A team of Fire and Security Engineering Apprentices from South Eastern Regional College’s (SERC) Lisburn and Newtownards Campuses, have won the annual SERC PBL X (Project based learning expo) hosted at the College’s Lisburn Campus on 10 March.
The PBL X Final was delivered as a Dragon’s Den‑style competition, with shortlisted student teams presenting their ideas to an external judging panel - Katie Matthews-Furphy, The Mind Tribe UK, Irvine Abraham, Above Ground Level and Bronagh Ward, Royal Academy of Engineering - which was live streamed. SERC’s Skills Intercampus Competition Finals ran concurrently, adding to the excitement with students showcasing their skills, teamwork and real‑world problem‑solving abilities across classrooms and workshops.
The Winners, Harry Johnston (20) from Newtownards, Zeki Kaya (20) from Newtownards, and Fernando Gomes Da Silva (25), from Magherafelt, all Level 3 Apprenticeship NI in Fire and Security Systems, wowed the judges with their Security Engineering & Resource Centre project - an apprentice-led training facilities designed to provide hands-on, industry-aligned learning in modern security technologies. The judges were impressed with how the apprentices completed the full design, installation, configuration, and commissioning of integrated intruder alarm, CCTV, and access control systems across the newly developed training environments at both SERC’s Newtownards and Lisburn campuses.
The facilities now serve as regional training hubs for fire and security professionals, supporting apprenticeship pathways, technician upskilling, and industry skills development. Its focus on integrated security and AI-powered Internet of Things (AIoT) technologies enhances employability, addresses skills shortages, and strengthens long-term workforce resilience.
Santa's Little Helpers, pitched by Lewis Nickell (27), Peter Church (45) and Ben Hartley (24), all from Bangor and all Restart Education students, came joint second. The students designed and delivered a Christmas 2025 donation drive to support young people in care. The project focused on community engagement and social responsibility, with the learners working collaboratively to plan, promote, and deliver the initiative.
Joint second place also went to the More Taste, Less Waste project from Jameson Cheuk (21, from Moira), Ethan Hopkins (22, from Crumlin), Brody Fyffe-McFadden (20, from Lisburn), Matthew Beech (20, from Dunmurry) and Victor Smith Quiroz (52, from Belfast), all Level 3 Professional Chef students at Lisburn Campus who worked in partnership with Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council to develop a recipe book aimed at reducing household food waste and promoting sustainability. The students researched, developed, tested, and refined recipes suitable for the domestic kitchen, with a strong emphasis on using leftover and surplus food items.
Gary Ritchie, Deputy Principal, Curriculum said, “Congratulations to all the winners and to everyone who participated. These PBLX and wider Intercampus Competitions celebrate student achievement and highlight the college’s commitment to applied learning, innovation and preparing students for future employment. The enthusiasm, dedication and commitment of everyone shone through in all the presentations and competitions.”
He added, “All the enterprising projects that were presented today could be taken forward beyond SERC - this is testament, not only to the winners, but every single learner who took part, all of whom should be extremely proud of their hard work.”
Gary concluded, “I would like to sincerely thank our three judges, Bronagh, Katie and Irvine, who gave such constructive feedback. It is greatly appreciated by the teams and adds to the learning experience.”
The winners and runners up received a trophy, vouchers, kindles and SERC Entrepreneur Club hoodies, and all finalists received a voucher and a hoodie. All projects can avail of further mentoring from the college Enterprise and Entrepreneur team. Two projects will now go on to compete in the Intercollege Sector PBL Competition which will take place at South West College in Omagh on 30 April.
