Six young engineers, who all train at Pembrokeshire College, were at the Welsh Assembly on Wednesday (24 June) to showcase a very valuable bit of electronic kit built as part of their Murco apprenticeship.Gareth Merriman, James Phillips, Damien Morgan, Jason Ralph, Adam Morgan and Tom Jones attended the VQ (Vocational Qualifications) Day celebrations in the National Assembly for Wales where they demonstrated their Electronic Relay Tester for Pembrokeshire-based AM, Joyce Watson.
The apprentices, who were accompanied by their tutor, Hugh Roch, built the tester as part of the Engineering Education Scheme Wales (EESW) programme. The project has been such a success that they have been designated as ambassadors for EESW and have delivered presentations at schools, colleges and sector events across Wales this year.
Joyce said: “They were excellent at explaining how the machine worked, what it was used for and why it was so important to industry. They told me that Electronic Relay Testers are usually very expensive to buy commercially so theirs is a very impressive achievement.”
VQ Day is a nationwide celebration of vocational achievement which was launched in 2008 to raise the profile of VQs and give those who secure vocational qualifications the same pride of place as those who achieve academic success.
The event in the Senedd exhibited the skills of young people from all over Wales who have gained qualifications in a wide range of vocational courses – from carpentry to catering; holistic therapy to hair & beauty.
“VQ Day is a great event because it celebrates vocational achievements and recognises the fact that more and more people in Wales are choosing to undertake vocational training”, Joyce said. “The number of NVQs (National Vocational Qualifications) awarded last year increased by 14 per cent compared with 2006/07, and 46,890 NVQs and 75,190 VRQs (Vocational Related Qualifications) were awarded in Wales in 2007/08."
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