PUBLIC SERVICES students from Exeter College triumphantly showed off a huge silver trophy this week, having been among 30 in total who battled their way to victory in this year’s Naval Careers Service Challenge Cup.

In order to come top overall in the inter-college competition for the South-West, hosted this year by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines at their Pier Cellars training centre, near Cawsands in Cornwall, they had to demonstrate they were in shipshape condition.

Competing in exercises designed to develop teamwork, communication skills, leadership qualities and fitness, as well as improve their overall knowledge of the work and lifestyle of real-life naval officers and marines, they successfully sailed their way through the following activities:

• A naval-themed confidence-building course
• A seven-mile orienteering route
• Tug of war
• Deck hockey
• Practical learning and thinking tasks
• Improvised talent show
• Royal Navy terminology and general knowledge

Delighted with his students’ success at this year’s event, Exeter College Public Services Lecturer Paul Hepburn said: “Throughout the competition, all three teams performed exceptionally well and were a real credit to Exeter College.
“The overall result was based on the cumulative score of all three teams we entered. As a result of their superb performance on the day, they were the overall winners, meaning they could bring home to Exeter the prestigious Royal Naval Careers Service Challenge cup.”