Castleford College Childcare & Health Newsletter Autumn 2024
Department Newsletter
Welcome
Greetings from Castleford College’s Childcare, Early Years & Childhood Studies, and Health, Social Care & Wellbeing departments.
My name is Carla Cantrell and I am thrilled to welcome you to read our departmental newsletter, an exciting new publication designed to keep you informed and engaged with the latest developments in our amazing department.
In this newsletter, you can find out what our current and former students have been up to over the past year –from career activities to college trips, enrichment and student stories.
As the head of the department, I am continually proud of our students, their hard work and commitment to both their studies and work placements. The department is full of friendly faces who all have something in common – a passion for caring for others.
We take pride in our industry links and partnerships with employers including local schools, early years settings and healthcare providers. These all help to ensure that when our students leave the College, they are fully equipped with the knowledge and hands-on experience that they need to begin their careers.
I hope you enjoy reading through the newsletter and finding out about all the exciting things we have been up to lately.
Carla Cantrell
Head of Childcare, Early Years & Childhood Studies and Health, Social Care & Wellbeing
CHILDCARE, EARLY YEARS & CHILDHOOD STUDIES
HEALTH, SOCIAL CARE & WELLBEING
Forest Schools Training Trip
Not all our learning takes place indoors! T Level Education & Early Years have been learning about a range of approaches to teaching. They got to visit a local Forest School where they had a session to support their knowledge and understanding of the outdoor learning approach for children and learned how this could be applied to their own practice in the future.
Level 3 Childcare spent four weeks exploring the Forest School environment. They developed lots of new skills such as fire lighting, whittling, health and safety outdoors and den building as well as collaboration, active listening and problem solving - all skills which they can implement in their journey going forward as educators.
Student Award Celebrations
To mark the end of the academic year, Castleford College hosted a number of award ceremonies to celebrate their students’ accomplishments over the past year.
In 2024, the Childcare & Health departments hosted their first-ever awards evenings at both Castleford College and Wakefield College.
Students, with their family and friends, attended the celebratory evenings where they enjoyed grazing on a delicious food spread whilst watching the highlights of the year on the big screen.
As the awards commenced, three students from each class within the departments were awarded with a ‘Student of the Year’, ‘Success Against Adversity’ and ‘Creativity and Innovation’ award. Tutors from the Childcare & Health
to collect their certificates and take a photo together with the Head of Department, Carla Cantrell.
Sam Wright, Principal and Chief Executive at the Heart of Yorkshire Education Group, said: “Each year, we look forward to a variety of award shows to celebrate and acknowledge the academic and personal achievements of our students. It’s always inspiring to see the ways in which our students have progressed throughout the year– whether that’s overcoming barriers they faced, learning something new, or showing enthusiasm and commitment to their studies. I hope all our students are proud of themselves and their achievements as I know we are at the Group.”
Hear from our Students End of Year
Trips
Thinking about careers...
Childcare & Early Years
Libby
I have really enjoyed the placement and being able to be hands on, I have learnt about the safeguarding of children, healthy eating and how to spot signs of need in children. Following this course I want to become a teaching assistant for ages 4-5 and eventually become a primary school teacher. This course gives you a great insight into the industry and how to move forward into a career in the sector.
Health & Social Care
Mid Yorkshire NHS Teaching Trust said about our apprentice, Nina:
As a Healthcare Assistant apprentice, Nina has progressed her skills and work ethic significantly. Nina is often praised by both her colleagues and patients for her compassion as well as her exemplary clinical knowledge and unwavering commitment to her role - Nina won the Health Apprentice of the Year 2023 at our Annual Apprenticeship Awards.
Our Education & Early Years students were visited by Leeds Trinity University, taking part in a session exploring primary education degrees. As many of our learners are aspiring primary school teachers, they were eager to get involved in the discussions with the visiting lecturers that were centred around child development theory and how children learn literacy and maths.
Our Health & Social Care students also welcomed representatives from the NHS Mid Yorkshire Trust. The visitors spoke to the students about the core values and ethos of working for the NHS – as many of our learners are aiming to do. They also introduced conversations about progression opportunities into higher education such as the Bradford School of Nursing.
The two sessions allowed the students to meet and speak to people who have studied the same qualifications as they are, helping them to advance into careers that they love.
Yorkshire Wildlife Park
Flamingo Land Scarborough Beach
Paediatric First Aid Course
Our Level 3 Childcare students underwent essential training in their second year, which saw them complete their Paediatric First Aid and Food Hygiene qualifications that are key to further develop their skills once they are licensed to practice. Once qualified, this will make students stand out to employers as it shows that they already have some of the necessary practical skills to work in childcare or social work.
Yorkshire Wildlife Park
Take a look at our Childcare and Inclusion learners (plus Laney the guide dog’s recent visit to Yorkshire Wildlife Park. They took part in a classroom talk, learned new facts about different species and saw lots of different animals!
Extracurricular Activities
Clubs are a great way to make friends and have a break from your studies, as well as an opportunity to learn a new skill!
Here are some clubs currently running that you could join in the next academic year…
LGTBQ+ Club
A club for our LGBTQ+ members of the College, helping with student support in a weekly social group. The club sometimes set up a booth where they give out badges and leaflets and engage in educational conversations with fellow students about the community.
Darts Club
Over 100 students have already been participating in our darts sessions throughout the week. These take place in the Library Social Area over break and lunchtimes. Join a session and see if you can be the next Luke Littler…
Cooking Club
The Cooking Club are always creating the tastiest dishes from sweet treats to fajitas and pizzas! If you’re interested in learning how to cook some delicious dishes (and eat them), join the club!
Kickboxing
Some of our students got involved in an exhilarating 10-week kickboxing course! The course ran in both the Autumn and Winter terms and saw the students learn all the basics of the sport, progressing rapidly each week. At the end, they were all examined and graded.
Find us on Instagram for more content; @hoyactivities
