WorldSkills Success for Bricklaying Apprentices

Mitchell and Kieran, two bricklaying apprentices at Preston College, are literally paving the way for future success as they both qualified to secure their places as FINALISTS at the coveted WorldSkills UK competition; an independent charity which integrates international best practice to raise the standards in apprenticeships and technical education.

Both apprentices, who were studying towards their Level 3 NVQ in Brickwork, were due to represent Preston College last year and compete two competitions, one being WorldSkills and the other, The Guild of Bricklayers competition, but both were sadly cancelled due to covid.

But the year hasn’t hindered these two talented apprentices who have worked exceptionally hard to make their debut at the WorldSkills competition in the regional heats last June.

As part of the competition, both learners had limited time to build a construction model from a specification and drawing they were given that morning which was to test their ability to read, decode and construct. Both apprentices built their models in good time, leaving extra time to ensure all aspects were set to a very high standard.

The boys scored extremely high against the criteria and received the news last week that they have been placed in the final seven in the bricklaying category. They will attend the WorldSkills UK national final in November where they will compete for three days to win either a bronze, silver or gold medal.

Jason Crumblehulme from the school of Construction and the Built Environment at Preston College, says: “Both lads have always produced excellent work in sessions when attending college. We have been working with the pair of them on WorldSkills methods and styles over the past couple of years due to the complexity of them, trying to stretch their hand skills and thought process of how to set out and build complex models.”

He continues: “We are extremely proud at what they have both achieved. To be working at such a high technical level is a testament to their commitment and dedication to their apprenticeship programme. We are looking forward to the finals in November.”

More than 3,000 people registered to take part in this year’s competition, where students compete in their respective areas to showcase their skills.

Mitchell says: “We are over the moon to have made the final seven and to be going through to the finals in November. We applied the skills we have learnt from our time at Preston College and through our employers which has helped us massively get to where we are.”

Kieran adds: “We had such a great day at the competition. Being able to use the skills we’ve learnt over the years in a national competition like this, with such high standards, has been brilliant.”

As well as Mitchell and Kieran, six other of our students have reached the final of WorldSkills UK. The Preston College finalists will be competing in Bricklaying, Plastering and Dry Wall Systems, Commercial Make-up and Digital Media Production.

Preston College is a proud partner of WorldSkills UK and are working alongside their coaches who regularly meet with our tutors to ensure the international technical standards and skills are cascaded to our learners here on campus. By raising the standard of teaching, it is not only benefiting our learners and our tutors, but benefiting our employer partners as our learners apply and inject their news skills into the workplaces across the region.