News and events
We aim to keep you up-to-date with the very latest Weston College news and events. Take a look below at what's going on at the College!
Got news you want to share with us? Email marketing@weston.ac.uk
Latest events at Weston College
Latest news and developments at Weston College
Learners from our Business Career Excellence Hub are spreading Christmas cheer, through the Business Enterprise Challenge.
Learners studying Business related courses at Weston College have been split into groups, and tasked with raising money for Weston Hospicecare. Each group have been given a Business Mentor, as well as a £50 donation for a start-up budget. The challenge is to turn their £50 into the most profit, with all proceeds going to the charity.
Each group of learners have created their business plan, which includes sourcing products, developing their pricing strategy, coming up with a marketing plan and then selling their product or service.
The groups have also been given a Business Mentor, with lots of key business people from across the town offering their support to this great initiative (full list below).
The challenge which was launched in October is well underway, and last week (W/C: 5th December) learners took to the Sovereign Centre in Weston-super-Mare, to sell their products. With a presence each day, learners showcased their merchandising skills as well as their products – selling Christmas gifts and raising lots of money in the process.
Dean of Faculty for Professional Studies Access to HE & Animal Science at Weston College, Helen George, said: “I have been really impressed with work that the students have been producing as part of the Business Enterprise Challenge.
“Over the course of the challenge so far, we have seen learners grow in confidence, increase their understanding of running a business and build some vital skills that will support them throughout their future careers.
“Most importantly learners are raising a lot of money for Weston Hospicecare, which has been the driving force behind the success we have seen to date.
“I wanted to say a big thank you to our Business Mentors as well, they have provided such valuable advice, guidance and feedback to the learners, and we really appreciate the support that they have given us.”
Each group of learners will present their experiences to a judging panel, as well as sharing how much they raised at the end of January, to try to win one of four awards:
- Fundraisers Achievement Award (for the team which raises the most profit)
- Most Sustainable Business Award (for the most sustainable business or product idea)
- Visual Merchandising Award (best trade stand)
- Entrepreneur of the Year Award (awarded to a team which demonstrated outstanding entrepreneurialism)
With the winners being announced at Weston College’s Celebration of Success event, in February 2023.
If you would like to find out more about studying a business courses at Weston College, click here.
Dear Parents/Guardians
As Christmas draws near and we look back on a year of challenges and opportunities it is good to see the phenomenal developments post the covid closure era!
At the various sites of the College, we have continued to invest in state-of-the-at learning and support facilities for our learners ensuring at all times we have been focussed on supportive learning environments with inclusivity at the heart of all we do. I am pleased to report that we opened our new premises in Bristol recently where the city centre location is specialising in facilities that enable rapid progression in gaining new skills with bespoke support. Our world continues to change but at the same time we continue to deliver outstanding resources and commitment to everyone we are responsible for. When it comes to the topic of student support and care, in November we were thrilled to be able to celebrate being the first college to be awarded Gold for the Further Education Mental Health award, along with being the first college to achieve the People, Culture and Wellbeing Award. The wellbeing and safety of our community remains our number one priority.
This newsletter will bring you up to date on our resources and services that maintain outstanding teaching and learning but also how we can support learners over the holiday period.
A reminder that the College will close for the festive period on Friday 23rd December 2022 and will re-open on Tuesday January 3rd 2023 for the start of the spring term.
From all the Weston College staff and governors, we wish you all a happy and peaceful Christmas.
Sir Paul Phillips CBE
Principal & Chief Executive
Learners from the T Level Digital and BTEC Computing courses recently took part in the Bebras Challenge. Bebras is a computational thinking challenge that is organised over 50 countries, in partnership with Oxford University and The Raspberry Pi Foundation. Learners answer questions that look at challenging their logical thinking and problem-solving abilities, both of which are vital skills required in computer science. This takes place in the 2nd week of November, with all that compete earning either a certificate of participation, merit, distinction or best in school.
Tom, one of the learners who had placed in the top 10% of achievers, told us about his experience.
“Our whole class entered the challenge together. Ben Hobbs, our teacher, put in the application for us all. It was great that we all entered as it meant we were able to revise together; we were given practice papers for the lead-up to make sure we were prepared for the challenge.
“I’d only found out about being in the top 10% of competitors when I was given the certificate the following week; it was definitely the highlight of the challenge!”
Those that achieve within the top 10% nationally, are eligible to take part within the Oxford University Computing Challenge (OUCC) in January, which looks to challenge them on their programming abilities within their choice of coding language, including C#, Java or Python.
Tom commented: “I intend on taking part in the OUCC; I think it will be much more difficult as it is focused on problem solving with coding, but I’m excited to face the challenge.”
Tom’s advice to anyone thinking of entering the Bebras challenge was to “try and manage your time and answer as many questions as you can – practice questions were the best and most effective way to improve on this.”
Ben Hobbs, the computing teacher who entered the learners into the challenge, said: “I am so proud of everyone who competed in the Bebras Challenge, particularly those who were in the top 10%; what an incredible achievement! Opportunities like these are the perfect way for the learners to put what they learn into practise, and the development in their confidence afterwards is astounding! Congratulations to everybody involved!”
