LATEST NEWS AND UPDATES
There is always so much going on across our various campuses and courses.
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When welcoming learners on work experience into Touch of Beauty, we expect someone with a driven and motivated mindset, who is keen to learn on the job.
Our learner who came to experience a hands-on approach to learning Beauty Therapy was Faye. She exuded herself with outstanding confidence when working and engaging with clients due to her natural ability to chat to anyone.
When being taught different treatments that were offered at the salon, she got stuck in, regularly asking questions and determined to watch how to correctly carry out the procedure to improve to become a better beauty technician. She had completed a few pedicures and gel polish removals for clients, and learnt the do’s and don’ts of more technical processes such as eyelash extensions and eyebrow lamination.
As well as work experience benefiting Faye through her learning crucial skills, her being there also was a huge help to us. She would go above and beyond to help everyone in there, both staff and clients, and would clean up behind us before we could even ask her!
From the experience and skills she gained while working with us, we could see Faye was focused on succeeding in the beauty industry, and we are confident she is going to achieve this goal.
Faye was a fantastic compliment to the salon, and lived up to our excellent reputation, we really don’t want her to leave!
We would highly recommend taking on work experience learners from the college, as they are keen to learn, and will give you the helping hand you need; it benefits you as much as it benefits them! It gives the learners a huge amount of experience to continue on developing skills to secure a full time job in the industry.
Eleanor Kirby, Touch of Beauty
Find out about work experiences opportunities we offer and how to apply, here!
If their plant-astic performance of Little Shop of Horrors wasn’t enough, Performing Arts learners have closed the curtain on the year with an incredible visit to New York City!
As well as a well-deserved trip away, the outgoing group visited New York for it’s world-famous theatres and Broadway performances – getting first-hand experience of performance and production from across the pond.
Learners got to have an exclusive backstage tour of Radio City Music Hall, the largest theatre in the world, before returning to watch “Chicago” the musical on Broadway.
Level 3 learner Emily Drohan added that her “favourite part of the trip was of course getting to see a Broadway show! We had the pleasure of seeing the musical ‘Chicago’ in the Ambassador Theatre. I have dreamt about going to New York and seeing a Broadway show since I was a child so being able to see some of the most talented people in our industry on stage was very inspirational and incredible to watch.”
On top of this, students went on a hip-hop tour of Brooklyn before getting camera-ready for tourist trips to the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island Ferry Trip and Times Square – just a moments walk form the group’s hotel!
Emily continued: “On this trip I learnt how committed you must be to work in performing arts. During our trip home one of my lecturers said to me ‘imagine having to go and do 2 performances now after all this travelling throughout the night’ because when touring in this industry that is exactly what would happen! Learning realistic facts about the industry allows me to then make educated decisions about what career I want to do within the industry.”
Once in a lifetime trips such as this are one of the career-boosting benefits that stem from the college’s newly formed Creative Arts Career Excellence Hub. These innovative subject specific hubs allow for students at Weston College to have access to exclusive opportunities. Endorsed by employers from within the industry, this enables for better integration with the sector to make sure class content is relative and opens doors for learners so they leave college with more than just a qualification.
Finally, Emily tells us about her time studying at Weston College:
"I recommend studying performing arts because it is tons of fun but also teaches you about the many career choices available within performing arts. Thanks to my lecturers I always felt safe, supported and respected.
"Another point is the amazing opportunities you get on this course. In the last two years I have been to both the west end and Broadway to watch performances, I have worked with a professional touring company backstage with costumes, I have taken part in a NatWest advert and done a workshop with DanceWorks London. All these experiences has allowed me to have an amazing level of knowledge and skills that will support me in my next steps."
Click here to learn more about our phenomenal performing arts courses, perfect for anyone interested in a career in in acting, musical theatre or dance
Our incredible cohort of performing arts learners took to the stage at The Blakehay Theatre in May 2022 for their final show of the year: Little Shop of Horrors!
Little Shop of Horrors is a mouth-watering sci-fi horror musical with a 60s pop/rock score, guaranteed to keep you away from any florist for a looooong time!
This electrifying musical features numbers such as Suddenly Seymour, Be a Dentist, Somewhere That’s Green, and of course the title song Little Shop of Horrors.
The meek and dejected assistant Seymour happens upon a strange plant, which he affectionately names “Audrey II” after his crush on the simple and downtrodden Audrey. Little does he know that this unusual plant will develop an unquenchable thirst for HUMAN BLOOD!
85 learners from Foundation Learning have participated in the Bronze, Silver, and Gold Duke of Edinburgh award. Each award has three aspects: volunteering, learning a new skill, and sport activities - as well as a hiking expedition in teams.
The Duke of Edinburgh was particularly popular this year, as it allowed learners to get active outdoors with their friends – something they missed during the pandemic.
19 DofE expeditions have run from May till June, involving the learners undertaking the award. These expeditions consisted of walking 6 hours, and up to 10 miles a day over the Mendip hills.
It wasn’t an easy expedition either, with constantly changing conditions, which included braving extreme heart and rain to complete the hike, but found music, singing, and general high spirits were the keys to keeping the enthusiasm high.
All the learners completed the expedition with smiles on their faces and great comradery, each demonstrating great pride in achieving the widely recognised award.
We asked some of the young people who took part in the expedition. One learner said:
“The expedition has been so fun, and challenging at times. On the first day I struggled with my health, but other than that it’s been great fun. we played uno, and roasted marshmallows which was fun for everyone.”
Another learner commented:
“I’ve found the expedition challenging because of the heat and the distance on day 2. What has been good in the expedition was being able to have breaks on the long distance walks and having music on the walks and being with the team and getting through it together”
We’re so proud of all our learners who completed the Duke of Edinburgh award, and we hope you find the skills you developed highly beneficial to your future.
From September 2022, Weston College are welcoming school leavers to study the brand-new Business T Level programme. T Levels offer a mixture of both college and work-based learning which has been designed to give learners the technical skills and workplace experience to kick-start their career. The new programmes are developed in collaboration with employers and providers so that the content meets the needs of the industry.
The two year Business T Level course is the equivalent to three A Levels, and will provide students with an understanding of a broad range of issues relevant to the sector, including; an overview of organisational cultures and values, stakeholders, governance and the impact of organisations on society and the environment; project and change management; business behaviours including communication; quality improvement and compliance in all aspects of public and private sector organisations.
Those joining the college in September will get to experience the brand-new facilities including an industry standard business boardroom with the latest technology and a brand-new workspace.
Employers across the country are recognising how important T Levels are going to be, especially in their plans for developing their future work force. NatWest Bank has pledged their support of the new Business T Level course at Weston College by shaping the curriculum, providing business skills training to students, and highlighting the benefits of employers hosting industry work placements through their regional employer network.
NatWest’s support of the Weston College T Level course is aligned to their mission to be a purpose-led bank and champion the potential of people, families, and businesses across the UK, focusing on the areas which can have the biggest positive impacts across society.
Elly Rowley, NatWest Regional Ecosystem Manager for the South-West said; “Through partnerships and resources, we are committed to supporting the business success stories of the future and are pleased to be working with Weston College on the introduction of their new Business T Level course.”
“We look forward to meeting and inspiring these future business leaders and being part of the curriculum through this exciting T Level partnership, which Weston College have been working closely with employers and industry on."
Dave Crew, Head of Business Growth & Employer Partnerships at Weston College said; “T Levels are the future of college-based technical education, and we’re committed to developing our curriculum with employers to create a work-ready pipeline of talent for our region. NatWest are a key partner for the College, and we’re delighted to be working together to create a challenging and engaging programme of skills training for our Business T Level course, as we create the business leaders of the future.”
The Faculty of Inclusive Practice and the Careers Team at Weston College have created a “Jobs Club” for learners with Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND).
This innovative venture supports learners, helping them to get ‘Into Work’ with practical preparation for job placements and future career path planning. The aim of this club was to also build the learners confidence; using a range of resources to help them recognise their skills, personalities, and interests, and how to highlight these to potential employers and relate them to jobs they would be suited for.
The group of 12 students benefitted from 7 sessions which included uplifting group discussions about self-evaluation and how to apply their skills and personality traits to the working world. Interactive quizzes proved to be an amazingly effective way to engage the learners and give them an insight into what different jobs entail and what employers are looking for.
On completion of the career boosting club, each learner received a certificate, which was presented by College Careers Advisor Sally Bebb and Weston College Group Principal and Chief Executive Sir Paul Phillips KBE, to celebrate the skills developed over the sessions.
Sir Paul Phillips added: “Here at Weston College, we continue to champion the phrase ‘Careers, not courses’. Whatever their level, age, background or circumstance, all learners who study with us here progress with the tools to succeed in the workplace. I’m extremely proud of our Inclusive Practice department and initiatives such as this further support why we are recognised nationally as a SEND Centre of Excellence.”
There was a wide range of skills that were improved over the sessions, the main skill being the ability for the learners to describe their attributes and how they used them effectively in given examples. This helped the members of the club to build their confidence when talking about themselves and what qualities they could bring to the workplace.
The building of these skills was very beneficial, as the learners from Jobs Club are progressing onto many future paths: 3 learners have secured Apprenticeships with their employers, 3 learners will be completing traineeships with the police, and five learners have stepped into the workplace, in sustainable paid employment, within the sectors of warehouse, retail, horticulture and lunch time supervisors.
Sally Bebb, from the careers team, said: “We would definitely love to run the Jobs Club again as it was so beneficial to the learners, and has been a hugely enjoyable experience with a great cohort. We all loved seeing how each of the learners have built their confidence when discussing their future career prospects.”
Congratulations to all of the learners on their fantastic achievements!
This week some of our SEND learners were lucky enough to be invited along to see behind the scenes of the legendary Glastonbury Festival just days before it opened to the public! If this wasn’t exciting enough, they were also given an exclusive tour by the prestigious Arcadia Spectacular, known colloquially as ‘Arcadia’.
A performance art collective; Arcadia combine elements of sculpture, architecture, recycling, pyrotechnics, lighting, circus and music into large scale performance and dance spaces.
Learners were given a tour of the infamous Arcadia ‘spider’ as well as getting the opportunity to hear all about different creative jobs and careers at music festivals.
Faculty of Inclusive Practice Lead Operations Manager, Nicola Lace, commented that “‘it was a great experience to be able to see backstage at such a well-known festival, as well as supporting people who might not feel as comfortable at festivals becoming more visible ultimately leading to more inclusive environments. The whole group loved it!”
This comes at a very exciting time, with Glastonbury opening once again at Worthy Farm in Pilton for 2022. Glastonbury, which welcomes over 200,000 festival-goers, has had a 3-year hiatus after being continuously postponed by Covid-19. Therefore being able to see behind the scenes of one of the world’s biggest festivals, right before the grand re-opening by festival creator Michael Eavis, was a wonderful experience for our learners.
Many thanks to everyone involved!
Weston College’s very own Creative Arts Department recently held the most amazing Summer Festival. The celebration of Art & Design, Fashion, Creative & Digital Media, Graphic Design, Photography and music learners took place from 16th-18th June at our Loxton Campus – with activities and shows for all the family to enjoy!
The commemorate the class of 2022 coming to an end, the festival-style event showcased an array of awe-inspiring work. From a full art exhibition, filled with works by creative arts learners of all levels, to live performances from our incredible music learners – the festival was truly an event to behold! Music Performance and Production learner, Millie, told us she was thrilled to have the opportunity to perform to such a big audience, stating "we got to perform in the huge marquee on the field on a real stage, it's so exciting to play in such a professional atmosphere...I really want to pursue a career in performing music so it was great experience!"
Take a look at our latest TikTok video to catch a glimpse at some of the outstanding work on show!
@westoncollege The Creative Arts Summer Festival starts tonight! ? Here’s a sneak peek of the amazing work on show ??? We can’t wait to see you all there! ? #fyp #foryou #creativearts #festival ♬ original sound - Valeria Torres
The show was a fantastic opportunity for learners to gain some invaluable industry experience, with encouragement to show-off their work and boost their networking skills. This is one of the many initiatives and career-boosting benefits backed by our Careers Excellence Hub (CEH), supporting learners to create brighter futures and develop essential skills needed to have a successful career!
Receiving raving reviews from all in attendance, the celebratory event was a tremendous success!
Rachel Heath, Dean of our Creative Arts faculty, had the following to say:
“The Creative Arts Summer Festival is absolutely essential in developing our learners’ employability and career prospects. As creatives, it is crucial to have the confidence and ability to showcase your work and be part of conversations with people throughout the industry. The Summer Festival gives students their first taste of professional life. This year’s show was a roaring success, and I received so many positive comments. I’d like to say a huge well done and congratulations to all the students that took part!”
To find out more about our Careers Excellence Hub, click here.
Click here to find out more about: Art & Design, Creative and Digital Media, Game and Animation, Graphic Design, Performing and Production Arts, Photography and Music at Weston College.
And to find out more about creative courses at UCW click here.
In 2021, Weston College launched the Level 3 BTEC Extended Diploma in Esports, and the learners have already achieved an impressive accolade, reaching the semi-finals of the British Esports Championships.
The learners have formed several teams, who all compete in their chosen games, and the team that play ‘Overwatch’ are gaining national exposure, for their success in reaching the semi-final. After competing in initial trials in October (just one month into the course) to pick their starting 6 prior to starting the season for the British E-Sports Championships.
They achieved a win in all their games in the lead up to Winter split. Because of their placement and results, the team was placed in Division 1.
After competing against the other teams in Division 1, they placed second to reach the Semi-Finals in the elimination stages.
In their first game, they beat Welsh College, Coleg Sir Gar 3-0. In their second game, they went the distance and played into overtime on the final map as they beat Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies’ Overwatch team, Confetti Arrows, 3-2.
From there, the training stepped up to practicing 5-6 times a week to prepare for the semi-finals against Queen Mary College (QM Samurais). Unfortunately, they were not able to progress from there after losing 3-0, but still gave the other team a very close game and played valiantly, going into overtime multiple times on different maps. Luke, a student who plays for the team, commented on this by saying: “I will hopefully do it again. The team that knocked us out this year is graduating, whereas the core of our team is staying, so we hope we’re able to win next year.”
Roger, another member of the team, added: “Competing is always great fun and challenges us to improve our teamwork and communication skills – a highlight of this year was being livestreamed on the British Esports Twitch channel; I certainly want to compete again next year!”
Will Price, a supportive member of staff, summarised: “We had an amazing run and were deserved semi-finalists; the dedication to training and improving as a team was inspirational to see.”
If you’re interested in the opportunities available in E-Sports, click here.
Marketing and Communications
The marketing department is responsible for promoting Weston College to the public, by promoting the Colleges courses, achievements and events.
Our aims are to attract learners to study within the Weston College Group, build and grow the College’s brand and highlight its reputation, and promote the College Group’s success, student progression and outstanding support for our learners.
The marketing department manages the College’s websites and official social media accounts, runs advertising campaigns, creates press releases, and manages many of the College Group’s events, such as Graduation, the Celebration of Success and the Business Awards.
We produce a wide range of publications including our full-time, Higher Education and part-time prospectuses, course leaflets and posters, and other documents such as the College’s annual report, magazines and newsletters, course brochures and the student handbook.
Weston College is committed to providing accurate and timely information for local, regional and national media, and the general public.
The marketing team is available between 8.30am and 5pm, Monday to Thursday and 8.30am to 4.30pm on Fridays. You can get in touch with us by emailing marketing@weston.ac.uk.
All of our press releases are uploaded to the news section of our websites. News from the academies we sponsor, including the North Somerset Enterprise and Technology College, can be found on the news section of the Inspirational Futures Trust’s website. News pertaining to our Higher Education Provision can be found on www.ucw.ac.uk.
The marketing department produces most imagery and film in house, and keeps an extensive archive of the photographs it takes. If you would like a copy of an image featuring you or a member of your family, please contact us at photography@weston.ac.uk.
Our photos of graduation and many other events can be found on the College’s Facebook page. High quality images can be found on the College’s Flickr account.
Weston College is able to accommodate many requests to provide locations for film and photography. The College has a range of attractive, modern and adaptable facilities which can be viewed on our youtube channel.
We also are able to provide heritage facilities such as the Victorian Hans Price designed Conference Centre and, from September 2017, the 1927 Winter Gardens Pavilion.
For booking details, contact marketing@weston.ac.uk.
For enquiries about sponsoring key events such as Celebration of Success, Business Breakfast, Business Awards and Graduation, please contact the marketing team by email at marketing@weston.ac.uk.
