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Newsletter Issue 1: October 2014
Welcome from Graham Towse, Principal of Hull College and Regional Skills Competition Champion for Yorkshire and the Humber.
As the regional skills competition champion I know what an impact coaching and the use of competition have on the aspirations of young people and how inspirational these approaches are. The regional CPD programme running throughout November aims to embed coaching and competition in everyday teaching, learning and assessment. If you’re not already involved or want to find out more, the workshops are free and I would encourage you to attend. Details of the events can be found in this newsletter.
It’s a busy time of the year for competition activity, regionally, nationally and internationally. Regionally, in addition to the CPD workshops we
haveMatchfit activities and Skills Show events for you to attend. Nationally, this time of the year is always one full of excitement and anticipation as the FE sector prepares for the National Skills Show. If you have the opportunity to make the trip to Birmingham it is certainly well worth it. I know many of you will be descending on the NEC with coaches full of learners and I hope you all enjoy your visit. Internationally, I should like to congratulate all the competitors who represented us at the Euroskills event in Lille. It was a real achievement to represent the UK at such a prestigious event and aim for a ‘personal best’ as the competitors flew the flag for the UK.
We have five competitors from the Yorkshire and Humber region making preparations to represent us at the Worldskills event in Sao Paulo, Brazil and they will be taking our good wishes with them.
I hope you find this newsletter interesting and that it encourages you to get involved in competitive activity, whatever your level of experience.
Best wishes
Graham Towse
Principal of Hull College and
Regional Skills Competition Champion.
Yorkshire and the Humber Skills Competition CPD Programme
The AoC in our region has been successful in bidding for funding from the Education and Training Foundation (ETF). The funding will be used to build on our already successful Matchfit programme. We will offer a range of workshops aimed at increasing the number of providers engaged in skills competitions. In addition we aim to raise aspirations and enhance vocational expertise by embedding competition and coaching into everyday teaching, learning and assessment.
The workshops are planned for November and include:
- 7 November 2014:An introductory workshop to be held at Hull College
- 11 November2014: Using competition to stimulate employer engagement to be held at Rotherham College of Arts and Technology
- 28November 2014:Engaging SEND learners in competition to be held at Pennine College, Wakefield
For further details or to book on to any of the events please contact Christi Hetzler
(E Mail:
Phone 01422- 311300)
The Programme so far….
A pilot event was held at Harrogate College on 21 July 2014 and was aimed at tutors with little or no experience of skills competitions. The workshop explained the impact of competition and coaching on teaching, learning and assessment. Participants learned how competition activity links to the Common Inspection Framework and professional standards. They experienced first hand the strategies that performance coaches use when preparing competitors for Worldskills competitions.Some delegates had already been involved in Worldskills competitions, and were willing to share their experiences. There was a clear sense of enjoyment in the room. 100% of participants either agreed or strongly agreed that they had learned new techniques and gained a deeper understanding of skills competition strategies.
The Skills Show - Book here for FREE entry - 13 to 15 November 2014 - NEC Birmingham
Free to visit, The Skills Show is the nation’s largest skills and careers event, offering inspiring opportunities in skills, training and apprenticeships. Attracting 75,000 visitors, this exciting experience is one of the most popular events of the year. Book
now to guarantee your place and to get faster entry. You can book a place for yourself, or you can act as a lead booker and book on behalf of a group or your family. We look forward to seeing you there! Book now
Yorkshire and Humber learners making final preparationsfor the Skills Show 13-15 November 2014
So far we have 36 competitors representing our region at the Skills Show this year– and there may be more as some finalists are still to be announced. The vocational areas where we are represented are beauty therapy, bricklaying, carpentry, construction metalwork, electrical installation, floristry, hairdressing, joinery, landscape gardening,media makeup, nailart, nail enhancements, plastering, plumbing, roofing: slating and tiling, stonemasonry, video moving image, wall and floor tiling and web development.
More Success for the Region as Yorkshire and Humber learners head for Brazil
The Yorkshire and the Humber regionis proud to announce that we have five young people representing us at the International Worldskills event in Sao Paulo, which is taking place between 11 and 16 August 2015.
Sam Turner from York College is representing us in architectural stonemasonry.
Christopher Hanson from City Training, Bradford is representing us in construction metalwork.
Curtis Baker from Doncaster College is representing us in painting and decorating.
Jason Whitehead from Barnsley College is representing us in brickwork .
Connor Cutsforth from Hull College is representing us in brickwork.
Good luck to our competitors and team UK as they head for Brazil in June.
Matchfit: Unique to our Region
Matchfit is a programme of vocational skills competitions held throughout our region. Now in its third year Matchfit aims to engage with 1500 competitors to compete in 85 competitions across a wide range of vocational subjects. The programme aims to motivate and continuously improve the skills of learners and employees. Learners tell us that by being involved in the Matchfit programme they are ‘ more confident ‘ and that the professional feedback they receive is ‘invaluable’. For more information about the programme visit
Skills Show Experience
A number of Skills Show Experience events have already been held across the Yorkshire and Humber region. These events are part of a nationwide programme of over 200 events which take the winning combination of inspiring young people
through hands-on experiences and access to expert impartial careers advice and linking skills to real opportunities at a local level. More details are available at:
Skills Show Experiences still to come in the Yorkshire and Humber region:
Tuesday 18 November 2014 9.00 am – 4.00 pm at Barnsley College
Have a Go in Music and Media Motion
Have a Go in music and media motion is a series of events developing enterprise skills and showcasing STEM, music and digital media. All-star entertainment will be providing specialist support with this activity which will take place across the College at various sites.
For further information please contact Sarah Trepczyk :
Wednesday 3 December 2014 11.00am – 6.00pm at Bradford College, Trinity Green Campus
Matchfit launch the Skills Show Experience event in Bradford. This is an opportunity for young people preparing to leave school or college, or looking for a job with training, to talk to the experts and get all the information and guidance they need under one roof.
For further information please contact Jack Scarr:
Team UK Triumph at EuroSkills UK awarded three Gold and six Silver Medals
EuroSkills is the largest skills competition in Europe,held every two years in one of the member states of WorldSkills Europe. More than 400 apprentices and learners from all over Europe compete in a range of more than 30 skills, from Mechatronics to Cooking, to find the Continent’s best in each skill. Find a Future manages the UK’s entry into international skills competitions.Team UK secured European honours at EuroSkills Lille 2014, which took place from 1 to 5 October.
Skills Minister Nick Boles said:
“Congratulations to Team UK. They have demonstrated that when it comes to skills the UK has world class ability. Team UK are ambassadors for our country and demonstrate how high quality apprenticeships can lead to successful careers. I offer my congratulations
to Team UK who delivered an outstanding performance at EuroSkills 2014.”
The UK was awarded:
Gold medals for:
Automobile Technology
1. Declan McGrath who works for Bundoran Motors and attends South West College.
Cooking
2. Danny Hoang who works for The Grove and attended Westminster Kingsway.
Mechanical Engineering CAD
3. Andrew Beel who works for Pacson Valves and attends New College Lanarkshire. Andrew was also awarded Best in Nation.
Silver medals for:
Beauty Therapy
1. Rianne Chester who works for Akira Nails & Beauty and attends Warrington Collegiate.
Carpentry
2. Simon McCall who works for Jones & Johnson and attends Coleg Sir Gar
3. Mark Hawthorne who works for Trainor Contracts and attends South Eastern College.
Hairdressing
4. EleniConstantinou who works for TinoConstantinou.
Visual Merchandising
5. Jasmine Field who works for Marks & Spencer and attended Fashion Retail Academy 6.Catherine Abbott, who attended East Berkshire College and works for Topshop.
Medallion of Excellence for:
Mechatronics
1.John Peerless from Middlesex University.
2. Calum Knott from Middlesex University.
Restaurant Service
3. Lucy Jones who works for Chewton Glen Hotel & Spa and attends Brockenhurst College.