Principals, heads of schools and lecturers from colleges across the country met at Coleg Gwent’s Crosskeys campus to explore ways to increase the participation of Welsh students in WorldSkills competitions and further build upon last year’s success at the prestigious competition.

WorldSkills competitions are designed by industry experts to assess competitor’s knowledge, practical skills and employability attributes against a strict set of criteria.

They start at grassroots level, with regional heats and qualifiers being the entry route to the UK National Finals held annually at the Skills Show at the NEC in Birmingham.

The competitions inspire apprentices and young people to be ambitious in their pursuit of skills excellence while enabling them to showcase their talents to potential future employees and equipping them with the skills needed to help businesses compete globally.

In 2016, 397 Welsh students competed in the regional competitions with an impressive 85 competitors making it through to the 2016 WorldSkills UK final.

Welsh students won 11 gold medals, 17 silver, 14 bronze and three highly commended medals which meant Wales was the top region for points scoring in the WorldSkills UK Final.

Representatives from Coleg Gwent, ACT Training, Bridgend College, Gower College, ITEC, The College Merthyr Tydfil, Coleg Sir Gar and Coleg y Cymoedd, heard from Barry Liles, principal at Coleg Sir Gar and Skills Ambassador for Wales and, the Inspiring Skills Excellence in Wales project team, who gave an overview of Wales’ current position in WorldSkills and informed on potential opportunities for 2017.

Attendees also had the opportunity to test out the latest Have a Go equipment, which is hi-tech equipment funded by the Welsh Government to engage young people with vocational training.