Michael added \u201cThere were also a myriad of different hand and power tools to get familiar with in a short space of time. It was great to take the skills we\u2019d learned at Greenmount and put them to use in the competition on a full garden construction. I don\u2019t think either of us had ever built a full garden before\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Accomplished WorldSkills UK competitors<\/strong><\/p>\n

The hard work and focus of all the CAFRE competitors paid off. Jessica Boyd came away from the Floristry competition filled with inspiration to grow creatively as a Florist. Kelcy Blair had a fantastic learning experience as a current Horticulture student and the competition has given her drive and enthusiasm to explore more areas of horticulture.<\/p>\n

Michael Junk, who graduated from CAFRE this autumn as one of the top members of the class of 2021 and winner of the College\u2019s Plants Person of the year, was delighted to be awarded a Bronze medal for the WorldSkills UK Landscape Gardening Competition.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I went to England to compete, I never dreamed I would do so well. I got to know the other competitors and people involved in running the competition. I think WorldSkills is an amazing opportunity and I\u2019d definitely encourage anyone studying a skill to get involved\u201d.<\/p>\n

WorldSkills Shanghai 2022<\/strong><\/p>\n

While the WorldSkills competition journey ends here for now for these 3 CAFRE students, CAFRE Floristry graduate Clara Agnew from Hamiltonsbawn continues her journey towards China. Clara was the 2019 WorldSkills UK Floristry competitor and was selected to train as part of squad UK. From this small squad one person will be chosen in spring 2022 to compete for Floristry on Team UK in Shanghai for WorldSkills 2022.<\/p>\n

As part of her preparation, Clara has received intense training through WorldSkills UK. Throughout the pandemic, she joined online training sessions. The first \u2018in person\u2019 training was finally held in summer 2021 and was a welcome relief from the challenges of online.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI\u2019ve been training now for 24 months and am working towards my final assessment hurdle in April 2022. This will determine the person who takes the single place to represent Floristry on Team UK in Shanghai in October 2022! \u00a0The training I\u2019ve had has been phenomenal. Between having a dedicated training manager (Laura Leong, WorldSkills UK), working with master florists from around the world and even receiving training on the likes of coping with the stress and achieving a competitor\u2019s mindset \u2013 it has been an intense journey but ultimately I believe a life and career changing experience\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThe WorldSkills competition is essentially a skills Olympics, showcasing young people\u2019s skills. I wouldn\u2019t have got so far at this stage of my career without my CAFRE tutors \u2013 Anne Marie Grant and Sherry Suett who have always encouraged me to do my best\u201d.<\/p>\n

CAFRE\u2019s staff and students all wish Clara every success as she sets her sights on Shanghai. No matter what, Clara has a blooming future ahead of her as a professional Florist!<\/p>\n

CAFRE staff and WorldSkills UK competitors are appreciative of the tremendous support given by industry competition partners \u2013\u00a0British Florist Association<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Association of Professional Landscapers<\/a>\u00a0as well as local support from the WorldSkills Champions across the FE College network and NI\u2019s Department of Economy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Three CAFRE students had the fantastic opportunity to compete in their unique skills areas of Floristry and Horticulture as part of the\u00a0WorldSkills UK\u00a0competitions with competitors from Northern Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales. The competition is normally held in Birmingham in November every year, but this year due to Covid-19 restrictions each competition was held separately. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":464,"featured_media":20991,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[37,9,2574,54],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-20990","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-education","8":"category-featured","9":"category-horticulture","10":"category-news"},"yoast_head":"\n