Southern Regional College’s SkillBuild competition took place on Tuesday 28^th January with apprentices and traineeship students from various trades and disciplines showcasing their skills and impressing visiting spectators.

Contestants from across the College’s campuses competed against peers at the College’s Greenbank and Portadown campuses, to be in with the chance of making it to the Northern Ireland regional finals, where they will compete against students from Northern Ireland’s five other Further Education Colleges and specialist training centres.  Students placing at the intercampus competition received medals, Amazon vouchers and certificates for their accomplishments.

Categories participating in the SkillBuild competition included brickwork, cabinet making, carpentry, joinery, wall & floor tiling, painting & decorating, plastering, plumbing pipework, electrical installation and light motor vehicles, automotive paint refinishing and automotive body repair.

The regional competition is set to take place on Tuesday 20^th May at SERC’s Downpatrick campus.  Students participating in the automotive paint refinishing and body repair categories will compete in a separate regional final at the start of February.

Success at the inter-campus competition is the first step towards competing on the WorldSkills stage.  Successful competitors at SkillBuild will be benchmarked against competitors from Northern Ireland’s other Colleges by the Construction Industry Training Board NI (CITB NI).  The results will determine who will represent the region at this years’ SkillBuild UK and SkillElectric UK finals to be held in Wales this November, once results from the other UK regional competitions have concluded.

Local students successful in the SkillBuild competition hoping to progress include:

Rachel Dorovatas, Director of Industry Training & Support at CITB NI, who attended the SkillBuild competition commented:

“We are consistently impressed by the high level of skills displayed by the apprentices and trainees participating in the Inter Campus College Competitions across the college and training network. We extend our congratulations to all participants, with special acknowledgment for those who excelled in their respective trade categories. Their exceptional performance may provide an opportunity to further showcase their talents at the upcoming SkillBuild NI Regional Competition, scheduled to take place in Downpatrick this May.”

Gareth Mone, Curriculum Area Manager at Southern Regional College further commented:

“The 2025 Inter-campus SkillBuild competition saw over 70 participants showcasing their talents in construction skills and motor vehicle repair skills, which included automotive body and paint skills. We were pleased to host visitors from CITB NI and judges at our Greenbank campus, where they observed the construction trades. Meanwhile, separate competitions for the automotive paint, refinishing, and bodywork were held at the College’s dedicated spray booth at the Portadown campus.”

“Once again, students have demonstrated exceptional workmanship, impressing both judges and faculty lecturing staff. We are hopeful that many of our students will advance to the regional and national finals later this year.”

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