testament to the merit of work-based learning in parallel with academic supplementation. I thank the ICE for propelling my professional development and recognising my passion for this fantastic profession. I also must thank my colleagues and mentors who have helped me develop from someone with no site experience to the Engineer I am today.
"However, this is only the beginning of my journey, I look forward to continuing my progression in my career and through the ICE."
Judge's view
The Jean Venables Award judges were very impressed as always by the quality of candidates nominated for the award this year. However following shortlisting and interviewing, Davey demonstrated himself to be an outstanding candidate in all technical aspects of his role working onsite, delivering elements of HS2. He also showed an immense enthusiasm and drive for civil and construction engineering now and into the future.
Davey's presentation demonstrated excellent communication skills. Davey is a great example to inspire the next generation of young civil engineers and is a worthy winner of the Jean Venables Award and a great ambassador the Institution of Civil Engineers.
Previous winners
See the previous winner of the Jean Venables Medal award below.
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