More than 400 guests attended the spectacular opening ceremony of West Cheshire College’s Ellesmere Port Campus with Olympic hero Sir Steve Redgrave.

The Olympic-inspired event featured a parade and show-stopping performance from performing art and dance students, with fire eaters and stilt walkers.

The Wired Aerial Theatre were also part of the celebration, with a specially choreographed performance involving the five Olympic rings and aerial wired artists dropping down from a 88 foot high rotunda.

Guests made their entrance on a red carpet and were greeted by students holding Olympic torches before being served canapés created by hospitality and catering students.

Sir Steve Redgrave, Five-time Olympic Gold medallist said: “The Opening Ceremony put on by the College to officially open the Campus was spectacular.”

Sara Mogel, Principal of West Cheshire College said: “It was an evening that our guests and the College will remember for a long time.”

Writtle College has hosted its second annual Roadster road safety awareness.

With the help of Essex police, fire and rescue, county council and local driving schools, 250 students were taught about the importance of road safety.

The aim of the Roadster event was to place students in challenging scenarios, to aid them in understanding and rectifying situations they could encounter as drivers.

There were given driving lessons in the College car park and off road tuition in a Subaru Simulator.

PC Deborah Gray Farrer, Partnership and Community Engagement Officer from the Central Roads Policing Unit said: “Four of the most common factors that can have a big impact in RTCs are drink/drug driving, excessive speeding, using a mobile phone whilst driving, or failing to wear a seat belt.

“Police Officers will continue to tackle this offending behaviour through education, engagement, enforcement and engineering in an effort to save people’s lives.”

Visitors to the Royal Bath and West Show were able to step inside a sustainable house created by carpentry students from Norton Radstock College.

The timber framed house showcased simple initiatives that households can introduce to help save the planet, from insulation to draught proofing. Lorna Crouch, marketing manager at Norton Radstock College, said: “By 2020 EU directives require a 20 per cent reduction in carbon use and by 2050 an 80 per cent reduction.

“As a result of the Government’s Green Deal we have come up with a range of courses and qualifications which are suitable for those working in the industry and looking to increase their knowledge and upskill in order to work in this area.

“The sustainable house at the show will be surrounded by a water-free garden. Created by horticulture students, the garden will demonstrate how water can be used effectively and sustainably and in certain cases, with the right planting, not at all.”

Thousands of clothes, shoes and accessories went on sale at Canterbury College’s fashion show to raise money for charity.

The Fashion Fix raised more than £300 for The British Red Cross, Pilgrims Hospice and The Children’s Trust Tadworth.

The catwalk show was followed by a giant indoor one stop charity shop, with raffle and tombola stalls.

The show featured contributions from several other College departments. Hair and beauty students designed the models’ hair and make-up and dance students warmed up the catwalk crowd with an energetic routine to music provided by the music department.

Julia Joslin, section manager for Business and ICT, said: “I’m really proud of the students for staging this year’s fashion show. They worked incredibly hard and it looks as though the Business Fashion Fix will become an annual fixture in the College calendar. The event has given them some fantastic skills that they will eventually take into the workplace.”

Trainee stonemasons from City of Bath College helped unveil the stunning statue of swimmer Mark Foster in Bath city centre.

The students created the plinth that the piece of art – a twice life-size sculpture of the champion swimmer’s torso – sits on.

Students at the College’s Construction Skills Centre spent weeks working on the plinth and the ceremony was attended by the swimmer.
Nigel Bryant, the stonemasonry lecturer at the College, who project managed the plinth design, said: “It’s been a great experience for our stonemasons to be involved in such a high-profile project like this.”

“City of Bath College has an excellent reputation for consistently producing talented stonemasons.”

 

Students studying fashion and textiles at South Birmingham College were set the challenge of turning £30 of material from the famous Birmingham Rag Markets into an outfit that could be sold in Harvey Nichols.

Fifteen of the 80 students that took part in the competition have been shortlisted to showcase their designs on the catwalk in a bid to be crowned the Rags to Riches winner.

Judges included Constantine Tziambazis, retail manager at Harvey Nichols, and Kat Keogh, a correspondent at the Birmingham Mail and Post, which sponsored the event.

Eileen Simons, assistant director of fashion studies at the college said: “This is a great achievement, especially for those in their first year of the course who are just learning these skills.”

Three complementary therapy students from Coleg Gwent’s Pontypool campus were in need of some well-earned rest and relaxation of their own after taking part in a great outdoors challenge for Marie Curie Cancer Care.

The Whole Hog Race saw Emily Smith, Jodie Dupplaw and Sian Williams cross country running, negotiating obstacles, wading through a river and walking up a small waterfall in the Brecon Beacons.

The team, who named themselves The Ballistic Holistics, completed the 10k course in less than two hours, raising £300 for the charity.

“We are proud of each other and ourselves for completing it,” said Jodie, who plans to work as a holistic therapist on a cruise ship after her course. “We’re used to working together to help others relax, so this was a totally different, but very fun experience!”

“Sian came up with the idea, and we all decided to take part to set ourselves a new challenge and to raise money for a great cause.

“All of our friends, family and work colleagues sponsored us very generously.”

Bricklayers, plumbers, joiners and electricians from the housing association, Futures Homescape, celebrated completing a diploma in maintenance operations as part of a training partnership with Derby College.

The team provides a repairs and maintenance service to tenants living at Futures Homescape properties in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.

Among the students were Richard Rawlings and Paul Hodgkinson, whose combined service totals 60 years. Mr Rawlings, who is a bricklayer by trade, said: “We are now able to handle a wider range of repair jobs and complete the work much more quickly.

Mr Hodgkinson, whose background is in plumbing, added: “I have been able to teach the other lads about my work and have learnt other skills from them. Doing this structured programme through Derby College has made us work much better as a team.”