STUDENT William Allison is busy smoothing off the rough edges as he prepares to pit his skills in a national joinery competition.

The 16-year-old student at Darlington College of Technology amazed his tutors after winning the regional competition of Skillbuild against much older and experienced competitors.

He will now take part in the national final, in Somerset, in October.

William, of Marske, near Richmond, works for GE Brown and Son builders at Low Row, in Swaledale. He also attends the Darlington college where he is studying for his NVQ Level 2 in joinery.

"We only entered him in the competition to gain some experience and he ended up beating lads who were 19-years-old," said Darlington College of Technology's construction programme manager, Colin Johnson.

"He is very good, particularly for his age, with a lot of natural talent and the ability to listen and take information in."

William said: "It was great winning the regional competition and I'm now busy training for the final."

Darlington College has an enviable record in the Skillbuild competition, which aims to recognise trades and encourage young people to take them up.