South Staffordshire College hosts HIPS and SPARKS female skills competition at Rodbaston College 

South Staffordshire College are proud to have been selected as the host venue for the third and final regional heat for the HIPS and SPARKS female skills competition.

Taking place at Rodbaston College, within the state-of-the-art Net Zero Energy Training Centre, this exciting event brings together female students from colleges across the UK to showcase their skills within the plumbing and electrical trades.

The skills competition organised by SNG Publishing aims to highlight the importance of vocational training and encourage more women to pursue careers in the trades.

The HIPS competition featured six talented ladies competing in the plumbing category. Joanne Walker who is an apprenticeship at Cannock Council represented South Staffordshire College and she was competing against plumbers from Moulton College, City College Norwich, Waltham Forest College and South and City College.

The SPARKS competition featured 10 skilled participants. Apprentice Izzy Gwilliam represented South Staffordshire College, and she was competing against electricians from Northampton College, South and City College, Shrewsbury College, Birmingham Electrical Training Ltd, City College Norwich and Leicester College.

The competition included a series of challenging tasks designed to test the participants’ technical skills, problem-solving abilities, and creativity. The plumbers were tasked with connecting a central heating system, including a radiator, connecting a shower and a sink. The electricians created a consumer unit with a combination of PVC trunking and conduit feeding lighting circuits and socket outlets.

Whilst the competition was taking place course tutors from each competing colleges and training providers were able to attend a ‘meet the manufacturer’ CPD session to learn about new products coming to the market.

Leading the judges for the SPARKS competition was Darren Oates from NET and head judges for the HIPS competition were Jerry Whitley from CIPHE and Glen Scofield from Aalberts. The judges evaluate the students’ performance based on precision, efficiency, and overall quality of work.

A high standard of work and professionalism was demonstrated throughout the day by all competitors. Huge well done to everyone who took part in the competition.

The winners and runner-up from each regional heat will come together for a grand final skills competition in April.

Neil Sambrook, Director of Faculty for Construction, Engineering, Electrical and Motor Vehicle said “Skills competitions are an excellent opportunity for students to test their skills under pressure against peers from across the country. We are proud to host the HIP/Sparks Female Skills Competition in our Net Zero Energy Training Centre an event that not only tests the skills of our future electricians and plumbers but also celebrates the benefits that a diverse workforce offers the industry.