Two students from Lakes College are celebrating after winning medals for their welding at a national competition.

Sam Meagan, 19, and Conor Alexander, 22, won a bronze and silver medal respectively at the three-day Skills Show event in Birmingham.

More than 500 young people entered competitions covering 61 different skills including construction metal work, landscaping, graphic design and hairdressing.

Independent judges assessed the work of the competitors who were awarded with medals at a ceremony.

Both Sam and Conor qualified for the Skills Show after qualifying from the SkillWeld heats which took place earlier this year.

SkillWeld is organised by the Science, Engineering, Manufacturing and Technologies Alliance (SEMTA) and aims to showcase the best talent in the welding industry.

The pair were among 24 people to win either a gold, silver or bronze medal in their individual competition.

Sam said: "I am very happy with my performance on the day and I gave it my best shot.

"SkillWeld was a fantastic opportunity for me to practice my welding skills, and I’m looking forward to applying what I learnt throughout the competition to my apprenticeship."

Conor said: "I really enjoyed the experience and I gave my best performance on the day.

"I’ve come a long way from doing my Level 1 Work Skills with Lakes College and I’m really proud of my result."

The students are both studying the Level 3 NVQ Extended Diploma in Fabrication & Welding.

Sam is an apprentice with Hargreaves Ltd and Conor is an apprentice with Hertel.

Their fellow student Conor Greenhow also took part in the competition, but didn't win a medal.

Conor Alexander won a silver medal and former pupil and tutor Jamie Robinson won two medals in the same competition last year.

Lakes College welding tutor Clive Bell is also a UK WorldSkills welding expert and trains welders across the UK for the finals.

He said: "This is our third year on the podium at SkillWeld.

"We’ve managed to win a total of five medals in three years, which is a fantastic achievement.

"I am very proud of all my students who competed on the day. They all put in a huge amount of effort and it was a fantastic experience for all of them."