NEARLY 100 students got the opportunity to test their skills against their fellow learners at the recent ‘Skills Olympics & Trades Show’.
Taking place at Coleg Llandrillo’s Rhyl College campus, which boasts the multi-million-pound Centre for Automotive Technology and a dedicated sixth form hub, visitors had the chance to see the site of the future £11m Engineering Centre of Excellence, which recently got the official go-ahead by Denbighshire County Council.
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Students from fields including Motor Vehicle Services & Repair, Hairdressing, Creative Arts, A-levels, Vehicle Body Repair, Access to Higher Education, Joinery, and Public Services showcased their talents in tense battles across the campus in order to claim gold, silver and bronze medals, together with a range of prizes donated by industrial partners.
The event was organised in partnership with Rhyl-based GE Tools.
The Skills Olympics provided the Rhyl-based learners with much-needed experience in a competitive environment, in an event which should give them the confidence to enter future Welsh, national and international competitions.
After much deliberation by the judges, the medals were presented by Coleg Llandrillo principal, Lawrence Wood - and other managers - to the worthy winners.
Running parallel to the competitions were two other events.
More than 20 companies took part in a trades show to enable learners from Rhyl and other Coleg Llandrillo campuses to see some of the rapidly-changing developments within various industries, while a careers/future options event was held, which enabled school children to visit the campus, get advice on courses, and see the facilities.
Salah Berdouk, Assistant Principal for Computing and Creative Industries, Construction and Engineering, congratulated the medallists and those taking part on the day.
"Our learners rose to the challenge and gave their very best to put into practice everything they have learnt this year," he said. "They were so pleased and felt empowered they can achieve anything they want if they work at it. The generous prizes from partners like GE Tools and Howdens made all the difference."
Mr Berdouk added: "This was the perfect example of industry doing everything it can to inspire young people from Rhyl and Denbighshire.
“The event was made even more beneficial to the community as so many companies and organisations were there, and local school pupils – well done, everyone."
GE Tools managing director Chris Owen said: "The learners were fantastic and showed a great level of skill and ability.
“The feedback was very positive, it was great to have so many businesses and organisations from different industries, demonstrating the career opportunities out there for the students.
"We thank them for their support and the college for its commitment to the next generation of workers in this arena.
“The talent on show gives us confidence that the future of the trade sector is in safe hands."
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