Past Southern Regional College carpentry and joinery student Isaac Bingham has brought home a Medallion for Excellence in Cabinet Making at the prestigious WorldSkills Lyon 2024 competition. Isaac was one of five talented students from Northern Ireland who made up Team UK at this year’s international WorldSkills competition held in Lyon, France. WorldSkills, often referred to as the ‘Skills Olympics’, saw over 1,500 young professionals from 69 countries compete in 62 different skills over four intense days, with more than 250,000 spectators in attendance.
Competing against 22 skilled tradespersons within the Cabinet Making competition, Isaac’s highly commended status was announced in WorldSkills Lyon’s closing ceremony on Sunday 15th September 2024, in the OL Arena in Lyon.
Isaac’s journey to France began with a gold medal at the 2022 WorldSkills UK national competition. This early success earned Isaac a place on team UK and the opportunity to compete at EuroSkills Gdańsk 2023, where he narrowly missed out on a Medallion by three marks.
Determined to succeed in this year’s international competition, Isaac made the brave move to relocate to England for 6 months to be close to Team UK mentors, trainers and industry experts. This significant relocation enabled Isaac to immerse himself in training six days a week while juggling a 40 hour a week job with English employer Monkeywood.
Isaac spent the past week in Lyon, setting up his workstation on the Monday before commencing competition the next day. During the near weeklong competition, Isaac faced mini deadlines throughout, testing his practical, planning and scheduling skills. This required focus and resolve to maintain composure throughout the intense pressure of competition.
Linsday Bronte, Organisational Development Manager at Southern Regional College flew to Lyon to support Isaac at the WorldSkills competition, alongside Gary Mackin, the College’s Head of Faculty for Building, Engineering and Technology.
Lindsay commented:
“Receiving a Medallion for Excellence is an amazing achievement for Isaac who was competing against twenty-one other Cabinet makers from as far afield as Costa Rica and China. It is so deserved for Isaac to get the recognition he deserves after months of hard work and preparation. All at SRC are extremely proud of Isaac’s determination, resolve and success.”
Speaking on Isaac’s success, Lee Campbell, Principal & CEO of Southern Regional College further commented:
“Isaac’s success at WorldSkills Lyon 2024 is testament to the dedication and hard work he has displayed. Isaac has shown exceptional commitment to this competition and his profession. Isaac should be immensely proud of his achievements as we are. We wish him all the best in his future career”.
WorldSkills Lyon 2024 took place from 10 -15 September. The next WorldSkills Competition will take in 2026 in Shanghai, China. The next national UK competition will take place in Manchester between 19-22 November 2024.
WorldSkills UK, is a four-nation partnership between education, industry and the UK government. From participating in international WorldSkills competitions, WorldSkills UK embeds world-class training standards across the UK. Pearson, the world’s lifelong learning company is the official partner of Team UK for WorldSkills Lyon 2024.
