Aughnacloy plumbing apprentice is selected for WorldSkills UK squad

AN Aughnacloy plumbing and heating apprentice, who has achieved success in competitions across the North, is now celebrating being named in this year’s ‘WorldSkills UK’ squad.

Andrew McCann studies at the Omagh Campus of South West College one day a week, and is employed four days a week with Anderson Mechanical Services, based in Loughgall, Armagh.

The WorldSkills UK squad is a competition comprised of young people who have excelled in regional and national competitions.

Andrew’s journey to the squad began in early 2022, when he won the intercampus ‘Plumbing and Heating Competition’.

Andrew also won ‘Apprentice of the Year’ at the prestigious Northern Ireland Plumbing and Heating Awards 2022.

This led to the ‘Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) NI SkillBuild regional qualifier’, where Andrew secured top spot, resulting in selection for the ‘SkillBuild UK National Final’, which saw more than 500 students and apprentices, compete for gold, silver, and bronze in a variety of disciplines.

Andrew’s success in the Plumbing and Heating finals, held at Middlesborough College in November 2022, means he will now join a total of 94 young people from around the UK in the competition, including 12 others from the North.

They will begin an 18-month intensive training programme in the hope of being selected for the final UK team to compete against other students and apprentices from more than 80 nations in Lyon in September, 2024.