01550 760400Friday 28 November was a fantastic day for Elidyr Communities Trust as a group of our young people took part in the 2025 WorldSkills UK finals in Cardiff in three competitions.
- Sustainable Enterprise
- Horticulture
- Hospitality
Russell, who is a resident at Garnllwyd Barns, competed in Horticulture. The brief was to create and display a selection of planters, following a specific layout. After he’d laid down his trowel, Russell gave some feedback:
“The judge said it’s going to be tough to decide this year. This is my fourth competition. This time was harder because they added the hanging basket. I had 2.5 hours, 20 minutes more than the last competition I did. There were eight people in my competition and it will be hard for the judges to decide.”
Despite not winning a medal, Russell was awarded a "Highly Commended", a fantastic achievement against some very stiff opposition.
Leah, who competed in Hospitality, created a beautiful table setting and demonstrated how to fold multiple napkins identically before mixing the perfect Mojito. When she finished, she reached for the iPad, “I’m going to take a picture to show my mum.”
One of the Sustainable Enterprise Team members said, “My favourite part was doing the competition. We all took part in the making. This meant sawing, painting and using the glue gun, we all came up with the ideas. We all took turns in making the badges. There will be certificates. Leon and Faith were in my team.”
Faith said, “I enjoyed practising the competition and talking and meeting people. That was good. I was excited to be making the products.”
Leon said, “I was nervous, tired, excited and happy! We made tables, birdfeeders, planters and bird boxes. Our pallet wood was upcycled. Sawing was my favourite activity. Our corks were upcycled from my friend’s competition. Upcycling in the garden was our project.”
The three person Sustainable Enterprise team did brilliantly, winning silver medals for their efforts.
James Slater, CEO at Elidyr Communities Trust said, “It has been a real pleasure to attend my first WorldSkills competition in Cardiff. The standard has been incredibly high and I am so proud of everyone. This is a great opportunity for our learners and residents to showcase their skill, and I would like to say a huge thank you to all the staff who have supported this year’s competition.”
WorldSkills UK’s competitions recognise excellence in over 40 disciplines, and support learners and apprentices to develop their skills. The competitions inspire young people to aim higher, achieve excellence in technical education, and build foundations for rewarding futures.
Registration for the Skills Competition Wales 2025/2026 cycle is open until December 5, 2025. The competitions will be held next year, between January and March 2026 across various colleges and training providers in Wales.
Skills competitions are now an intrinsic part of our learning programme, the approach was highlighted and commended in our recent Estyn report. Next year we continue to develop our own collaborative competitions with Derwen College, providing a great opportunity for anyone who has not previously entered the skills arena. Our competitions are fully inclusive, and we recognise and accommodate the additional support young people with ALN may need in a time pressured activity in unfamiliar surroundings.
Well done to everyone involved in the 2025 finals – what a fantastic experience.