We have successfully completed our 300 in 100 apprenticeship campaign, creating 345 apprenticeship opportunities in just 100 days!

The campaign which aimed to counter the rising levels in youth unemployment, and buck the trend with national apprenticeship figures, proved to be highly successful; with opportunities created across sectors.

Companies of all sizes pledged to get involved, from global heavyweights such as GKN, to national organisations like the the NHS, as well up and coming businesses, like One Big Circle.

Caroline Brittain, at Bosscut Barbers, who have hired an apprentice through the campaign, said: “The support we have received so far from the College has been second to none. We look forward to developing our apprentice and hopefully many more apprentices in the future.”

Jennifer Drew, Manager, at Ridgeway House, agreed, saying: “The whole apprenticeship process has been really easy, and our new apprentice has brought fresh ideas and energy to the team which has been really important in our business.”

Dr Paul Phillips CBE, Principal and Chief Executive of Weston College, added: “I am delighted that we are bucking the national trend, and delivering apprenticeships that are impacting both learners and employers – something vital in the current climate.

“To create so many opportunities truly is incredible, so I’d like to thank our local business community who have got behind the campaign and pledged to support our community, by offering residents the opportunity to retrain, upskill or get their first taste of employment.

“Now is an even better time for organisations to pledge than usual too, with the government offering incentives of up to £4,000 per apprentice that employers decide to hire.”

West of England Metro Mayor Dan Norris, who leads the Combined Authority, said: “This is fantastic news for local people who are considering an apprenticeship.

"Congratulations to the team at Weston college for securing such excellent opportunities with some of the West of England's top businesses.

"I'm proud that the West of England Combined Authority which I lead works closely with Weston College, funding projects to develop training improve career opportunities. The construction and healthcare apprentices I met recently at the college were all bright and enthusiastic so it is wonderful to hear about the opportunities for the next group of people ready to gain new skills."

Although the campaign is officially over, you can still hire an apprentice and access the government incentives. Find out more about apprenticeships, here: https://www.weston.ac.uk/employers/taking-apprentice

Earlier this academic year, Weston College launched the first ever Digital T Level, one of just 15 Further Education Colleges in the UK offering the course.

As part of the T Level, learners complete a minimum of 45 days with a relevant employer carrying out their Industry Placement to really hone what they learn in the classroom.

Almost a year into the course, and learners are having a positive impact on local employers, helping to enhance their digital visibility, whether that be through websites or social media, at a time when it is more important than ever.

Following the huge success, Weston College has decided to launch a new T Level transition programme, with the aim of supporting learners to get ready for the Digital T Level. This has caught the attention of local employers, who recognise the importance of the course, and the potential that it can bring for their organisation; by building a pool of new talent, gaining support from an additional pair of hands, who can bring fresh ideas and provide them with the opportunity to mould a learner into a future employee.

Leading digital companies: Bath Property Maintenance, Minotaur Software, One Big Circle, Sense IT and Synoptix, have all pledged their support for the new T Level transition programme, which will see them offer learners work experience, as well as give guest talks to the learners who are preparing to complete the T Level programme.

Emily Kent, Director at Intelligent Video specialists One Big Circle based in Bristol commented: “We have been really impressed with the work of T Level students, hearing fantastic reviews from local businesses, and we wanted to support learners on their T Level journey, and prepare them for our industry where the skills they have developed will be in great demand in the years to come".

Rob Barnett, HR Manager at Synoptix, said: “We have been working with Weston College for a few years now, and they have provided us with some fantastic young talent, who have thrived in a business setting. Our endorsement of this programme further cements our support not only for the college, but for young people across the region and to allow them a route into our industry.”

Bruce Reed, Director at Sense IT, added: “Industry Placements offer the opportunity to meet keen and eager potential employees, that can be developed into future leaders of your business. We are delighted to support this new initiative, as we know from experience that the College develops learners of a high standard, who we can help further grow their talents.”

Dr Paul Phillips CBE, Principal and Chief Executive of Weston College Group, said: “I am so proud of our T Level learners, having heard about their success from local businesses, and how grateful local employers were for their support.

“The transition programme will allow more learners to enter this route, and working with these fantastic local employers will provide learners with the vital experience they need to enhance their skills. We are looking forward to working in partnership with these leading tech sector employers, to develop career pathways for our learners.”

You can find out more about the T Level transition programme, here.

Weston College has an outstanding set of English and Maths GCSE results again this year. 40% of learners who re-took their Maths GCSE achieved a grade 4 or higher. 63% of learners who re-took English Language GCSE achieved a grade 4 or higher. Both of which are above the National Average which in 2019-20 was 35.7% for English and 28.1% for maths.

Each year we have a combination of new learners to the College and returning learners, who have previously failed to obtain the C grade required to progress to further education.

These results are a huge cause for celebration, and go to show how Weston College supports its learners to achieve.

Kelly O’Connor, Subject Area Manager for GCSE English, said: “I’m immensely proud of my students and am confident that they have paved their way to successful futures.”

Some of the tremendous successes recorded at the College include:

If you’re starting in September, and you’re not sure how to upload your photo for your college ID, you’ve come to the right place!

Before starting with us, we will need to set you up on ‘eILP’ which can be accessed here.

To log in, you need to add your username and password which you should have received via email (your username will start with WS).

Once you’re logged in, you need to click ‘My Enrolment’ and then click upload photo.

You will need to make sure that the photo is taken against a plain background ready, as this will be used for your ID card which you will collect when you are in college.

Think of the picture like a passport one, and make sure that your face and neck are in shot, and that you don’t have a cap or hat on. You can wear religious headwear.

You will also need to complete the 'Upload Identification' section, which can be a photo or a scanned copy of one of the document types listed on the page.

Success stories about student progress always make great reading and this year we have seen more fantastic students, who have made the most of the opportunities presented to them.

Two students I want to focus on today, study a Level 3 Animal Management course. Both learners worked at The Pet Studio in Nailsea, where they put their theory into practice, and developed both technical and employability skills needed, to work as a dog groomer.

Both learners completed over 200 hours of work experience, and impressed so much, that they were offered a place at The Pet Studio Dog Grooming Training Academy based in Congresbury.

One year on, and not only have they successfully managed to complete their course at the Academy, but they are now employed by The Pet Studio.

The Pet Studio, run by Liza Smith, is using Weston College students as a talent pipeline for her business. Industry Placements have offered Liza many benefits, including developing young people and equipping them with the skills needed to work in the dog grooming business, and utilising an extra pair of hands in the studio.

Studio manager Danielle said “Liza gave me a chance to work here when I was a student, and now I am happy to give others that same chance. The students from Weston College are brilliant, motivated, and hardworking, we love having them here. The industry placement scheme is great, I can’t think why all businesses don’t take advantage of it.”

If you think that this might benefit your business then please do not hesitate to contact us, we have student from all courses that would love the opportunity to work with you. workplacementteam@weston.ac.uk

Sarah Roberts, Work Placement Officer

T Levels are a new qualification, that offers students aged 16-19 an alternative to A Levels, apprenticeships and BTEC courses.

They offer an equivalent to three A Levels, and focus on vocational skills that help students to progress into skilled employment, university or degree apprenticeships – depending on the route that they would like to take.

A key aspect of T Levels is the industry placement, with learners needing to complete a placement of at least 45 days.

For many employers, T Levels offer them an opportunity to discover their next batch of talented recruits, with a no cost placement presenting employers with the opportunity to get to know learners and understand whether or not they would be a good fit for an apprenticeship, or employment on completion of their course.

Although T Levels are new, we have been offering industry placements to employers over the last few years, and we have seen many successes; from learners gaining full time positions, to employers seeing drastic upturns in work output.

We also launched our first T Level in September 2020, and we are hearing positive feedback from employers, who have been working with our learners.

Luanne, from Friends Together, had help from our T Level learners in developing a website, she commented: “From the get-go the learners were so enthusiastic about the project, and they were able to deliver a website that surpassed all of our expectations, with features I didn’t think would be possible to add. Despite only being 6 months into their course, they took my vision on board and made it a reality.

“The learners are so friendly, and we built up a really good working relationship. It was a pleasure to work with them.”

If your organisation could benefit from having a T Level learner supporting you, then contact the team to find out how we can help: Workplacementteam@weston.ac.uk

You can find out more about T Levels, and industry placements, here: https://www.weston.ac.uk/work-experience

With A Level, Vocational and GCSE results coming out in close succession, we recently hosted two live events visiting learners in our local community to celebrate their brilliant successes within 'Results Week 2021'

It's not too late to join us this September - click here to start your course search.

In case you missed them, you can watch back the events/interviews here:

We are now less than a month away from the start of the 2021/22 academic year and we are looking forward to welcoming your young person to one of our campuses in September! 

We wanted to inform you that our college bus passes will go on sale via the online college shop from 09:00 on Monday 16th August 2021. 

We offer the choice of two heavily subsidised bus travel passes - which learners choose depending on where they are travelling from and whether they wish to use the service outside of College hours. To find out more about our bus passes, including timetables please visit www.weston.ac.uk/bus.

First Bus Travel Pass 

Our First Bus Pass offer is one of the most generous in the area and gives substantial discounts on travel across the West of England. The pass is valid on all local First Bus buses, 24 hours a day during term-times (including half-term holidays) and comes in either a five-day or seven-day option. It doesn’t have to be used solely for College-related travel – there are no restrictions on what kind of travel it can be used for! 

• First mTicket 5-day term pass 21/22 £80.00 
• First mTicket 7-day term pass 21/22 £120.00 
• First mTicket apprentice 17-week pass £120.00 

Instructions on how to activate the First Bus mTicket can be found here. These passes will become active from 31st August 2021. 

Weston College Travel Pass 

We have continued to provide direct coach services to the College via Bakers Dolphin. There are direct routes from Bridgwater, Nailsea, Clevedon, Portishead and Blagdon, meaning that learners can get to college even faster and more efficiently. These routes provide one inward and outward journey per day and services will commence from Monday 6th September 2021. Once purchased on the shop, learners will be able to pick up their travel card from a campus reception. 

Weston College termly travel pass £80.00 

How do I buy? 

Simply click on the below link, select ‘bus passes’ and follow the on-screen instructions. 

Weston College Online Shop

At this current moment in time, we are advising all college learners to wear a face covering when using our various transport services. 

In the meantime, if you have any questions about your young person’s college programme, or what they need to do before they start their programme with us, please call our admissions team on 01934 411481 or via the Live Chat here on our website.