The College of West Anglia recently welcomed talented hairdressing learners from across the region as it hosted a regional heats competition as part of the prestigious WorldSkills UK competition programme at its Wisbech campus.
The event brought together students and apprentices from colleges and training providers across the region to demonstrate their creativity, technical ability and professionalism in a live competition environment designed to reflect industry standards.
Competitors took part in a series of timed challenges, including ladies’ long hair bridal styling and ladies’ commercial cut, colour and style, testing a wide range of technical hairdressing skills under pressure.
The competition formed part of the WorldSkills UK programme, which supports young people and apprentices in developing the advanced technical and employability skills needed within their chosen industries while helping to raise standards across further education and training.
Throughout the day, learners had the opportunity to showcase their work, gain valuable competition experience and receive feedback from industry professionals and judges.
Sarah Smith, Hairdressing Lecturer at the College of West Anglia said, ”We are thrilled to be hosting the WorldSkills National Qualifier at the College of West Anglia’s Wisbech Campus. This is a fantastic opportunity for learners to showcase their skills and talents while competing against other colleges from across the region. We are especially proud to have eight of our own learners from The College of West Anglia taking part in the competition. We are proud to support and celebrate their hard work and dedication, we wish all competitors the best of luck and warmly welcome them to our college.”
Richard Howell, Education Consultant for L’Oréal Professional and Organising Partner for WorldSkills Hairdressing said, “Competitions play an important role in learner development, helping students to strengthen their technical skills, build confidence and demonstrate excellence within their industry. Taking part in opportunities such as WorldSkills gives learners valuable enrichment beyond their qualifications and helps enhance their employability by showing commitment, professionalism and a willingness to go above and beyond.”
A total of 551 learners entered the photographic round of the competition nationally, with 177 progressing through to the national qualifiers, placing the qualifying learners within the top 32 per cent in the UK. Colleges taking part in the Wisbech heat included Ely College, East Coast College, West Suffolk College and COPC. The event saw three joint highest scorers on the day, including two learners from the College of West Anglia; Maddie Waddams and Louise Rootham, alongside Erin Ward from West Suffolk College. Learners will now wait to find out in August whether they have secured a place within the UK top eight to progress through to the WorldSkills UK national finals taking place in Wales this November.
