@CAVC student Bethan puts the icing on the cake at Skills Competition Wales Patisserie finals

Cardiff and Vale College Level 3 Bakery student Bethan Greenslade has won gold in the Skills Competition Wales Advanced Patisserie and Confectionery finals.

She has been invited to represent Wales in the UK-wide skills competition.

Bethan, who is 17 and from Cardiff, also won silver in the Welsh International Culinary Championships, which were held on the same day. She and fellow Level 3 Bakery learner Bethan Curtis-Rich, 20 and also from Cardiff, travelled up to Coleg Llandrillo in Conwy for the contest. Bethan Curtis-Rich was highly commended in the finals.

Skills Competition Wales pits the most talented students from across the country and feeds into the UK Skills Show and WorldSkills contests. It features competitions in a range of disciplines.

For the Advanced Patisserie and Confectionery finals, competitors had five hours to create a centrepiece using chocolate and sugar, then produce 30 petit fours in two different kinds to their own design.

“I was utterly shocked when I won, I wasn’t expecting it,” Bethan said. “I didn’t go to the competition thinking I would get placed, let alone win!

“The contest was very exciting. I was very nervous at first. I was more nervous when I was practicing but on the day as soon as I got started the nerves fell away which was good because it would be a lot more difficult if I had nerves.

“I was also asked to be on the Welsh team, either now or in the future. That’s really exciting as well!”

CAVC Lecturer in Bakery and Patisserie Linda Burns said: “Bethan and Bethan both did fantastically well in what was a really tough contest. We’re all so proud of them.”

“Congratulations and a massive well done to both of the Bethans for doing so well in the Patisserie and Confectionery finals,” CAVC Deputy Principal Sharon James said. “To win gold in the Skills Competition Wales and silver in the Welsh International Culinary Championships is an impressive feat.

“Staff from the College work tireless to train these competitors, enabling them to compete to such high standards, so I thank them for their effort and commitment. This excellent result is a testament to that.”