Hands on taster sessions at Dearne Valley College (DVC) have proved a huge success. The Wath-based college hosted a week of Have A Go sessions and workshops to give local young people a chance to build skills for their future.

Almost 300 youngsters took part, which saw participants having a go at various activities whilst meeting tutors, support staff and speaking to current full-time students.

Mark Hepworth, DVC assistant admissions manager said: “Deciding what to do next and indeed where to continue further study can be a difficult decision.

“Our Have a Go taster sessions allowed prospective students to learn new skills but also provided an insight into what college life would be like.”

Nearly 100 pupils from city schools joined an Olympic challenge at Derby College to introduce them to a wide range of vocational careers, courses and apprenticeships.

The pupils from Leesbrook, Merrill, Sinfin and da Vinci secondary schools took part in a wide range of challenges, including bathing a doll, grooming a dog and creating nail art designs.

They also made non-alcoholic cocktails culminating in a final activity involving dressing in full construction site safety equipment and then lining up the coloured Olympic rings painted on hard hats in the right order – against the clock.

Lowestoft College’s newly refurbished engineering workshop and wind turbine training tower has been officially opened.

The new engineering workshop features state-of-the-art equipment and was made possible thanks to a funding boost of £1.3million from University Campus Suffolk, the Local Strategic Partnership, the Skills Funding Agency and the college’s own resources.

The investment also meant improvements could be made to the learning resources centre and refectory. Principal Simon Summers said: “The new engineering workshop is particularly exciting and means our students and apprentices are able to benefit from up-to-date equipment which meets the industry standards.

Talented Central Sussex College music student Shak Forbes is celebrating after being named winner of the Open Mic UK competition.

The 16-year-old won the national search for new young music talent at the O2 after blowing the judges away with his original rap performance of Mac Miller’s ‘Best Day Ever’, backed by a full choir.

Shak is now set to take the charts by storm after he beat 9,000 other young musicians from across the UK, to scoop first prize of a recording contract worth £30,000, and the chance to release his own single.

Shak, who has been writing original compositions since the age of eight, said: “I have always loved the creativity of making music, and being on stage feels like the right place for me to be.

“However, I never thought I’d win this competition, so it feels amazing!”

Music teacher at the college Steve McCarthy said: “This is an amazing achievement for a young talent and the combination of winning a national competition in addition to his music studies at College is preparing Shak for a strong career in the industry.”

Doncaster College is working with South Yorkshire Police to get a new course up and running.

The qualification, which looks at the repair of bicycles, could not run at the college due to the lack of damaged bicycles they had, for the students to repair as part of the course.

To help, the force has agreed to provide the college with more than enough bikes to run the course, from their property store in Doncaster. PC Dave Chadwick, from the Urban Safer Neighbourhood Team (SNT), said: “So far we have donated 30 bikes to the college, which would otherwise be collecting dust in our property store.

“It’s an excellent partnership between the college and police and is really pleasing to be able to support young people to develop new skills.”

John Ellis, head of motor vehicle at the college said: “Even though they would go for auction I would imagine that they would get very little for them because of the state of repair which is needed with a lot of them, but at least now the students have got the advantage of being able to strip them down and see what’s worn and we can repair them.”

More than £1,000 was raised when a principal cooked up an Indian-inspired treat for Association of Colleges (AoC) chief exeuctive Martin Doel.

Vision West Notts principal and chief executive Asha Khemka donned her chef’s whites to prepare and serve authentic Asian cuisine to business people and college staff to boost funds for her Inspire and Achieve Foundation.

Educationalist Mrs Khemka set up the foundation in 2008 after growing increasingly concerned about the effects that the decline of the coal mining and textiles industries were having on communities in Nottinghamshire.

It aims to provide young people with volunteering and mentoring schemes to help them develop the right attitudes and self-confidence to succeed.

Mr Doel, also a trustee of the foundation, was one of over sixty guests to enjoy onion bhajis, cooked by Mrs Khemka, followed by chicken curry and other accompaniments.

Former world champion boxer Barry McGuigan visited East Berkshire College to meet budding young boxers and highlight sport as a route to learning.

The boxing legend welcomed prospective students to the College’s Barry McGuigan Boxing Academy (BMBA), signed autographs, answered questions and delivered a special workshop for budding young boxers.

More than 600 visitors attended the event, which formed part of the college’s Open Evening.

Mr McGuigan said: “I was given a chance through sport to fulfil my potential as I grew up, and I want through this programme to give others that chance.”

East Berkshire College is the only college in the south-east to offer a Boxing Academy written and approved by Mr McGuigan himself.

It offers young people the chance to study for a nationally recognised qualification whilst training to an elite level alongside professional coaches. The programme, which is approved by the Amateur Boxing Association (ABA), is open to males and females aged 16-19 who enrol on any full-time course at the college.

Visually impaired learners at Bolton College were given an afternoon of Blind Cricket coaching by Lancashire County Cricket Club.

The Club is supporting a campaign to raise awareness of cricket for the visually impaired and blind by encouraging more people to participate in the sport. Of the 12 learners who took part, seven have signed up to receive on-going coaching in the hope they can form a Bolton College team.

The group was supported by sighted learners, with some wearing simulation spectacles to experience the game as a visually impaired player.

Sheraz Chohan, of Lancashire County Cricket Club, said: “We’d ideally like to set up an amateur league between the colleges, but there is the potential for the players to progress even further within the County and National team if they have the skills and commitment.”

Bolton College’s curriculum leader for sensory impairment Linda Owens said: “We hope that the positive response from our learners, and with the support of Sheraz, we will have a college team that can compete in the region.”