It is a case of lights, camera, action for students at Chesterfield College who have been selected to produce a training DVD.

Students on the BTEC Media Production programme have been given the opportunity to work with Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service to produce a number of driver training DVDs over the next 12 months.

Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service approached the college after viewing footage of the annual Road Traffic Collision event which students filmed.

The students will ride with and film the fire service on blue light training runs throughout the county and utilise the college’s latest equipment including a full size professional camera crane to film from the fire service’s aerial platform.

The aim is to produce an easy to use, accessible training DVD to assist with the training of fire tender drivers and will provide the students with a fantastic experience of filming, editing and producing high quality video.

An award winning student from Tameside College will become one of the privileged few to carry the Olympic Torch when it passes through Manchester.

Sport and Leisure student Alex Williams was nominated by the head of sport at the college, Karen Hunter, to carry the Olympic Torch.

Karen recognised Alex as a truly inspirational person, who still at only 18 years old already has a list of Awards to his name, including a National Teen Community Hero Award, a Children’s Champion
Sport Award and a Pride of Tameside Youth Achievement Award.

Keen sportsman Alex said: “It would be an honour and a privilege to be part of history and carry the Olympic torch.”

Blackburn College has introduced a range of innovative measures to fight back against the EMA replacement dubbed ‘inadequate’ by Barnardo’s.

The North West college has implemented a fixed £10 per term travel pass, a free hot breakfast, free uniforms, equipment and kit, subsidised healthy lunch for 16-18’s and financial assistance towards the cost of essential trips for the 2,400 students who need it.

The measures follow a report by children’s charity Barnardo’s which says students from poor backgrounds are dropping out of college or skipping meals because the government’s education grant is ‘insufficient’.

Ian Clinton, principal of Blackburn College, said: “It’s a disgrace that some students are now being forced to skip meals in order to afford the bus to college.

“I don’t believe it is fair that young people should be discouraged from learning because of increased costs caused by the recent and on-going government cuts. ”

Students from City College Brighton and Hove have been digging deep into their creative minds.

Paxton, a Brighton-based company which installs intelligent access control systems for buildings, provided the students with a brief to produce artwork to be shown in their premises.

Following site visits and presentations from the company, nine students developed proposals influenced by Paxton’s products, manufacturing processes and materials. Paxton were particularly keen for their circuit boards to be a key influence in the work produced.

The students presented a diverse range of work to a panel of staff who, after long deliberation, chose art work by Alice Gough as the winning concept.

Paul Rawlinson, joint managing director at Paxton, said: “One design stood out in terms of a contrast to the clean, tidy, high-tech and organised environment that our engineers work in every day was Alice’s clay, fossil-like models of our circuit boards. Her idea was truly inspired.”

Learners at Doncaster College have been performing in a new advertisement campaign to promote further education.

Around 25 performing arts students danced and sang around the college as part of a music video entitled ‘Your future in the Mix’.

The video, which was filmed by a team from Global Radio – known for running Galaxy Radio and Capital FM – was written specifically to try and encourage more young people to enroll at college.

The visual montage, which was also filmed at a number of other colleges in the Yorkshire area including York College and Leeds City College, can be viewed online at: www.yourfutureinthemix.com.

Bath Rugby Union stars have teamed up with Weston College to launch women’s touch rugby for students.

Full-back Jack Cuthbert and prop, Nathan Catt, put the women through their paces at Weston-super-Mares Drove Road Rugby Club along with new England Rugby Football Union Development Officer, Julie Price, and Neil Davies, who runs Bath’s Touch Leagues.

Weston College sports co-ordinator Sabrina Page said: “This is a first for the college and is part of our enrichment programme”

As part of prizes given out by the visitors, student Sarah Jackson (far left) was awarded an exclusive England rugby shirt for being the most improved player.

Doctor Who actor Arthur Darvill (centre) was the star of the first seminar held by Birmingham Metropolitan Academy of Performing Arts (BMAPA) in 2012.

Mr Darvill, who has played the character Rory Williams in the last three series of Doctor Who, shared his experiences of working as a voice and stage actor, musician and composer with the students at the Sutton Coldfield Campus.

Paul Garnault, head of BMAPA said: “We were delighted that our students could meet such a popular actor who has accomplished so much and has the potential to become even more established.

“This was the first of many seminars BMAPA will be running this year to bring our students face to face with successful performers from every aspect of the stage and screen.”

Arthur is due to start filming the next series of Doctor Who at the end of this month and can be heard on BBC Radio 4 playing the title role in an adaptation of Gulliver’s Travels.

Vincent Botting, a student at BMAPA, said: “It was great to meet Arthur. Along with talking about his experiences on Doctor Who, he told us useful things about life at drama school and the process of auditioning for parts.

“It was good to know that although he’s achieved lots, his career has had its highs and lows, just like any other actor’s.”

A new £1.2m facility for teaching enterprise and entrepreneurship skills has been officially opened at City College Norwich.

Gazelle entrepreneurs Priya Lakhani, founder of Masala Masala and SOCO, and Ben Ramsden, founder of Pants to Poverty, alongside City College Norwich Principal Dick Palmer, joined more than 100 students from City College Norwich and partner schools and colleges to launch the StartUp Lounge.

The main reception area of the college was transformed into a vibrant market, before guests had the opportunity to tour the StartUp Lounge which takes students through a series of stages in a business start-up “journey”.

Dick Palmer, principal at City College Norwich and chairman of Generator Enterprises said: “The StartUp Lounge and the work of our partner college principals in Gazelle is about transforming further education and helping to create the start-up businesses needed for future growth.

“Our students are already making fantastic use of the StartUp Lounge and from September we will be making these opportunities an entitlement for all of our 14,000 students.”

Barnet and Southgate College held a Creative Winter Showcase of live music, photography, fashion, hairdressing and beauty at the Brent Cross shopping centre.

The two day event was a chance for students to demonstrate all of the creative skills they have picked up during their studies at the college.

Fashion and hairdressing students were able to see their work modelled on a professional catwalk, while music students either performed to a live audience or operated as sound engineers.

Marilyn Hawkins, principal of Barnet and Southgate College said: “Collaborations of this nature are fundamental in terms of the student experience and generate a rewarding and professional perspective, developing their confidence to step into the commercial world.

“It’s also a great opportunity for people who might be interested in studying at Barnet and Southgate College to meet course advisors.”

The Creative Winter Showcase was also filmed by first year National Diploma Media students as a live project for their course portfolios.