Three catering and hospitality students from Coleg Ceredigion have been selected as part of Squad UK and as a result, they will be in with a chance of representing the UK at WorldSkills Shanghai next year.
The squad is rigorously selected from those who previously took part in WorldSkills UK competitions and who have the aptitude and training to progress to an international stage.
Squad UK will undergo an 18-month intensive training programme to determine who makes it through to the final squad, to represent the UK at Shanghai.
They will join over 80 other students from across the UK who will be competing in a range of vocational areas and, representing Welsh colleges, they are also part of Tîm Cymru, who make up around a quarter of Squad UK.
Caitlin Meredith, who studies at Aberystwyth campus will be training to compete in Professional Cookery for a place in Team UK, whilst Katy Law and Shannon Brown, who study at Cardigan campus will be competing for a place to represent the category of Restaurant Services.
The college wanted to know more about their involvement, future aspirations and their inspiration to study catering and hospitality, so we invite you to meet our Squad UK members.
Shannon Brown, 18
Representing Coleg Ceredigion and The Ship, Aberporth
Studies Diploma (level 2) in Professional Food and Beverage Service at Cardigan campus at Bwyty Maes y Parc
I’ve always had a passion for cooking and thought I’d like to work in hospitality, so I joined Coleg Ceredigion where I found I had a talent for food service.
I think college gives you the opportunity of practicing techniques and last year, when I found out I was through to the WorldSkills national final in Manchester, my tutor Huw Morgan, arranged specialist training for us on wine, cocktails and fine dining techniques, on top of our regular training, which helped a lot.
This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I’m excited and feel super proud of myself for putting myself forward and outside of my comfort zone.
Whatever happens, I can say that I was one of the top three competitors for the whole of the UK representing restaurant services in my age range.
On a professional level, I have realised that I need to put 100% into my training to get to the highest level, it’s tough and a lot of hard work, but the doors that this could open for me is priceless.
Through college, I’ve had experience working at The Grove of Narberth and I will also be going around the UK for further training, arranged by WorldSkills UK.
When I first started college, I was shy and reserved but these competitions have made me grow and I have developed on a personal level. I had never been on a train before, but now I’m travelling the country, learning life skills and looking after my own future.
College has supported me through my competition journey in many ways. My tutor Huw, has been fantastic, making sure I had all the equipment I needed to train and compete throughout my journey. He is so supportive and encouraging and always pushes me to achieve excellence. He gives up his time to train me and makes sure that I am ready for the next stage. I can’t thank him and the college enough.
Looking ahead, I’m making sure that I train hard and as part of Squad UK, I will be travelling all over the UK to more training camps to gain more experience to gain a chance to compete at Shanghai. I will also be training every week at the college’s Bwyty Maes y Parc.
From the three Coleg Ceredigion students selected for Squad UK, one of us will also be chosen to represent the UK at EuroSkills in September.
Caitlin Meredith, 18
Representing Coleg Ceredigion and Medinas Restaurant
Studies Diploma (level 2) in Professional Cookery and Professional Food and Beverage Service at Aberystwyth campus at Aberista
I have always had a passion for cookery and no other subjects at A-level appealed to me as much as cooking and hospitality. I also knew that the course delivered in Aberystwyth had a good reputation.
The training I’ve undertaken has been both in college and in WorldSkills boot camp. It’s been challenging but I have thoroughly enjoyed it so far.
We have also done several pressure test exercises as well as mental agility and team building exercises all of which have tested my ability and built resilience.To be part of this and to be being exclusively selected for the next stage means a lot. I have a sense of pride in my work and ability as I have worked hard to get to this position. Being chosen for this stage has been a real confidence boost.
The whole experience has taught me technical skills and pressure/stress management skills. It has improved my college work and I feel my exam performance has immensely improved. It has also helped me determine my strengths and weaknesses.
Staff at the college have been really helpful. My main tutor James, has been great in planning tasks and supporting my development on the skills journey. Jess and Jim are also supportive of me in the kitchen cycle. The resources in college are also beneficial in my training and having my tutors on site ready to offer expertise and guidance, is extremely comforting and helpful.
The next steps for me are more competitions, so that if I get chosen for the Short Squad, I will be continually developing my competition skills. There is also the opportunity for me to do a stage or work in some high-end establishments, which is very exciting.
Katy Law, 20
Representing Coleg Ceredigion and Crwst Cymru
Katy completed a Catering (level 3) qualification at Cardigan campus at Bwyty Maes y Parc and is now working full-time at Crwst. She continues to train for WorldSkillsUK preparations at the college.
Starting out my journey, I’ve always enjoyed cooking and baking, but I didn’t know much about the service industry, so after a few weeks of starting college, I realised I had a passion for talking to customers and serving people and that this could be the career I could excel in.
As part of my competition journey so far, I’ve been returning to college to train and further develop my skills in front of house services and as part of this, I really enjoyed a day’s training at Baravin, where I worked with a former student of the college on my mixology skills.
It’s been a huge privilege to take part in the process so far and I haven’t always had confidence in my abilities, but the support I’ve had from my tutors, friends and family has helped me progress as far as I have, as well as helping boost my self-confidence and knowing that I’ve got this far because of the work I’ve put in is a great feeling.
I think that this whole experience has helped me be calm under pressure and more professional with how I present myself, which is incredibly important when dealing with real-life situations and problems in the workplace. I have also improved my practical skills including cooking.
My tutor Huw, has been my biggest support and the reason I have the motivation to keep going with competitions. During my first ever competition, I didn’t receive a medal, which did knock my confidence, but with Huw’s encouragement and genuine belief that I could do it, I have gotten further than I ever thought possible and I am forever grateful.
Looking to the future, I will be travelling to North Wales every month to train with our training manager to develop my skills.
Competing in EuroSkills and WorldSkills Asia are also a possibility which proves that this is a huge commitment but the experience I will gain and have already gained, is priceless.
