Canterbury College curate curious collection

Artists from Canterbury College have transformed an empty shop in the Marlowe Arcade into an exciting new art gallery.

The Curious Curator exhibition space, formerly The Discovery Store, will feature paintings, sculptures and installations by BTEC Subsidiary Diploma in Art and Design students.

The special four-day show was open to the public from 10am to 4pm on Saturday, 12 May, to Tuesday, 15 May, as part of the Sounds New Creative Music Festival.

Twelve students helped convert the empty store into a contemporary gallery featuring their work, which is a visual response to the music and themes of the Sounds New festival.

The festival also featured performances by Canterbury College Music and Dance students and others.

Myerscough College smash campaign target

Myerscough College has created 151 new apprenticeships placements, smashing their original ‘100 in 100’ days campaign target.

Ann Turner, principal of Myerscough College, said: “Achieving 151 apprenticeships in only 100 days is incredible news.

“It means 151 people have secured a new job and will be trained to achieve a qualification that will hopefully secure them a long-term future.

“For employers it means they have gained new members of the workforce who will add value for many years to come.”

The initiative, launched in January, is part of Myerscough College’s yearlong apprenticeship campaign, called “My Apprentice 2012”.

The principal added: “This however is not the end of our drive to increase apprenticeships.

“For the remainder of 2012 we will build on the successes of the first 100 days and focus on securing further apprenticeships and opportunities throughout the year.”

Footie star coaches at Middlesbrough College

Former Middlesbrough, Southampton and Darlington star Neil Maddison has a new role after signing on as a coach at Middlesbrough College. The appointment is good news for the College, which is in the process of developing its Sports Academies as part of the new £6.5 million Middlesbrough College Sixth Form Centre – known as MC6. The new MC6 Sixth Form Centre will include a state-of-the-art 4G astro turf pitch along with modern changing facilities which will also be open to the public seven days a week.

Deputy director of sport, Paul Watt, said: “As well as these qualifications, Neil brings invaluable experience of both playing and coaching professional football. This really gives the students who come to Middlesbrough College the best possible coaching experience alongside their academic commitments.”

Josh Keeble, 16, who lives locally in Guisborough and is in his first year of a Level 3 BTEC National Diploma in Sports Coaching and Fitness, said: “Neil really knows what he’s doing, he’s played the game, he’s been a coach and he’s been a manager so if he tells you to do something it’s very difficult to argue with him.”

St Brendan’s Sixth Form College gets new Principal

Michael Jaffrain is the new principal of St Brendan’s Sixth Form College, following the retirement of Ann Barrow.

The college says Mr Jaffrain has a wealth of experience in the education sector, having been promoted from the position of assistant principal, and has the “qualities to lead St Brendan’s into an exciting new chapter.”

Mr Jaffrain says he joined the college because he “was really keen to go back into the Catholic education sector as it has much to offer.

“I also wanted to remain in a specialist Sixth Form College as they provide excellent teaching and learning for post 16.

“St Brendan’s fulfilled both roles and has a fantastic reputation”.

The college says Mr Jaffrain’s strategy over the next few years is “to work closely with students, governors and the community to ensure that teaching and learning gets even better.”

MidKent College stroke awareness day

An inspirational MidKent College student held an event to promote stroke awareness earlier this month

Amber Garland, 21, had to learn to speak again after suffering a stroke in August 2009, and has no memory of her life before it happened.

The art student was joined by representatives from the Stroke Association – a charity of which she is now a volunteer – to help her run the event as part of Action on Stroke Month.

Jane Sedgwick, a spokeswoman for the Stroke Association, said: “I’m absolutely delighted for Amber.

“She has embarked on becoming a volunteer and we thought it would be a great idea if she lost her training wheels and did an event like this so she can get used to being in the spotlight.

“Amber has done very well and the event has attracted a lot of attention, which is obviously what we were hoping for.”

TyneMet College run a mile for Sport Relief

Students and staff from TyneMet College have been running the Sport Relief Mile in order to raise money for charity.

Ben Henderson, who is studying the Public Services Extended Diploma at level 3, set the best time by running the distance in 5 minutes and 58 seconds. Meanwhile, Claire Tallentyre set the fastest time for a female student, completing the mile in 7 minutes and 12 seconds.

Chris Bunten, flex fitness gym manager and strength and conditioning coach at TyneMet College, said: “The staff and students at TyneMet were delighted to be able to support and promote Sport Relief and we are very pleased to have raised the amazing amount of £150 to donate to the charity.”

Hats off to talented Weston College students

Eight textile and design A-level students at Weston College have been selling hair accessories, garters and decorations at a wedding fair in Bridgwater.

Nicola Stent, a textile and design lecturer, who also gained a First Class degree at Weston College, said: “It’s a way to use skills they have developed on their A-level and get them to think about the commercial world in which they are going to eventually work.”

The Griffens Carnival Club Wedding Fair, held in Bridgwater and Albion Rugby Club, was open to the public from 11am to 4pm, and also included a fashion show.

Record breaking Calderdale College student

A former Calderdale College student has become the first athlete to break a world record at the Olympic Stadium in London.

Hannah Cockroft, who was participating in the women’s T54 100m at the Disability Athletics Challenge (DAC), completed the race in 18.56 seconds. However, she had a tough time reaching the venue.

“The bus that was supposed to take us to the stadium crashed, so a load of taxis were ordered and all the foreign athletes took them,” Hannah said.

“We were delayed setting off and, because it was rush hour, it took us two hours to get here.

“We missed the call-up, missed the warm-up and I just had to literally get in my chair and get on the track.”

Hannah also finished fourth in the T54 women’s 400m and last year won gold medals in the 100m and 200m at the world championships in New Zealand.

Here’s a little bit of advice and guidance

With rising youth unemployment, continuing recession, a bewildering range of career pathways and the introduction of FE loans there has never been a time when it has been more important for young people to have access to high quality, impartial careers information and guidance (CIAG). Yet the last two years have seen massive funding cuts and a period of great uncertainty as Connexions was dismantled.

The Government’s stated ambition for careers guidance is to ensure every young person has access to the independent and impartial support that they need. Its strategy to achieve this has been by legislating in the Education Act 2011 to place a new duty on schools to secure independent careers guidance for pupils in years 9-11 from this September, with a consultation currently underway on extending this duty to young people up to age 18.

ASCL, along with many other organisations, was hugely disappointed when it was announced that the replacement to Connexions, the new National Careers Service, would offer young people only a telephone service and a website.

This means that it is left to schools and colleges to procure face to face guidance from an open and largely unregulated market. The Careers Profession Alliance (an umbrella organisation of careers professionals) has worked hard to put in place standards and qualifications for all careers practitioners together with a national register. However, the fact of the matter is that there is a massive variability in the quality of provision.

With national policies that promote competition between institutions, it is easy to be drawn into unhelpful accusations of self-interest. However, it is in everyone’s interest, not least our young people’s, to get this right.

Improving CIAG is not going to happen through legislation, close inspection by Ofsted or the proposed new destination measure. The reality is that the key to a sustainable solution lies with the leaders of our schools and colleges.

We need to sit down together, learn from the best practice in each sector and engage in honest and frank debate about how we put the needs of the young people in our communities first. In doing so, some will have to face up to the elephants in the room, such as:

• A funding system in schools and colleges which encourages institutions to maximise their intake.
• The existence of competition between schools and colleges and between different FE institutions.
• The creation of additional provision such as UTCs, post 16 free schools and studio schools in areas where there are already surplus places.
• Cases where students in schools are not given access to full information about local provision.
• Aggressive marketing by some colleges.

ASCL and AoC have produced a briefing and statement of good practice which we hope will form the basis for discussion between schools and colleges (www.ascl.org.uk/resources/library/ascl_aoc_joint_paper).

We strongly believe that believe that schools and colleges have a responsibility to ensure that all pupils and students have access to timely, well-informed and impartial careers information, advice and guidance. Young people need to know about all pathways available to them and there are plenty of examples of best practice which can be emulated.

FE colleges have vast experience of providing CIAG. Too often communication between staff within the FE and school sectors is very limited. We would urge staff working in colleges and work-based learning providers to visit schools and host visits from school careers staff. In return we would expect schools to support their careers staff to attend these information sessions.

Likewise, schools should pass on information about students’ progress and attainment to date and any support needs they have. Colleges and work-based learning providers should share information with schools on the progress, achievements and subsequent destinations of their former pupils.

It is time for the leaders of schools and colleges to sit down together and learn from each other in the interests of all of our communities. For our young people, it is the right thing to do.

Brian Lightman, general secretary of the
Association of School and College Leaders