Coleg Cambria leads the way to Shanghai skills final with UK’s biggest squad

Coleg Cambria is set to take more representatives to the prestigious Worldskills competition in China than any other organisation in the UK.

Wales has the most learners and apprentices on the international shortlist for the event, an impressive 10 out of the 47 set to travel to Shanghai in 2021.

And five of that cohort are from Coleg Cambria’s sites in Deeside and Bersham Road, Wrexham.

The news comes after the college won nine medals, was highly commended in two categories and achieved 25 points at the Worldskills UK LIVE contest in Birmingham last month, finishing fourth in the overall league table.

Worldskills UK LIVE is the biggest skills, apprenticeships and careers event in the country, and Cambria Chief Executive David Jones is confident their representatives will do the organisation proud on the biggest stage of all in front of a global audience.

“As we grow as a college our stature in this competition rise and rises, which is just incredible,” said Mr Jones.

“For half of the Welsh team to be students and apprentices of Coleg Cambria is a phenomenal achievement and testament to the work that’s been put in to developing our partnerships with industry and skills over the last five years.”

He added: “I wish all of our representatives the best of luck and hope to see them go to Shanghai and bring back even more medals.

“Whatever the result, they’ve done brilliantly to get to this stage, but we know they will push hard for even more success.”

Coleg Cambria will be represented by the following learners:

Thomas Williamson – Electrical Installation

Tomas Davies, Cameron Pemberton and Alfie Beeson for JCB Transmissions – Manufacturing Team Challenge

David Davies – Aeronautical Engineering: Mechanical

Amazingly, Coleg Cambria will have the same number of competitors as Yorkshire and Humberside and more than Northern Ireland (4), the East Midlands (4) and the South West (4).

They had previously wowed the judges at Worldskills UK LIVE, having demonstrated the ability and experience they’ve gained at the college and with leading partners in a variety of sectors, including Airbus, JCB Transmissions, Thomas Cook Airlines, Magellan Aerospace and Raytheon Systems.

Rona Griffiths, Deputy Director for Learner Experience and Enterprise at Coleg Cambria, was herself named Worldskills UK Local Heroes Winner in 2017 for her tireless efforts in helping to establish the college as force to be reckoned with in the contest.

She said: “Our learners and apprentices are among the elite and deserve to showcase their talents on the biggest stage of all.

“For Cambria to have so many representatives on this international shortlist is a huge success story and one we are very proud of.”

For more on WorldSkillsUK, visit www.worldskillsuk.org

Visit www.cambriaold.ac.uk/worldskills for information on the college’s participation in the competition.