Rhyl Students Taste ‘Olympics’ Success!
Nearly 100 students got the opportunity to test their skills against their fellow learners at the recent ‘Skills Olympics & Trades Show’, which took place at the Coleg Llandrillo’s Rhyl campus.
The Skills Olympics was hosted by Rhyl College - which includes the multi-million-pound Centre for Automotive Technology and a dedicated sixth form hub. Visitors also got the opportunity to see the site of the future £11m Engineering Centre of Excellence, which recently got the official go-ahead by Denbighshire County Council.
Students from areas 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 fantastic prizes donated by industrial partners. The event was organised in partnership with GE Tools.
The Skills Olympics provided the Rhyl-based learners with much-needed experience in a competitive environment. The students were very much inspired by what they have achieved and gave 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. Over 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. There was also a careers/future options event, which enabled local 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."
Salah 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."
For more information on courses at Coleg Llandrillo’s Rhyl campus, telephone 01745 354 797.
Email: enquiries.rhyl@gllm.ac.uk
Web: www.gllm.ac.uk
