George Plant, the young mason from Ian Knapper Stonemasons in Cheadle, Staffordshire, who was part of the UK team at the WorldSkills competition in Japan last month, came away without a medal but with a lot of praise for having got to the competition in the first place and having performed well against stiff opposition.

In total, the UK team achieved a Gold, a Silver, two Bronzes and nine medallions of excellence in the competition.

Now UK Skills are looking for the next team of talented youngsters to represent the country in Canada in 2009 before the WorldSkills competition comes to London in 2011.

In August, UK Skills appointed Eugene Incerti as its new Director of Competitions. He said then: "I am delighted to be joining UK Skills as Director of Skills Competitions at a time when vocational skills are being recognised more than ever for their importance to the future of the UK economy.