THIS bricklaying apprentice has scooped a medal at the WorldSKills UK Final.

York College's Thomas Macdonald won a bronze medal in the final of the WorldSkills UK Skills 2015 competition at the Skills Show, held at the NEC in Birmingham. Thomas was also awarded the Peter Vickers award for best work ethic in the competition.

He is now one of 150 young people who are one step closer to taking on the world’s best as a member of Squad UK in the first stage of the WorldSkills competition – the final of which will be in Abu Dhabi in 2017.

Thomas, aged 19, formerly of Huntington School, is a CITB bricklaying apprentice at Woodhouse & Barry Construction in Sheriff Hutton.

He said: “I’m so happy to have won the medal and to be selected for Squad UK. My employer is very pleased too.

"During the competition I thought I was in with a chance because my speed was there - finishing the task in 18 hours, instead of the full 19 hours. It’s crazy to think that when I next start my training I will be aiming to represent Squad UK at WorldSkills Abu Dhabi in 2107.”

Kevin Clancy, head of construction at York College, said: “We are very proud of Thomas’ achievement, he is an excellent role model for all our students. We hope he will follow in the footsteps of York College stonemasonry apprentice Sam Turner who won the bronze medal at the World Skills final in Sao Paolo, Brazil, in August this year.”