Chris Henbery had spent much of his working life as a banker in London. Immigrating to Australia in 2011 with his Australian wife and young son, Chris took the opportunity to change careers and follow his passion for horticulture.
Qualification: Certificate III in Horticulture (Retail Nursery)
Employer: Gardenworld Nursery
Training provider: Swinburne University of Technology
Chris Henbery had spent much of his working life as a banker in London. Immigrating to Australia in 2011 with his Australian wife and young son, Chris took the opportunity to change careers and follow his passion for horticulture.
While leaving a lucrative career and starting an Australian Apprenticeship had its implications financially, Chris’s family was very supportive – including of his desire to supplement his studies with a Diploma of Horticulture two nights a week.
Within only one year of his training at Gardenworld Nursery and Swinburne University of Technology, the awards started flowing for Chris and have not stopped. In 2012, he was awarded a $1000 Nursery and Garden Industry Victoria (NGIV) scholarship which he put towards his studies. In 2013, he won the Swinburne University of Technology Outstanding Apprentice of the Year and a bronze medal for an inspirational garden design at the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show.
Chris has also received the 2013 NGIV Apprentice of the Year Award and in 2014, won an Academic Achievement Award from Swinburne for his high standard of work. He is now a fully qualified horticulturalist employed by Gardenworld Nursery and hopes to open his own nursery in the future.