Weston College girls show off a flair for hair and beauty at WorldSkills event

Two Weston College apprentices are on their way to the final of a prestigious national competition after showing off their hair and beauty therapy skills in regional heats.

Laura Henson, 18, and Emma Rogers, 20, are through to the WorldSkills Finals in Birmingham this November, after beating off rivals in fiercely-contested regional heats.

The pair will now be competing for a place in the UK WorldSkills squad in a competition that will run over four days.

Laura, who works at Broad Street Hairdressers in Backwell, showed off her hairdressing skills, including a cut and colour, at the South West regional heat this June.

Emma, who won the title of Weston College Apprentice of the Year in 2011, was working at Redcliffe Court Beauty in Cheddar and is now in the process of setting up her own salon.

She said: "I took a client with me to the regional heats, a person I've been working with for a while, and I gave her a back massage then a body toning treatment followed by a facial.

"I was really pleased to get through to the finals and although it's nerve-wracking competing alongside other people I'm really looking forward to it."

Emma, from Draycott, is now planning the opening of her Wedmore-based business, Beauty By Emma, in November, around the time of her entry in WorldSkills. "These things all seem to come at once," she added, "but I thrive on pressure."

Weston College Head of Apprentices in Beauty, Hair, Barbering and Nails, Tanita Veal, said: " Both girls did extremely well to get as far as they did and I'd like to congratulate them both for working so hard."

Around 5,500 young people compete for a place in the British squad. WorldSkills is the largest unique biannual competition in the world involving around 1,000 apprentices and students, aged 18 – 24 in 46 skill areas.

The British team is made up of world-class vocational competitors trained in a variety of skills including mobile robotics, graphic design, carpentry, catering and mechanics.