Barratt brothers go for gold

It’s week two of our Regional Champion highlights and we’ve rolled out doubles on this one. Two Tasmanian brothers, Sam and Tom Barratt, have been selected to compete in their chosen trades, bricklaying and carpentry, at the 2014 WorldSkills Australia National Competition, Perth.

18 year old bricklayer, Sam and 20 year old carpenter Tom, will be required to complete a series of technical and skill based tasks to then be judged by industry experts, all in the pursuit of a gold medal and the title of – ‘Nation’s Best’. However, it won’t be just the Judges keeping a close eye on the brother’s work, Sam and Tom come from a proud family of WorldSkills competitors who will watching on closely at the boys at the competition.

Sam and Tom’s older brothers Ben and Matt, both bricklayers, are previous competitors and medallists at the prestigious competition. In 2010 Ben won the silver medal at the competition held in Brisbane and in 2012 Matt walked away from the Sydney hosted event with a bronze medal. Credit is due to proud parents, Colin and Debbie Barratt, who have not only provided personal training and development to all four boys but have made a good contribution to the construction industry in Tasmania.

Picture: Ben 27, Sam 17, and Matt Barratt 23, have all won the Tasmanian Regional WorldSkills Competition for their bricklaying prowess. Photographer: Richard Jupe, The Mercury.