Shadowing our international counterparts by Chris Ridgeon

In my last post I mentioned briefly that I attended the most recent WorldSkills Competition at Calgary in 2009. It was a great experience and I would like to share some more of that with you.

The purpose of my visit to WorldSkills Calgary 2009 was to shadow the Workshop Supervisor of the Web Design competition, as this is my role for WorldSkills London 2011. Canadians Ryan Jacobs and Mike Ryan were responsible for the setup and running of the competition as Workshop Supervisor and Assistant.

I cannot believe how valuable this experience was! When you are in meetings about running a world class competition two years in advance, it is very hard to visualise exactly how much is involved. For example, I didn't realise we would be up 'till 2am supporting the systems on our area while the final parts of marking were completed!

Ryan and Mike did a fantastic job throughout the competition, they were great hosts and were able to give me all the information that you just could not find out without being there. Although running a WorldSkills Competition is no simple task, you feel a lot more confident when you see it playing out two years before your own event. I also learnt a lot about Canada that you probably wouldn't learn if you went on holiday there - it was a great experience!

At WorldSkills London 2012 the UK will be hosting the Competition and our counterparts from WorldSkills Leipzig 2013 will be shadowing us to prepare for their own WorldSkills. WorldSkills really is a fantastic collaboration of people from all around the globe, it was great working with the Canadians and I look forward to working with the Germans in October 2011.

Join us!

WorldSkills London 2011 is currently recruiting for several exciting roles, so why not consider joining us?

In October 2011, the UK will host the 41st WorldSkills Competition at ExCeL in London's docklands. 1,200 young people from over 50 countries/regions will come together to compete in 45 vocational skills categories ranging from hairdressing to plumbing. Reaching up to 150,000 people, WorldSkills London 2011 will be the largest international skills competition in the world and will act as a vital means of raising awareness of vocational skills throughout the UK.

We are a thriving team working to deliver an outstanding event and lasting legacy. If you think you're up to the challenge and would like a once in a life-time opportunity to be part of this amazing Competition, we look forward to hearing from you: worldskillslondon2011.com/join-us

Growing World Class Talent

To celebrate the talent and world class skills of young people across the nation, UK Skills is to create a garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, taking place from 25th - 29th May 2010.

The UK Skills garden, entitled: "Growing World Class Talent: celebrating the workforce of tomorrow", will be created to promote excellence in vocational education and training and also to illustrate how greater investment in skills and development will help lift UK industry out of recession. The garden's design was chosen on merit by the RHS for inclusion in this year's Chelsea Flower Show and will showcase the wide range of skills required to construct an outdoor space suitable for 21st century living. The garden will be judged in the Urban Garden category at the Show.

A team of talented young people, all under the age of 25, will build the UK Skills garden from scratch using their expert skills, which include: landscape gardening, bricklaying, electrical installation, cabinetmaking, plumbing, floristry and stonemasonry. All the skills represented in the Chelsea garden are also present at the biennial WorldSkills Competition, the world's largest international skills competition for young people.

The team creating the UK Skills garden will comprise of past UK WorldSkills Competitiors as well as upcoming, talented individuals who are looking to secure a place in Team UK for the next WorldSkills Competition, which comes to London from 5th - 8th October 2011.

Preparing to be a Workshop Supervisor by Jade Kidd

A guest post by Jade Kidd, Workshop Supervisor for Beauty Therapy, WorldSkills London 2011

At only nineteen years of age, I competed in the WorldSkills Competition held in Japan in 2007. I represented the United Kingdom in Beauty Therapy. Over time, with the highest level of training, my skills and ability grew. I went on to compete and was placed 4th, achieving a Medallion of Excellence.

After competing, I realised I wanted my involvement within WorldSkills to continue and quickly started to became addicted to WorldSkills! Now, three years later, I am still hugely involved, training future Competitors alongside my ex-Training Manager, Sue Simpson and Assistant Trainer, Jenna Bailey.

I have also recently taken on the role of Workshop Supervisor for the Beauty Therapy competitions for WorldSkills London 2011. I share this role with Jenna Bailey. She too was a past Competitor and our experience and knowledge within Beauty Therapy and WorldSkills makes us the perfect duo for the job! The role includes organising and preparing the stand ready for the competition to take place. We both visited WorldSkills Calgary 2009 to shadow the Workshop Supervisors there and it meant that we were able to have a better understanding of what is expected of a Workshop Supervisor. Long hours, commitment and organisation are just a few of the many things you need to ensure your competition is a success for WorldSkills London 2011. I can't wait!

Being part of the WorldSkills UK Alumni by Richard Talman

Guest post from Richard Talman, Jewellery, WorldSkills Seoul 2001

Late last year I was contacted by UK Skills about being a WorldSkills UK Alumni member and what it meant to me. UK Skills were in the process of working out a plan to re-energise the existing network of past WorldSkills Competitors to form a community of alumni.

They talked me through the plan to re-unite team members and bring all the teams together and I was eager to lend a hand. I have such fond and unrivalled memories of the times I had with Team UK at WorldSkills Seoul in 2001, from the first time we all met through to the WorldSkills Competition and beyond.

I made some fantastic friends all of which helped me out and vice versa, to make it through the tough tasks that the WorldSkills Competition threw at us. I made a promise to myself at the time to stay in contact with as many of them as possible and I regard a handful of them as really close friends. Unfortunately as the years have progressed and with them many of the team changing employers, telephone numbers and addresses, I have lost contact with most of them.

As part of the new WorldSkills UK Alumni plan I have been selected as an Alumni Activist for my team year. I have been asked as an Activist to find as many of my past team mates as possible, so far my search has been successful and continues.

I am very excited about WorldSkills coming to London next year. It will be a fantastic opportunity for London and will hopefully change people's perceptions of skills and vocational education. Hopefully it will also be an opportunity for past WorldSkills Competitors to reunite with their team mates and friends.

Like many people did for me, I will be there showing my support for the Competitors. Good Luck!

The WorldSkills Realisation by Chris Ridgeon

Picture of the WorldSkills Calgary 2009 Opening Ceremony, taken by Chris

My name is Chris Ridgeon and I am the Workshop Supervisor for Web Design at WorldSkills London 2011.

I first became aware of WorldSkills in 2008 when my brother won a gold medal in a WorldSkills UK event. My own involvement in WorldSkills, and specifically WorldSkills London 2011, started when I was asked to train the UK's Web Design Competitor.

However, after visiting WorldSkills Calgary 2009 to shadow my Canadian counterparts, I had a WorldSkills realisation! I knew that the WorldSkills Competitions were big events, but until you actually attend an Opening Ceremony, I don't think anyone can appreciate the scale of such a competition and the amount of people involved. Not only do we have some of the world's most highly skilled young people competing, but we have a whole network of professionals supporting them, and the event, throughout. Attending WorldSkills Calgary 2009 prior to our own event here in the UK not only brings a true realisation of the amount of work involved, but also makes you realise what an incredible experience it is for everyone!

My role at WorldSkills London 2011 is to organise the competition equipment and area where the Web Design competition takes place. For Web Design, this involves set-up of the computer systems, servers, software and other hardware required for the Competitors to work with. I think many would be amazed at the amount of different pieces of software a web designer can use and the many configuration possibilities we must account for. However, this is the same in most skills - it is the use of different tools and techniques that makes each Competitor's work interesting and unique.

At the moment, we are finalising what we call the 'infrastructure list' which sets out what tools will be available for the competition. This then gets published so we can procure the equipment and the Competitors know what they will have to work with.

WorldSkills London 2011 is going to be big and, after attending WorldSkills Calgary 2009, myself and the other Workshop Supervisors are excited and looking forward to making it the best WorldSkills Competition yet!

Work-based training more useful than higher education, says UK workforce

Job-related training has been voted to be more beneficial than higher education by the UK workforce, in helping individuals perform well in their job, research published by the National Training Awards revealed today. National Training Awards is run on behalf of the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) by UK Skills.

Research performed in conjunction with YouGov reveals some of the following insights:

• Half of all UK workers feel that job-related skills and knowledge development training have been most beneficial in helping them perform well in their job.
• 52% of workers say they feel more employable in difficult economic times by learning new skills or getting extra training.
• 68% of workers think that their training and skills development are important to the UK economy as a whole.

Research likes this helps reinforce how important skills are to both the UK and the global economy, both in economic terms and also in the eyes of the general public. Skills competitions like WorldSkills London 2011 help support and promote vocational education and training which is essential.

The other side of the fence by Katie Watson

Guest post from Katie Watson, Bronze Medallist, Restaurant Service, WorldSkills Calgary 2009


In the past few weeks, I have been involved with the work of WorldSkills, but from the other side of the fence than I'm used to as a past Competitor. The selection process for the next Team UK is now underway and I have been getting involved with the selection process and competitions, rather than competing itself.

The selection process for the next group of hospitality competitors began at Hotelympia's 'Search for a Star' salon competition, held at ExCeL London in February 2010. Competitions in all the hospitality skills: Pastry/Confectioner, Cooking and Restaurant Service, ran simultaneously throughout the day.

Being on the other side of the fence was much more difficult than I first thought and it took me some time to get used to having to watch five competitors carrying out the same Restaurant Service task at the same time. I always thought the Competitors had it hard!

Being there brought back a lot of great memories for me of my first competition in the selection process and of being involved with the WorldSkills Competition. It was incredible to see so many young people with an interest in hospitality competing to be the best in the UK and starting the tough journey that may earn them a place in Team UK at WorldSkills London 2011.

If you want to learn more about Restaurant Service as a skill and the WorldSkills Competition then please visit our website. You can see pictures of the live competition and take a look at many of the other skills that will be at WorldSkills London 2011, but I would always recommend Restaurant Service!

WorldSkills Amercias

The first ever WorldSkills Americas has been held in Rio de Janeiro from 10th - 13th March 2010. Countries like Brazil, Argentina, Columbia and the United States of America competed at the Event, which also coincided with the Brazilian national competitions. Experts and delegates also attended from all over the world to observe and assist with the management of the competitions.

You can see all the results here. The Event was hosted in Brazil by the National Service for Industrial Training (SENAI) who aim to incentivise sharing experiences across the continent and promote vocational training in Brazil. Since its inception in 1942, more than 47 million people have recieved training and earned certification through SENAI.

WorldSkills London 2011 congratulates all those who were involved with WorldSkills Americas and we look forward to seeing you in London!

The London Group meets this Tuesday

Tomorrow, the second meeting of our London Group is taking place at City Hall, the headquarters of the Greater London Authority (comprising of the Mayor of London and the London Assembly). This group brings together a collection of London organisations and individuals to discuss how London can make the most out of hosting WorldSkills London 2011.

The Event is a great opportunity for London to showcase what an amazing city it is to an expectant international audience. The London Group's aims are to help realise the opportunities from the WorldSkills London 2011 event, engage London's young people and secure the Event's legacy. By doing this, it hopes to deliver maximum postive impact for London.

This group also works in co-operation with the Legacy Group, which brings together organisations from all over the U.K who wish to support WorldSkills London 2011. The WorldSkills London 2011 Partnership team run both of these groups in order to help deliver a successful event, but also to help leave a lasting legacy to London and the U.K, inspiring people to see vocational education and skills as leading to a valuable and worhtwhile career choice.

We have over 20 organisations attending, including Visit London, LOCOG/London 2012 and London Underground, and we are always looking for more, so if you would like to be involved please contact Michael Osbaldeston (mosbaldeston@worldskillslondon2011.com) or Sereen El-Jamal (sel-jamal@worldskillslondon2011.com).

Sponsorship of WorldSkills London 2011

In October 2011, London will host the 41st WorldSkills Competition. Young talent from over 50 countries/regions will display their outstanding ability in 45 skills categories. This spectacular event will attract international and UK business leaders, government ministers, policy makers, teachers, trainers, students and the media across the four days of the Competition at ExCeL London.

To host such a prestigious international event, we need the support of business and industry and, therefore, the sponsorship effort for WorldSkills London 2011 is now in full swing. We have introduced additional team members since Christmas and two or three more Sponsorship Managers are currently being recruited. We have also produced our sponsorship brochure, explaining the many benefits of being part of the Event, along with a short film showcasing why existing sponsors and supporters are involved.

Our current sponsors include City & Guilds, Honda, Learndirect, Car-O-Liner, Marshalls and Festo with agreements pending with many other organisations. Amongst the many benefits, involvement will enable sponsors to engage with young people and profile their organisation as a future employer, develop new networks and contacts for the future and act as a voice on skills for their industries.

WorldSkills London 2011 will not happen without the generosity, support and enthusiasm of our sponsors and partners and so we'd love to hear from you if you are interested in getting involved.

To find out more, please call +44(0) 20 7429 2854 or email sponsor@worldskillslondon2011.com

'Making the Games': A new website by Edge

Edge, the premier supporter of Squad and Team UK, has just launched their new website 'Making the Games'. The website lets young people go behind the scenes of preparations for the 2012 Olympic Games. By following a group of professionals who are passionate, ambitious and successful, but also very practical; Edge hopes to change perceptions and raise the stature of practical and vocational learning in the UK.

WorldSkills London 2011 is delighted to be featured on this website as, in addition to creating an unforgettable skills experience at the Event, we also would like to help inspire people to see vocational education and skills leading to a valuable and worthwhile career choice.

Edge is an independant education foundation. It is dedicated to raising the status of practical and vocational learning, so that all young people have the opportunity to achieve their potential, and the UK's future workforce is equipped with the skills to be successful in the modern economy. Edge believes that 'learning by doing' is as important as academic learning, and that there are many paths to success.

Success at WorldSkills: A guest post from Northern Ireland

A guest post from Northern Ireland, one of the Devolved Nations bringing WorldSkills London 2011 to the UK:

Trevor Woods, a joinery apprentice from County Fermanagh, won a coveted bronze medal at the WorldSkills 2009 Competition in Calgary.

Trevor, a City & Guilds qualified apprentice at South West Regional College, Omagh, and employed by McAleer and Teague, Dromore, beat some of the best young skilled people in the world to win the medal at the biggest skills based competition in the world. He competed as part of the 26 strong UK WorldSkills team, which won nine medals in total.

Employment and Learning Minister, Sir Reg Empey, who supported Trevor during the competition said "I would like to congratulate Trevor on this magnificent achievement. The standard of skills that I witnessed in Calgary was extremely high, and Trevor should feel very proud that his commitment and hard work have paid off to make him the best in the world. Northern Ireland has once again shown that we have a talented workforce with the high level of skills that are required to compete in the global economy."

Bill McGinnis, attending the event in his role as Northern Ireland Advisor on Employment and Skills said "Trevor's outstanding success in Calgary, against worldwide competition is a shining example to others in Northern Ireland of what can be achieved through individual commitment and skills development. This excellent achievement will also have obvious benefits for Trevor's employers, McAleer and Teague, who should be commended for their support. I would encourage individuals and employers, across all sectors in Northern Ireland, to recognise the benefits that can be gained from upskilling and participating on the global stage."

David Cooper, Chairman of Skillbuild NI said: "We are absolutely delighted for Trevor, he has worked extremely hard over the last twelve months to perfect his skills and has now been acknowledged by winning a WorldSkills Bronze medal - a tremendous achievement. We are thrilled that having demonstrate his skills on the local stage at the Skillbuild Northern Ireland Competition, Trevor has been able to achieve such success on a world stage. This award reflects the exceptionally high standards of technical and professional education in Northern Ireland."

We would love to hear about other WorldSkills success stories from all around the world. If you have experiences to share with us, why not visit our Facebook page to join the discussion?

The Partnership Team

Greetings from the Partnership team at WorldSkills London 2011 - we are a small but perfectly formed team of two, Sereen El-Jamal and myself, Michael Osbaldeston; although to be fair, we probably make enough noise for twice that many! Sereen has worked in the vocational skills sector for nearly 10 years and I was part of the bid team that brought WorldSkills to London. Within the WorldSkills London 2011 team, we have special responsibility for our partners and stakeholders - those are the important organisations and influential individuals who will help us deliver not just an outstanding event in 2011, but help bring about the legacy.

'What's the legacy?' I hear you say - well, WorldSkills London 2011 is going to be more than an amazing event. Through it we are aiming to change people's attitudes to voacational skills, raise awareness of the contribution made by Further Education to the success of individuals, businesses and the national economy and encourage more people to participate in skills competitions.

That's a lot to achieve, which is why we need the help of a wide range of organisations. So we are working with people ranging from the British Council, Business in the Community and Sector Skills Councils to London Underground, LOCOG and the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, because WorldSkills London 2011 is not just for London, it's for the whole of the UK.

There's a lot to do, but we have a great team working on WorldSkills London 2011 and, of course, we have you! Yes, you! You can help us spread the word about vocational skills and WorldSkills London 2011 - after all, you are one of our most important partners!

WorldSkills London 2011 supports National Apprenticeships Week

Aidan Jones, Executive Director, WorldSkills London 2011 was interviewed by ePolitix.com this week about National Apprenticeships Week 2010. Below is a summary of that interview:


Is it important to promote apprenticeship schemes through an Annual week? What messages does WorldSkills London 2011 hope that the National Apprenticeships Week will convey?

Apprenticeship Week (1st - 5th Feb 2010) provides a fresh opportunity to focus on the strengths and the potential of a learning model which is still largely overlooked despite a massive rise in the number of apprentices in the past five years.

WorldSkills London 2011 supports the work of the National Apprenticeship Service (NAS) and in particular, we were pleased to see one of the themes of this year's Apprenticeship Week is 'Apprenticeships driving business'. We understand the crucial role that apprentices can play as a means of developing exceptional performance both for individual and organisational success. Indeed, the significance of this will only grow for us as we move towards 2011, when the UK will host WorldSkills, the largest international skills based competition there is; one that will see 1,200 young, talented people from around the globe compete in a wide range of skills. The event will provide a benchmark for the comparative strength of the training infrastructure on offer from businesses in the UK and internationally.

The time has come to ensure that our next generation of apprentices gain the benefit of a superb learning experience which is not just 'fit for purpose' but 'fit for life'. This week affords us a chance to begin to focus on how this can be achieved.

How will the legacy of WorldSkills London 2011 support the continuing work of the National Apprenticeship Service?

At WorldSkills Calgary 2009, over half of Team UK were apprentices and the skills and dedication of these young people contributed to a record-breaking seventh position for the UK. We were awarded three Gold and six Bronze medals in skills including painting and decorating, joinery, cooking and electrical installation.

Continuing this success, many of the young people who compete at WorldSkills London 2011 will be apprentices. We want to use the event to showcase the talent of apprentices on offer in this country, and as part of the WorldSkills London 2011 legacy, we want to inspire the next generation of apprentices to excel and achieve very high standards in their chosen skill.

What points would you like to emphasise about the importance of WorldSkills London 2011?

WorldSkills London 2011 will be a fantastic and entertaining event that will showcase to the world the achievements of talented young people, who have chosen to have a career in a traditional or modern skill. The event will inspire people of all ages to positively consider training in a vocational skill.

Of course, the event happens a year before the Olympics come to London. And we must all remember that without a talented workforce, who will help deliver the event, the Olympics would not happen.

To help make WorldSkills London 2011 a resounding success we need all of your support. For more information on how you can get involved and support WorldSkills London 2011, I encourage you to visit worldskillslondon2011.com

WorldSkills London 2011: The Event

Hi, I'm Peter Davies and I'm the Technical Director here at WorldSkills London 2011.

There is just less than two years to go before WorldSkills hits London, but our work is already well underway. There is a massive amount of planning that goes into putting on an event such as ours and we're determined to make sure that everything goes above and beyond all expectation in October 2011. We had a fantastic experience this year out in Calgary and are confident of delivering something even mroe spectacular when it's our turn!

As Technical Director, I have a broad array of responsibilities, ranging from ensuring that competitors have all of the necessary equipment and materials to designing the layout of the event itself - when you consider the hugely diverse range of skills on display, this is no mean feat! Needless to say that the things we have to take into consideration for the health and beauty competitors vary somewhat to that of the carpenters and bricklayers!

Before joining the WorldSkills London 2011 team, I worked on a number of large-scale events, such as The Good Food Show and the Queen's Golden Jubilee Concerts. WorldSkills London 2011 is another great opportunity to showcase, not only the amount of vocational talent, but also the UK's ability to put on an outstanding, world-class event. So please come and join us in October 2011 and see for yourself the incredible talents of some of the most skilled young people in the world and enjoy what promises to be a spectacular event.

Get involved in WorldSkills London 2011! by Will Torrent, Past Competitor

In October 2011 , a year before the 2012 Olympic Games, the prestigious WorldSkills Competition comes to London! WorldSkills is the biggest skills competition in the world and challenges teachers, trainers and young skilled men and woman to compete in over 40 different skills from over 50 different countries/regions and ultimately become the best in the field.

In 2007, when I was 21, I flew to Japan to represent the United Kingdom in the Pastry / Confectionery event. Not many people, other than maybe the Under 21 National Football team, get to say that they have represented their country at 21, and for me that was the instant hook when I was first introduced to WorldSkills by Yolande Stanley MCA. Yolande was my tutor at university and later became my Training Manager for WorldSkills. The training I received was the absolute best; I was lucky enough to go to France and train in some of the top places here in the UK such as Claridges, The Lanesborough and Gleneagles. The physical and mental training myself and the members of the Team got was also invaluable. We were treated like athletes, with physical exercise plans and diets to keep us at tip top condition to compete against the rest of the world. This training resulted in me becoming the highest placed British pastry chef at any WorldSkills competition so far and winning the first coveted Medallion of Excellence, beating France, Germany and Switzerland.

The whole of the UK needs to get behind London in 2012, but first we need your support in 2011 to make sure WorldSkills London 2011 is the best and biggest WorldSkills competition ever! You can support in many different ways and more information can be found worldskillslondon2011.com

Go out and spread the word! Tell people about WorldSkills and get people excited as much as I am about this brilliant competition coming to the capital a year before the Olympic Games in 2012!!

Jonathan Hurford-Potter, Finance Director, WorldSkills London 2011

Jonathan Hurford-Potter, Finance Director, WorldSkills London 2011 discusses what WorldSkills London 2011 means to him and his impressions of WorldSkills Calgary 2009:

WSL2011: What is your biggest challenge as Finance Director of WSL2011?

JHP: The event in London has a budget of £40M and the Government is currently funding around 25% of the costs. The balance needs to be obtained through Sponsorship and whilst not my area of responsibility, I am the recipient and custodian of the funds secured. I need to ensure both a balanced budget (cost and revenue) and more importantly keep a tight rein on cash flow to ensure that I can pay suppliers and staff salaries on time! Well someone has to do it!

WSL2011: What excites you most about being Finance Director of WorldSkills London 2011?

JHP: To be part of in International event and ensure along with the rest of the 2011 team that we deliver a superlative event to time, budget and quality standards. We are a fairly small dynamic team and it makes a huge change from my previous role working on a payroll system for the Armed Forces.

WSL2011: Having seen WSC2009, can you describe your impressions of a WorldSkills Competition for people who have not seen one before?

JHP: I just couldn't believe the scale of it! Just try to imagine a garage with around 30 identical cars on ramps being worked on simultaneously by competitors from all over the world. Then consider the same for landscape gardening, cooking, bricklaying, dressmaking etc. The opportunity to compare and contrast the progress of competitors and see the exceptional skills and talent in people so young is awesome.

WSL2011: If you were a competitor, which skill would you compete in?

JHP: I have a vested interest here. I own a 1965 Ford Anglia – light blue as featured in Harry Potter – and it is rather rusty. To compete in car painting and bodywork repair would enable me to restore my vehicle to an “as new” condition. Not sure my wife, Sarah, would agree though. She would prefer me to compete in jewellery and to take the Anglia to the Council recycling point or obtain £2,000 through the Government “scrapage” scheme!

WSL2011: If you could sum up in five words why WorldSkills London 2011 is important, what would you say?

JHP: Inspire young people to excel (in ExCeL!)