Josh wins national accolade as leading skilled plumber

An apprentice from Exmouth has beaten off the country's young plumbers to win the top spot – gold medal – at the prestigious WorldSkillsUK National competition finals held at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham last week.

Josh Ellis, 20 one of the three Exeter College apprentices that won through the local and regional heats of the competition to represent the region at the three day skills challenge last week, heard he had scooped the gold medal at a glittering gala finale in front of thousands of competitors, industry representatives and skills judges. Not only does Josh have a gold medal to his name but he is now waiting to hear the schedule for the International competitions for a place in the Abu Dhabi finals.

The three day competitions, part of Find a Future and held at the nation's largest skills and careers event, showcase vocational skills and aim to inspire young people and adults to be ambitious and strive for excellence and expertise in a wide array of skills in the key employment sectors such as engineering, construction and the service industries.

“We're very proud of Josh in bringing home the gold medal” said Bill Foote, head of the Construction Faculty at the college “The WorldSkills competitions are a great way to raise the profile of skills in both the college and the workplace and it also helps apprentices and full time students raise their standard of expertise. The competition last week was a culmination of a lot of hard work from Josh and his tutors and was a gruelling test of intricate plumbing techniques plus the pressure of being scrutinised by the judges and the thousands of visitors at the NEC.”

Josh Ellis with AwardChris Bennett, plumbing and electrical team leader at Exeter College who accompanied Josh to the competition highlighted comments from the judges saying “Judges agreed that the quality of Josh's work was of an exceptional standard with no deductions, which is extremely rare considering the pressured environment in which he was working. Josh's performance showed steady nerves, great subject knowledge and clear planning to achieve his objectives. The other competitors were equally as impressed with the quality of Josh's work and performance as the judges were.”

Josh who works for Westmancoat Heating in Exmouth is no stranger to awards since last week he also scooped the college's Plumbing Apprentice of the Year Award at their Annual Skills Award ceremony.

“I was really shocked when they released my name,” said Josh “I was happy with what I'd done but didn't expect the gold medal. The competitions have really improved the quality of my work, my confidence and being able to work under pressure. There were 80,000 visitors to the NEC over the three days so it was very challenging. I really want to thank the support I got from my tutors – Chris and Paul.”

“The WorldSkills competitions celebrate and showcase the remarkable talents of our young people and the strength of the partnerships between colleges, the apprentices and their employers.” Said Richard Atkins, Principal of Exeter College “Our economy is dependent on up to date skills across so many business and service sectors and these competitions give a national and global profile to the high standards expected from our apprentices and full time learners. We're delighted that Exeter College fielded no less than three regional winners and that Josh in particular continues to excel as national leader.”