Five Lakes College students have been selected as finalists for welding in the WorldSkills UK finals. The students have battled their way through regional heats to earn their places as finalists in the 2018 WorldSkills UK competition.
The West Cumbrian finalists have been shortlisted from over 3,000 individuals who registered to take part in the WorldSkills UK competitions this year and make up half of the ten finalists from across the UK competing for gold, silver and bronze in welding.
Taking place in November, the WorldSkills UK competition runs over 2 days and acts as the UK championships in vocational skills. In partnership with organisations from industry and education the competition aims to help people go further and faster in their training and chosen career.
Those who excel in the UK Finals could then join the WorldSkills UK training and development programme for WorldSkills Shanghai 2021 – potentially competing on behalf of the UK in the world championships.
Jamie Robinson, Welding Tutor at Lakes College and former WorldSkills UK gold medallist said: “I am really happy to be training the finalists, hopefully helping them to become the next generation of medal winners. My aim is to push them to the best of their ability and achieve the success they are more than capable of.”
Conor Alexander, a former Lakes College student and WorldSkills UK gold medallist, has also recently been visiting the welding workshop to train the finalists and pass on his experiences.
Jordan Miller, a one of the college’s welding finalists stated: “I’m thrilled to not just have won the regional finals, but be a part of the top ten finalists for the WorldSkills UK competition. We’re all working hard to prepare for the competition and hope for the best result. I’m extremely grateful for all the help and support the college have provided me along the way.”
Clive Bell, Welding Lecturer at Lakes College and WorldSkills UK Welding Expert proudly commented “We are extremely proud at the college to have achieved five out of the ten national final places, this is the most finalist places we have ever secured. The finalists have all worked extremely hard to get to the position they are in and I wish them all the best of luck in the competition.”
