CONNECT October 2019

CONNECT N E WS

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D I A RY DAT E S OCTOB E R 201 9

Animals move in two by two.

Over the summer the team at Shuttleworth College worked hard to move many of the animals in to the brand new Zoological Education Centre that opened for the new academic year in September.

BCS BEDFORD COLLEGE SERVICES

EDITOR’S NOTE Hello everyone!

Welcome back from the summer break if you managed to enjoy a get away and I hope you’re ready for an eventful start to the academic year!

Don’t forget to send your articles and photos for the next issue to us by Wednesday 16th October.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY 8TH OCTOBER The Bedford Sixth Form Open Day 5:00pm – 7:00pm

W/C 21ST OCTOBER Autumn Study Week (Bedfordshire Campuses

W/C 14TH OCTOBER Students Union Elections

W/C 28TH OCTOBER Autumn Study Week (Northants Campuses)

W/C 14TH OCTOBER Love our Colleges Week 2019

NOVEMBER OPEN DAY DATES THURSDAY 5 NOVEMBER Wellingborough Campus 5:00pm - 7:30pm

TUESDAY 12 NOVEMBER Corby Campus 5:00pm - 7:30pm

THURSDAY 7 NOVEMBER Bedford College 5.00pm-7.30pm

WEDNESDAY 13 NOVEMBER Kettering Campus 5.00pm-7.30pm

SATURDAY 9 NOVEMBER Shuttleworth College 9.30am-12.30pm

THURSDAY 21 NOVEMBER National College for Motorsport 5:00pm - 7:00pm

CONTENTS OLIVIA MORTON

Corporate Communications and Events Manager

T: 01234 291026 E: omorton@bedford.ac.uk

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CORPORATION NEWS

PAGE 3

PRINCIPAL’S UPDATE

PAGE 4

STAFF MOODLE

PAGE 5

NEWS FROM THE BEDFORD COLLEGE GROUP

PAGE 15

YOUR PICTURES

PAGE 16

EQUALITY & DIVERSITY

Corporation News The summer term for the Corporation concluded in a flourish with a number of committee meetings, a board meeting and the annual corporation dinner. This year we decided to host the event in the Buchanan Centre which was an immense success.

Raj Mandal, who some of you may remember from the past, catered for the event. Many thanks to Grace Kennedy and Talisha Baugh for their organisation, patience, table decorations and playlist. The dinner was the final thank you to Roger Marriott, our Chair of Governors and board member for over a decade.

Roger will be greatly missed. Allan Schofield is now the Chair.

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After a successful recruitment campaign the meeting on 11 July saw the endorsement of 4 new external governors, Sharon De Leonardis, Sulaman Sunny, Vinod Tailor and Cliff Wragg. The student governor elections saw a higher than ever voting turnout and I welcome Andrew Smith from Shuttleworth and Will Gerrard from Tresham to the Board.

The Board wishes you every success in 2019-2020.

For more information please contact the Director of Governance & Clerk to the Corporation, Rachel Nicol on rnicol@bedford.ac.uk.

RACHEL NICOL

Clerk to the Corporation T: 01234 291003 E: rnicol@bedford.ac.uk

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keep your suggestions coming in

Did you know you can follow Ian on Twitter? @ipryce

PRINCIPAL’S UPDATE

Ofsted Visit

Everyone did an excellent job during our Ofsted visit, and also continued to get on with everything else our students expect in their first few weeks. Thank you.

We are not permitted to discuss our provisional results before publication in a few weeks. However to slightly alter Sir Alex Ferguson’s famous quote after coming back to win the 1999 Champions League, perhaps I could sum up the week as “Ofsted, bloody hell”.

You should all be very proud of what we have achieved in two years.

Staff meetings

It was good to see everyone at our five main staff meetings. Georgina and Em set out the Executive priorities for the year: Student Experience/Curriculum Design; Apprenticeships; Data & Exams, and You. On the latter I am particularly interested in making sure staff feed in suggestions for how we can introduce career and pay progression in a sustainable way given the likelihood that normal pay awards are unlikely to be significantly above inflation in the near future.

we will see an increase in numbers within Northamptonshire.

Overall our plans commit us to staying above 5,200 full-time 16-18 year olds but at present we have set targets well above that number and staff are up to it. This means that if we miss our target we have to adjust quite quickly, and this tends to take away from a focus on quality.

Finally, I hope we can all build on Em and Georgina’s call to focus on all the exceptional things we have achieved in the two years of the Group, celebrate those things, and continue to build on that positive first few years.

Sinclair College, Ohio

With all the talk of the UK forming new links with the US post-Brexit it is interesting that Sinclair College have asked to develop a partnership with us. They have had a good relationship over the years with Tresham thanks to the links between Kettering, UK and Kettering, Ohio. Their President is coming to the college this month to formalise the areas for closer working.

On the exams front, it has been a shock to learn that 47% of special arrangements are agreed after the exam board deadline date in February. This causes real operational headaches. The earlier we can identify student requirements the better, so I hope you will consider how best and quickly we can pinpoint who needs help.

I also look for views about our size. Our strategic plan commits us to expansion of higher education and apprenticeships because we believe this reflects community demand. We believe that new provision in Wellingborough and our focus on progression means

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LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES STAFF MOODLE Many of you will know the Staff Moodle pages after undertaking the mandatory GDPR and Equality & Diversity training that’s hosted on it. However, there is much more to the Staff Moodle than this. The Learning Technologies team have started to develop this Moodle as the go-to place for I.T., Classroom Technologies and Digital Capabilities tutorials and information. The site is a great resource for new starters! On the Staff Moodle you’ll find tutorials about: •

General I.T. – general guides covering printing, access to systems and Wi-Fi

•

Moodle - guides on how to put together an effective course and information and tutorials on how to use amazing technologies such as Planet eStream, H5P interactive content and Blended Learning Consortium ready-made interactive content. There is also an important section on creating accessible course layouts and content

•

Mahara - this digital portfolio system is a great way for learners to post and share digital content

•

Clevertouch Screens - guides for getting the most out of these amazing devices

•

Smartboards – guides to the Smartboads

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Planet eStream - guide to the video streaming and video assignment upload system

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Windows 10 OS - as the group migrates all its PCs over to Windows 10 we have a few tutorials to help you familiarise yourself with this latest OS

•

Microsoft Office Apps – short guides for Word, Excel, PowerPoint & Outlook including important information on creating accessible documents

•

Adobe Apps – short guides on doing basic work in Photoshop and Illustrator.

The site also hosts a number of sandbox courses for departments across the Group to experiment with content and layout and to give a safe space for developing your Moodle skills. If you would like to have a departmental sandbox on the Staff Moodle please get in touch with the Learning Technologies Team – moodlesupport@bedford. ac.uk (Note, other test courses across other Moodle sites will be backed up and removed over the coming weeks).

Learning Technologies Team contact details: Phone: 01234 291959 (Monday – Friday 9.00am till 17.00pm) 01536 413143 (Wednesday – Friday 8.30am till 17.00pm) Email: moodlesupport@bedford.ac.uk Staff Moodle: https://staffmoodle.bedford.ac.uk

Nigel Gilbert

Learning Technologies Advisor

TOP 50 WOMEN IN ENGINEERING Dawn Fitt at Brunel Training Centre in Bedford was selected as Head Judge for the Top 50 Women in Engineering Award for The Women’s Engineering Society (WES).

Dawn, former WES President, IEng MIET FWES FRSA, former apprentice, winner of the 1992 Young Woman Engineer of the Year Award and now Engineering Apprenticeship Training Coordinator at the Group, will lead the judging panel for this years awards.

As a thank you, Dawn was presented with the 51st impromptu award for her efforts as Head Judge but also in recognition for all the work she has done to raise the profile of female engineering apprenticeships.

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NEWS FROM THE BEDFORD COLLEGE GROUP £4M ZOOLOGICAL EDUCATION CENTRE OPENS TO STUDENTS The doors to the brand new Zoological Education Centre (ZEC) opened to students on Monday 16th September 2019 following hard work from staff throughout the summer break to move animals and equipment into the £4m centre that provides modern studying facilities for our students to learn within.

The first animals to move in (front page and below) were the alligators who can enjoy their own special pool within the biome which is a key part of the centre, the only one of its kind within a further education college in the UK. In August, Carl Groombridge, Centre Curator, welcomed architects, colleagues and some very lucky children along to see the gators move into their new home. Having been carried one by one in a container from the former animal welfare training unit, under the supervision of a vet, the alligators were released. After exploring the bank they quickly dipped into their new pool - which is designed to be clearly visible above and below the water for students.

Carl said, amid the steamy jungle climate of the biome: “This is a dream come true for me and there is much more excitement to come as we move the other animals across into this marvellous new setting.

We have been working closely with the Zoological Society of London to ensure our centre meets the highest standards of animal welfare.”

Bringing the Amazon and the Outback to Bedfordshire, Shuttleworth College’s ZEC will follow an “Evolutionary Pathway” where students will learn how to look after every “order” of the animal kingdom. It will include an aquatic room, bird flight area and outside paddocks for the bigger animals.

Now the centre has opened its doors for students they will be able to train for careers around the world in conservation in a modern environment.

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NEWS FROM THE BEDFORD COLLEGE GROUP TOP RESULTS AT THE BEDFORD SIXTH FORM 100% pass rates in 21 subjects and A*, A and B Grades at 42.4% overall, showed that The Bedford Sixth Form brought out the very best in its A Level students.

A* A* A

Philosophy at Cambridge

AAA

Medicine at Queen Mary University of London

A* A A

English at Kings College London

AAA

Social Sciences at UCL

Maths took the prize for the highest % of A* and A Grades at 50%.

A*A A

History at Warwick

A* A A

Cyber Security at Warwick

A* A* A*

History at Warwick

A* A A

History at Exeter

A* A* A

Law at Leeds

A* A A

Philosophy at Leeds

A* A* A

Psychology at Sussex

High performing subjects at A*, A and B Grades were Film, Graphics, Psychology, Spanish and Sociology - showing the spread of top quality teaching.

Head Teacher Paul Clarkson said: “Students and staff are to be congratulated on this continuing improvement across the board.”

The team at The Bedford Sixth Form were particularly pleased to have broken through the glass ceiling into Oxbridge and medicine.

Picture shows Joe Chidwick who is off to study Philosophy at Cambridge University

LOCAL COMMUNITY LEADERS INVITED TO SEE THE GROUP’S SUCCESS The Bedford College Group welcomed local leaders of the community to our Kettering campus for a special midsummer celebration.

The event was held to celebrate the success of The Bedford College Group since merging in August 2017 to become one of the largest and successful further education providers in the South East Midlands region.

Guests were welcomed by Principal and Chief Executive of The Group, Ian Pryce, CBE before hearing from two student speakers from the Group who spoke of their journey with the College and how it has helped them progress in their career goals.

Guests including MPs from local Councils in Northamptonshire and Bedfordshire, SEMLEP and the

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Royal Academy of Engineering then had the opportunity to get involved in various activities hosted by staff and students in Arts and STEM focused workshops. Activities included Media Production, Mechatronics, Applied Sciences, Production Arts Makeup and the chance to sit in the National College for Motorsport car, used at Silverstone.

According to the latest Department for Education national achievement rate tables that measure Apprenticeship, education and training activity published in March 2019, The Bedford College Group had the highest student achievement in the Eastern Region, the group’s best ever result. The Bedford

College Group are now the 9th biggest college provider of IT apprenticeships, 10th biggest for Engineering and 12th biggest for Construction.

Guests left the event feeling more informed about the Group and its plans for the future.

NEWS FROM THE BEDFORD COLLEGE GROUP SOUNDS OF THE UNDERGROUND? Sir David Attenborough has introduced us to the idea that plants have senses which can respond to their environment.

Now a 22-year-old at Shuttleworth College is trying to find out if they react to sound.

Peter Lickorish has won a Milton Keynes Parks Trust bursary of £500 to conduct experiments in the potting shed of the landbased campus near Biggleswade.

He is placing propagation stage Euphorbia plants in sound boxes to see whether they grow best in silence, with the sound of trickles of water or mixed noises such as students talking around them.

Peter is completing the study as his dissertation for his Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Masters and said: “There is a practical application for this especially with the modern designs of plant walls in and outside of offices. Setting aside atmospheric influences,

do plants respond to the sound of a busy office or traffic noise, or does that stunt their growth compared to gentle sounds like running water?”

Peter works part-time at Shuttleworth College supporting those on the RHS courses which range from Level 1 Diploma up to degree-level and has his own business - Peter Lickorish’s Plant Paradise based in his home of Shenley Church End, Milton Keynes.

Explaining about the support for his project, Peter added: “The bursary is called the Fred Roche Foundation Study Award and is named after the man who was the General Manager Milton Keynes Development Corporation and thus green space developer of the new city. Only now can his vision for the greenness of Milton Keynes be really appreciated.

Like others from Milton Keynes who are interested in plants

and gardens, I came to study at Shuttleworth College as it has a long-standing reputation in the field of horticulture and agriculture.”

FIRST AIDERS NEEDED You’ll never know when this knowledge and skill may come in handy in life, and we are currently seeking to enlist more staff to help provide first aid duty at our main campuses: •

Cauldwell Street Campus

•

Kettering Campus

•

Corby Campus

As a duty first aider you will be given vital training in First Aid at Work and given a chance to gain a formally recognised first aider qualification which you will hold for a minimum of 3 years. We would then require you to provide much important cover as a Duty First Aider on one of our term time rotas, (AM or PM / Monday to Friday).

Duty First Aiders also are awarded an honorarium payment each year for helping to provide this essential cover and once trained and appointed you will receive a formal briefing and be given further guidance regarding the current first aid provisions covering your campus.

Ideally staff who volunteer must be able to provide cover for at least one slot on the rota and be available to respond to any first aid issues during that period. We also may need staff in other areas/sites where the rota may be a static one.

As a Group first aider you will be part of a larger team of first aiders and we work hard to ensure that you are supported and provided guidance as required.

For staff who cannot make themselves available as duty cover we will also provide training in Emergency First Aid which is aimed at helping staff improve their knowledge and general first aid skills as well as helping provide basic appointed person cover for low risk areas and times of College operation.

If you are interested please feel free to register your interest with us health&safety@bedford.ac.uk.

We will be happy to discuss your options and advice on how and when to register for one of the up and coming first aid training courses.

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NEWS FROM THE BEDFORD COLLEGE GROUP APPRENTICESHIP SUCCESS STORY AT ‘PRESTIGIOUS’ LOCAL COMPANY Eleven young apprentices at Northamptonshire company Prestige Homeseeker have successfully completed their training with Tresham College and are seeking employment at the thriving local business.

Prestige Homeseeker were looking to expand their workforce with home-grown talent and sought the help of Tresham College to give their new employees key skills to help in the production of their luxury park homes and leisure lodges.

The Business Development team in Northamptonshire were able to offer a specially tailored and designed two-year Maintenance Operations course, tailored to provide all round skills in plumbing, painting and decorating, electrical work, carpentry and joinery.

The apprenticeship scheme proved so successful it was shortlisted in the Made In Central and East England Manufacturing Awards.

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This followed two of the young apprentices, Loren Cooper and Will Vanner being awarded Construction Apprentice of the year at the Tresham College Achievements Ceremony.

Head of People at Prestige Homeseeker, Jo Morgans said: “This has been a very successful partnership with Tresham College.

Our apprentices have learned valuable skills, essential in the production of our luxury homes.

We are delighted that five of the apprentices are planning to continue their next level of training at the Corby Campus to specialise in electrics and plumbing.

Prestige Homeseeker are a key employer in the area and have actively supported apprentices, interns and other young people to make factory construction a career choice, working with an employer of choice in an amazing small family culture environment.”

The company began as a very small business and has grown organically and through acquisition over the last twenty years to become one of the Uk’s largest manufacturers of park homes and leisure lodges. Prestige Homeseeker produce fifteen homes a week, employ over 420 staff and run production operations in Kettering and Rushden.

Tresham College Head of Business Development Julie Hoult visited Prestige Homeseeker to congratulate the apprentices: “Our aim is to work alongside local businesses such as Prestige Homeseeker and provide training that meets their industry needs.

Apprenticeships such as this are an investment in people and offer progression for young people in a successful local company.”

NEWS FROM THE BEDFORD COLLEGE GROUP JUDITH RECOGNISED BY CISCO FOR TOP QUALITY TEACHING CISCO have recognised national award-winning Advanced Practitioner Judith Larsen for her years of top quality teaching.

Judith was the first woman to be recognised by CISCO for her work. She has since won a Times Educational Supplement (TES) national award as Teacher of the Year - beating everyone in the UK to the prestigious title.

The CISCO testimonial read: Congratulations on completing 10 years of active participation and service in Cisco Networking Academy. We would like to thank you for your dedication and contributions that help make Cisco Networking Academy the premier education program for empowering students to become a bridge to the possible.

She is part of a great team led by Paula Hobday. The whole squad have been entered for a BTEC

Team of the Year award for their work in supporting World Skills training.

Ground work for World Skills begins with initial regional competitions that were held at Bedford College. Competitors from across the area use the fantastic facilities at the College to take part in the first round of events. The finals are held at a huge event in the Midlands and then those who win places in the World Skills finals come to Bedford College to practice - again using those world class computing suites.

Paula Hobday, Head of Computing at Bedford College commented: “Our Cisco lab has been used to train UK finalists for the World Skills world finals.

World Skills organisers have praised it as ‘one of the best’ in the UK.”

WORLDSKILLS COMPETITIONS AT BEDFORD We held the Computing regional World Skills competitions at the end of the last term at the Cauldwell Street campus where a total of 18 students competed over 5 competitions. The other colleges which competed were Barking and Dagenham College, North Herts College and North East Surrey College of Technology. The competitions were as follows: •

IT Support Technician

•

Network Infrastructure Technician

•

Network Systems Administrator – our students came first and second

•

IT Software Solutions for Business – our students came first and second

•

Cyber Security – our students came second and third

We will hear in August whether any of our students scored high enough to go through to the finals.

Our own employee and Apprentice, Phil Beall, has qualified to compete at WorldSkills UK LIVE 2019 in the National Final of the competition. Not only that but he achieved the highest score across the country in the regional competitions.

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NEWS FROM THE BEDFORD COLLEGE GROUP RAISING THE ROOF IN CONSTRUCTION TRAINING Setting the standards for training in the modern construction industry is now a key role for one of The Bedford College Group’s Directors, David Wilkins.

employers, CITB and Industry federations to ensure that the latest technology within the industry is embedded in the curriculum.

Director of Construction & Building Services Dave, has stepped up from Vice Chair to Chair of the British Association of Construction Heads (BACH). The body represents 80 colleges nationwide which offer training for the Construction industry.

It liaises closely with employers and with Government agencies to determine how to meet the changing demands of the industry.

BACH benefits the whole of the UK of course, but closer to home it means our staff and students are in the front seat seeing fast-moving strategies come into force. Our students are right up to date with training and progressions opportunities and staff are kept up to date through Continuing Professional Development.”

“It is a privilege to be in a position where here in Bedford we are central to guiding training in the construction industry,” said Dave.

Like most of the tutors in the The Bedford College Group, Dave comes from a successful career in the industry where he now leads on training for. He started work as an apprentice carpenter scoring the highest in the country in the Institute of Carpenters Membership Award at the end of his apprenticeship.

He worked as a site carpenter at a Bedfordshire firm before becoming a lecturer in 2002.

“We link with the Department of Education, Ofqual and the Institute for Apprenticeships to help shape national policy and with OFSTED to ensure member colleges are at the forefront of excellent Learning, Teaching and Assessment. Most crucially we work closely with

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Now The Bedford College Group engages at the highest level with major construction companies. More recently it has been pioneering an employability project with global giants ISG. Locally the Group has opened the Advanced Engineering and Construction Centre which uses the latest technology to help those starting on site to progress through HNC and HND courses to degree level qualifications.

“People may no longer have a job for life, but they have access to lifelong learning which means if they start ‘on the tools’ they can progress up the promotion ladder by keeping in touch with their local college,” added Dave.

Bedford College has top quality bricklayer apprentices - including two who reached the national finals of the Guild of Bricklayers Awards.

NEWS FROM THE BEDFORD COLLEGE GROUP STUDENTS MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN TECH AWARD Do you know a bright spark with a technical idea that you think could be the basis of a future business? If so, Biztech’s BrightSparc and Digital Awards want to hear from you!

Milton Keynes is a city born out of new ideas and a vision for future prosperity, making it one of the most exciting technology hotspots in the country and, critical to creating the city’s future as a hotbed of innovative technology, fresh talent needs to be recognised.

Unlike other awards, BrightSparc celebrates everything that makes our city and the surrounding SEMLEP area such a great place for creativity and entrepreneurial spirit; all in the pursuit of finding technology solutions that transform lives.

One of the coveted BrightSparc categories is the Students Making a Difference in Tech award.

Judges are looking for a student who uses their unquestioned talents in

technology to make a real difference.

Maybe it’s a student who possess business nous greater than their years with the ability to merge their skills and abilities with an astounding insight into the market that they are poised to disrupt.

The winner will be finding real world solutions to real world problems and be proving themselves to be future leaders in their field, like local business entrepreneur, Wayne Cartmel who scooped the BrightSparc student award in 2015.

Wayne, who has subsequently launched MyNewTerm, a leading jobs platform for all teaching jobs, school support vacancies and education roles across Central Bedfordshire, Luton and Bedford, declared that winning the award was the catalyst to him launching his business: “It made me realise that my idea of a web application which would connect job seekers and education employers had real traction and gave

me the boost I needed to go for it. At the time the idea was just a prototype but this recognition, and the feedback we received, encouraged me to launch the business.”

Wayne and his team later won the NatWest Entrepreneur Accelerator Award for Best Start-Up Technology Business, and the award for Best Technology Collaboration in the BrightSparc 2018 awards.

If you’d like to find out more about entering this years’ BrightSparc and Digital Awards, which will be held over lunch at the Natwest Entrepreneur Accelerator Hub in Central Milton Keynes on 22 November 2019 visit www.brightsparcawards.co.uk.

Keep up to date with Biztech #BrightSparc Awards on LinkedIn and Twitter @MKBiztech.

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NEWS FROM THE BEDFORD COLLEGE GROUP TRANSFORMATIONAL TEAM The transformation of a group of young people who signed up to a Prince’s Trust Team programme run

by The Bedford College Group was celebrated at a dedicated event earlier this summer.

The group who were unemployed, experienced anxiety or were failed by their school system, joined the 12 week course and rose to the various challenges that are incorporated into the programme that aims to improve people’s self-confidence, completing a number of tests. As a result, they are now signing up for full-time college courses, or seeking apprenticeships.

At a presentation for family and friends, employers and supporters, Bedford College Team 4 outlined their experiences: ONE TEAM MEMBER COMMENTED: “I grew up in Spain but the school system made no allowances for my autism. Jobs are scarce in Spain and so I was glad to come to the UK and sign up to this course. It has really improved my life.”

Another added: “I left a course as I was suffering from anxiety and depression. I was persuaded to join the Prince’s Trust Team and it has been pretty cool.

Having met the RAF at Chicksands I hope to join a Public Services course at Bedford College.”

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OTHERS SAID AT THE CEREMONY: “I have been unemployed but want to work in IT so am looking for work now. I wanted to have the Prince’s Trust on my CV but have improved my people skills so much that I feel more confident.”

“I didn’t want to join the Prince’s Trust Team but I have enjoyed every moment. The rest of the team weren’t people I would usually hang out with, but we worked together well. I am applying for apprenticeships now.”

“I wanted to gain confidence - just being able to stand up and speak to a room full of people is a massive move for me.”

The 12-week course included an introductory week followed by a team-building residential course in the Peak District with canoeing, abseiling, climbing, weaselling and more. The participations who had never undertaken anything of the sort were ALL encouraged to join in when they saw others taking “the plunge”.

Three weeks of fundraising paid for the teams community project at the E-spired School off Ampthill Road saw the squad clean and repair a safe space hut and prepare a football pitch for pupils.

Once completing the community project, the team then completed work placements with organisations working in marketing, construction, recruitment, education and a museum.

Week nine involved visiting Barclays in Northamptonshire where the professional staff have generously assisted Prince’s Trust young people in CV writing and interview techniques for several years.

Team challenges followed with the young people working with Living It Up, a performing arts charity for adults with learning disabilities. They took part in singing events and helping at the 30th anniversary Bedfordshire Games.

The final week involved a trip to RAF Chicksands to experience military training, talks with The Bedford College Group apprenticeships office and then preparing their presentations for the end of Team show.

Matt Tylesley, Team Leader said: “We would like to sincerely thank all the businesses and employers who help us with these Teams.

Their input is vital in helping young people gain insights into what work really looks like.”

Team 5 starts on September 30th and anyone wanting to learn more can contact Mark Williams on mwilliams@bedford. ac.uk or visit the Prince’s Trust office within The Bedford Learning Centre on the High Street, Bedford.

NEWS FROM THE BEDFORD COLLEGE GROUP NEW VICE PRINCIPAL OF THE BEDFORD COLLEGE GROUP IS KAREN CAMPBELL Karen will be responsible for Apprenticeships, land-based learning, construction and STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths). This follows Karen’s experience as Director of Social Studies at the Group since 2018.

Karen has worked at Bedford College for more than 10 years having started as Additional Learning Support Manager and then Head of Care Childcare and Counselling. She then went on to oversee Health & Social Care, Child Care, Counselling, Teacher Training and Access to HE. Access to HE is for those adults who wish to go to university who may lack the qualifications from school. The course supports people

to develop the academic skills required to undertake degrees in sectors such as Nursing, Social Work and Teaching.

She joins Emma Lowe and Georgina Ager as the three Vice Principal’s of the Group.

Retiring as Vice Principal this year is Mike Johnston, longstanding and respected leader of Shuttleworth College which merged with Bedford College in 2009 and is now one of the most successful land-based learning establishments in the country supporting the farming, rural and outdoor activity sectors.

A WARM WELCOME TO In addition, we also welcomed Faye Williams over the summer who has joined us to take up the role of interim Director of Adult & Community Learning until February 2019, Alex Mortby will join us as the new HE Director on 25 September 2019. Faye will be based in Kettering in room 224 and Alex in Bedford on the 2nd floor of the Bruntland Building. We are also welcoming Margot Saunston who is the new Head of Estates across the Group and Nicola Shortland who is the new Deputy Head of The Bedford Sixth Form.

Faye Williams

interim Director of Adult & Community Learning

Alex Mortby HE Director

Nicola Shortland Deputy Head of The Bedford Sixth Form

Margot Saunston Head of Estates across the Group

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March 2019

YOUR PICTURES Every month you send the marketing team wonderful images from our different campuses that we post on to our social media channels. Here are some of the highlights from the past few months.

On Friday 28th June 2019 students from Health and Social Care courses at Croyland Hall, Wellingborough enjoyed a day trip to Natureland Seal Sanctuary and the Skegness seafront.

Students visited Natureland to see the great work that they do in rescuing and rehabilitating orphaned and injured seals before they had time to explore Skegness seafront in the sunshine. The trip followed all students completing their Health and Social Care qualifications and a great day was had by all.

Corby’s Health and Social Care Welcome Day for new students to learn about different creative activities that they could use when they go out on work placement. The students were making grass heads to be judged when they return in September to see which ones have grown the most and looks the best.

Richard Hellyer, Farm Manager at Shuttleworth, proudly looks at the fabulous stand of Honey Bee Nectar flowers at the college farm.

He has planted this 2 acre plot as a part of the college’s conservation plan which aims to encourage and provide food and habitat for insects and wildlife and to make sure the farm is in the forefront of the UK’s plans to decrease the harmful impacts of farming and increase its richness and diversity by encouraging wildlife. The beautiful flowers (Phacelia and Borage) that you can see are particularly attractive to bees and flying insects and provides a great source of food for them.

Kevin Norley, lecturer in adult English and maths, recently presented a paper at the 10th World Education Research Education (WERA) conference at Gakushuin University in Tokyo. The conference, which took place over 4 days in early August, provided the opportunity to mix with some of the 1,300+ delegates from over 60 countries and to listen to some thought-provoking keynote speeches from the likes of Andy Hargreaves, Stephen Ball, Ingrid Gogolin and Tan Oon-Seng.

In addition, Kevin presented a paper entitled ‘Mentoring teacher trainees of mathematics for ESL learners in post-compulsory education’ at the Korean Association of Multicultural Education (KAME) in Seoul, South Korea, in late May. The paper has been published in the International Journal of Mentoring and Coaching in Education. One of the keynote speakers at the conference was James A Banks, who is regarded as the ‘father of multicultural education.’

Last weekend Josh Lunn (based in the Finance Team at the Cauldwell campus) competed in the Great North Run and finished 15th (5th British) in a time of 64:25.

This places him 11th on the British rankings this year. He is currently preparing for his debut marathon, in Frankfurt at the end of October.

Well done Josh, we’re right behind you!

The Great English and Maths Bake Off Competition held on the last day of term.

October 2019

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PEOPLE NEWS CURRENT VACANCIES Here are the current vacancies available across the Group. Visit the Staff Intranet to find out more information on how to apply.

Associate Lecturer in Floristry Location: Shuttleworth College Salary: Unqualified Lecturer £20.50 per hour Qualified Lecturer (Qualified- PGCE/Cert Ed or equivalent) £21.50 per hour Application closing date: 29/09/2019 Assistant Manager (Bedford College Services) Location: Bedford Salary: £17,500 per annum, pro rata dependent on qualifications and experience Application closing date: 29/09/2019 Teacher of Business Location: Bedford Salary: Circa £31,000 per annum, pro rata dependent on qualifications and experience Application closing date: 30/09/2019 Teacher of Chemistry and Applied Science Location: Bedford Salary: £32,000 - £38,000 per annum, pro rata dependent on experience and qualifications Application closing date: 30/09/2019 Volunteer Counsellor Location: Kettering Application closing date: 07/10/2019

RELIGIOUS FESTIVALS IN OCTOBER 2019 SEPT/OCT HARVEST FESTIVAL CHRISTIAN (WESTERN, ANGLICAN AND FREE CHURCHES) 1st - JASHN-E MEHERGAN (or MIHR JASHAN) Zoroastrian (Iranian) 2nd - GANDHI JAYANTI (Hindu) 29th September to 7th - NAVARATI (Hindu) 3th to 8th - DURGA PUJA (Hindu) 7th - DUSSEHRA / VIJAYA DASHAMIPUJA (Hindu) 7th - CLIMB A HIGH MOUNTAIN / PICNIC IN A HIGH PLACE / CHONGYANGJIE / CH’UNG YANG (Chinese) 9th - YOM KIPPUR (Jewish) 13th to 19th - INTER FAITH WEEK OF PRAYER FOR WORLD PEACE 14th to 21st - SUKKOT (Jewish) 14th - PAVARANA DAY (Buddhist) 20th - CONFERRING OF GURUSHIP ON THE GURU GRANTH SAHIB (Sikh) 22nd - SIMCHAT TORAH (Jewish) 27th - to 31st DIVALI / DEEPAVALI (Hindu / Jain) 27th - DIWALI / BANDI CHHOR DIVAS (Sikh) 29th - ANNIVERSARY OF THE BIRTH OF THE BAB (Baha’i) 30th - ANNIVERSARY OF THE BIRTH OF THE BAHA’U’LLAH (Baha’i) 31st - SAMHAIN (pronounced Sow-in) (Wiccan Pagan) SAMHUINN (Druid) 31st - HALLOWEEN (Heathen)

DIVERSITY CALENDAR – OCTOBER 2019 Developing awareness of diversity and inclusion in a complex multi-cultural world and promoting the core values of British society: democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.

For more details and inspiration go to ‘Diversity Calendar: October 2019’ on Connect staff intranet.

October is Black History Month to celebrate the culture and histories of black communities with a comprehensive programme of events to honour the too often unheralded accomplishments of black Britons in every area of endeavour throughout our history.

If you would like to get involved and discover more about black history, you will find a full listing of events and exhibitions taking place across the UK on the official Black History Month website www.blackhistorymonth.org.uk

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October 2019