Hosted by Robin Bates, membership registration and professional standards lead at the Society of Operations Engineers (SOE), the 12th edition of IRTE Skills Challenge welcomed more than 150 guests made up of operators, managers, technicians, sponsors, regulators, press and supporters of Skills Challenge.
Backed by sponsors Alexander Dennis, Freeway Fleet Systems and VARTA, and long-term supporters Imperial Engineering and new prize sponsor BYD, this year’s event saw an increase in the number of operators and competitors who participated. There was also an increase in the number of female competitors this year.
During her welcome speech, Emma Thompson MSOE, designate executive director at SOE, emphasised the importance of initiatives like the Skills Challenge for upskilling the bus and coach industry. She reflected on the success of this year’s event and hinted at developments for next year’s challenges.
"The ongoing success of the Skills Challenge is made possible by the unwavering support of our premium sponsors, Alexander Dennis, VARTA by Clarios and Freeway Fleet Systems, who pioneered new challenges and provided opportunities for our competitors to acquire future skills. But also, let's not forget, our long-time sponsor Imperial Engineering and our new prize sponsor BYD for their support. I know some of them are already developing new and even more challenging tests for next year's competition.
"A huge congratulations to all the winners and runners up of the 2024 IRTE Skills Challenge. As a gesture of our appreciation all winners and runners up will be receiving a year of SOE Membership for free. With this you can access all of our industry publications and CPD Webinars on demand and get support with Professional Registration."
Laura Tofts, head of product information & training from Alexander Dennis, delivered her keynote discussing Alexander Dennis’s plans to open more training centres to meet the increasing demand for upskilling.
Sharon Kindleysides, secretary general at The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, talked about the future of skills in bus and coach. Her keynote was an anecdote on the importance but also underappreciation of engineers and how celebrations like the IRTE Skills Challenge are crucial for the industry.
Meet the winners and runners up:
Bodywork Apprentice (sponsored by Alexander Dennis)
• Winner: Thomas Moore, National Express
• Runner-up: Ismaeel Jaffar, Metroline
Electric Driveline Apprentice (sponsored by Transport Engineer)
• Winner: Neave Sproson, National Express
• Runner-up: Benjamin Bark, Metroline
Electrical Apprentice (sponsored by VARTA by Clarios)
• Winner: Diego Duran Cuadros, Go-Ahead
• Runner-up: Neave Sproson, National Express
Mechanical Apprentice (sponsored by Imperial Engineering)
• Winner: Wojciech Hernik, Lothian Buses
• Runner-up: Daniel McBride-Harrow, Arriva
Mechelec (sponsored by Freeway)
• Winner: Dylan Mullan-Barber, Trentbarton
• Runner-up: Finlay Reed, First Bus
Outstanding Apprentice Team (in partnership with S&B Automotive Academy)
• Winners: Diego Duran Cuadros, Myles Harding, Tiago Da-Silva (all from Go-Ahead)
DVSA Inspection Apprentice Award (in partnership with DVSA)
• Winner: Laura Darbon, Metroline
• Runner-up: Wojciech Hernik, Lothian Buses
DVSA Inspection Technician Award (in partnership with DVSA)
• Winner: Charles John Burrows, Metroline
• Runner-up: Dan Price, Stagecoach West
Bodywork Technician (sponsored by Alexander Dennis)
• Winner: Hasan Girach, First Bus
• Runner-up: Andrew Cairns, Lothian Buses
Electrical Technician (sponsored by VARTA by Clarios)
• Winner: Craig Carter, Arriva
• Runner-up: Peter Blake, RATP Dev (London United)
Electric Driveline Technician (in partnership with Route One)
• Winner: Peter Blake, RATP Dev (London United)
• Runner-up: Liam Blyth, First Bus
Mechanical Technician (sponsored by Freeway)
• Winner: Morgan Bond, First Bus
• Runner-up: Tim Bowman, Transdev Blazefield
Master Technician (sponsored by BYD)
• Winner: Andy Knowles, First Bus
• Runner-up: Stephen Price, First Bus
Outstanding Qualified Team (sponsored by IRTE Workshop Accreditation)
• Winners: Dan Price, Craig Carter, Adam Wiggett (all from Stagecoach West)
The event concluded with the presentation of the final awards by members of the trustee board Caroline Harries and Ian Macdonald:
Philip Margrave Memorial Award for Outstanding Achievement
• Winner: Gerry Fleming, Go-Ahead
Judges' Choice
• Winners: Hasan Girach, First Bus; Neave Sproson, National Express
