To reach the national final, the students had to battle through College competitions, regional qualifiers and semi-finals where they were up against the cream of skilled young apprentices and students from all over the UK. The final showdown will take place in front of an estimated 70,000 spectators at The Skills Show at the NEC in Birmingham from 16th to 19th November 2017
The College’s finalists are: CNC Milling, Dean Boyle and Rory McCloskey; Mechatronics, Ryan Moon and Richard Woods; IT Software, James McCaughey, all are students at the College’s Ballymena campus; Carpentry, Patrick McCloskey studying at Coleraine; and Graphic Design, Matthew McLaughlin, who is a student at the Newtownabbey campus.
Congratulating the finalists, Gordon Kane Assistant Head of Department Engineering and Built Environment at Northern Regional College and the College’s designated Skills Champion said: “The national finals are an excellent opportunity for us to showcase and celebrate the high level of skills and impressive talent we have at the College. It is a wonderful achievement to reach the finals. This testimony to the hard work of the students and staff reflects the high standards of training and commitment across all campuses.
He continued: “The College has had some notable successes in skills competitions in the past and I’d like to wish all our finalists every success at The Skills Show in November.”
WorldSkills UK competitions are designed by industry experts to assess an individual’s knowledge, practical skills and employability attributes against a set of strict criteria. The Skills Show is the UK’s largest apprenticeship, careers and skills event, hosting the National Finals of the WorldSkills UK Competitions, bringing together the UK’s leading employers, colleges and training providers and offering thousands of apprenticeship and job opportunities to help young people get the best start in work and life.
Dr Neil Bentley, Chief Executive, WorldSkills UK said: “WorldSkills UK Competitions are proven to enhance a person’s apprenticeship or training programme by enabling them to develop key character and employability skills. By using knowledge gained from competing nationally and internationally, we know we are working to benchmarks that will equip more young people with the right skills to help UK businesses compete better globally.”
Tickets for the show are FREE and can be secured at https://www.worldskillsuk.org/the-skills-show/book-the-skills-show
Further information on The Skills Show can be found at: www.worldskillsuk.org
