Industry body champions the next generation of automotive talent #WSUKLIVE

THE BEST OF AUTOMOTIVE TALENT HEADS TO WORLDSKILLS UK LIVE – 21-23 November – NEC Birmingham

Industry body, the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI), is continuing to champion automotive talent by taking 24 finalists to this year’s Worldskills UK Live competition in Birmingham.

With a clear focus on working with the motor retail sector to address the ever-widening skills gap, the IMI’s Skill Auto competition sets out to find the best apprentices across a number of different skills.  A series of heats ran throughout the year, with the finalists now heading to Worldskills UK Live where they will undergo intensive competition over 3 days to find the best of the best. 

Worldskills UK Live is the largest skills and careers event in the country, designed to help shape the future of a new generation. Attracting nearly 80,000 visitors annually, the show provides hands-on experiences that inspire young people to explore careers and motivates them to find out more about the world of work. It also provides the setting for competitions for a wide range of skills, with the winners standing a chance of being selected for World Skills in Shanghai, China. 

This year finalists in the IMI Skill Auto competition come from right across the UK and will be demonstrating their skills in all the key competencies required in the automotive sector.  The IMI currently offers 16 different Apprenticeship Standards, recently launching three new ones for automotive repair professionals, demonstrating its commitment to help industry employers attract, develop and retain talent in motor careers.

Mark Armitage, Head of Membership Products & Services at the IMI said:

“The motor retail sector remains one of the strongest advocates of apprenticeships, which means we have an exciting array of talent who will be competing at the IMI Skill Auto competition.  As motoring technology evolves, with demand for lower emissions, connected vehicles and alternative fuel vehicles, the skills gap continues to widen. It is, therefore, vital that we continue to champion the best of the new talent coming into the sector through competitions like IMI Skill Auto.

“We are also excited to be in a forum at Worldskills UK Live so that young people can understand just how exciting the automotive sector is. They will see cutting edge techniques and processes being carried out by our finalists, proving that the automotive sector provides a truly 21st century career path.”

IMI Skill Auto 2019 Finalists

Refinishing

Aubrey Whiteside	Riverpark Training	David Irvine sprayers	18
Josh Millar	Transport Training Services	Wright Bus	21
Craig Kennedy	Riverpark Training	Howells ARC	19
Nathan Palfrey	Babcock Technical Academy	Cooper BMW York	22
Jack Groves	Volvo TDC	STURGESS bodycraft.	18
Josh Jones	NPTC Group – Pontardawe College	Scuffed Up	19

Heavy Vehicle 

Claire Weller	Skillnet	Adams Morey Portsmouth,	21
John Dudley	Skillnet	MOTUS COMMERCIALS	25
James Hillocks	Stevenson College	Mc truck and bus	21
David Bodie	Stevenson College	Hartshorne motor services	40
Matthew Hands	Skillnet	Brian Currie Bedford	21
Keith Kelly	South West College – Omagh Campus	B mc caffrey and sons	25

Body Repair

Connor Davison	Riverpark Training and Development		21
Chris McCarley	Riverpark Training and Development	Charles Hurst ARC	21
Graeme Nevin	Riverpark Training and Development	Wright’s accident repair centre	18
Dominic Mills	Training 2000 Limited	HBPanelcraft	20
Matthew Sutton	Training 2000 Limited	Abbot’s Car Repairs Ltd	18
Rowen Small	Remit Training	Apollo motor group Cheltenham	20

Light Vehicle

Ruairi Barrow	(Completed apprenticeship)	Donnelly brothers JLR	26
Robert Pallant Bright	Skillnet	Lookers Ford	24
Jake Hubbard	Skillnet	Forest Gate	23
Matthew Bundy	Skillnet	Hendy Ford	19
Harry Chaundy	GTG Training	Arnold Clark	19
Christopher Wright	ProVq Ltd	RRG Toyota Stockport	23