A rock band made up of past and present students of Havering College of Further and Higher Education has made it through to the national finals of a music competition.

Dead Baby Birds will be taking on the best of the nation’s young musical talent at WorldSkills UK Popular Music Competition at the NEC Birmingham from November 15 to 17.

The Skills Show is the UK’s biggest skills and careers event designed to celebrate and reward talent in further education, skills and apprenticeships.

The Popular Music category, in which Dead Baby Birds will compete, is one of 50 finals taking place at the NEC event.

The winners may go on to represent the UK at their skill in the international competition, WorldSkills Leipzig 2013.

Dead Baby Birds’ members - Tristan Embleton, Sam Loughlin and Matt Latimer – will face stiff competition from other regional winning bands but hope to impress judges with an original composition, Mind Control, and their cover version of I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll by Joan Jet and The Blackhearts.

Havering College curriculum manager for FE and HE Music Dave Wood said: “Dead Baby Birds is a student band with an immense amount of talent and we are incredibly proud of what they have already achieved. It shows they are among the cream of the cream of young performers in the music industry.”

This year has been an exciting year for Dead Baby Birds.

The band performed in the Havering College show Inspiration at the London Palladium in March and entertained thousands of spectators in the Olympic Park during the Paralympics.

The band also has new addition – former Havering College Music student Matt Wright, but competition rules mean that 19-year-old Matt, a lead guitarist, cannot take part in the WorldSkills UK finals.

Drummer Sam, 17, from Romford, said: “We did get through to the regional heats of the Live and Unsigned competition earlier this year but WorldSkills UK will be our first ever final. It is exciting because it’s such a big competition. The support from the college is fantastic.”