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
My name is Emma and I’ve been in the hairdressing industry for nearly 30 years. I started hairdressing as soon as I left school, working in a large salon where I completed a two-year apprenticeship with a one-day college day. I absolutely love every aspect of hairdressing, especially the way it allows creativity and for you to make your own style.
I worked in a few salons on a rent-a-chair basis, but always felt there was something missing for me. I had so many ideas and I truly wanted to open my own salon in which everything was unique. I worked very hard and I can now say it all was worth it as I have had my own salon for two years, which has been the best and most rewarding thing I've ever done, even with the Covid lockdown in between.
Something that was really important to me was offering students the opportunity to gain work experience, as I knew first-hand how important it was. Learning in a college is amazing, but being able to go into a salon to see how it's run and their own approach to each detail is essential to a learner looking to go into the field.
When I opened Unique, I wanted my salon to be different and stand out from the crowd, while also benefitting the environment. To achieve this, I decided I wanted all my colours and products to be vegan friendly. I also offer a wide range of eco-friendly products at an affordable price, so it's easier for my clients to be friendly to the environment.
With any learner coming into my salon, I would expect them to have fantastic timekeeping and be ready to learn, to accept that there are many jobs to be done, which are all of equal importance to the smooth-running of the salon.
This year, we are so excited that we are getting involved with the brand-new Careers Excellence Hub as an endorser. This will allow us to impact the future of our industry by influencing what is taught in the curriculum, delivering master classes and offering more opportunities to learners to gain valuable experience.
Emma - Unique Hair
If you're interested in studying hairdressing and barbering, click this link!
Ranging from Maths to English Literature, Photography to Psychology, these newly devised Adult A Level programmes offer a flexible approach to study.
Weston College are pleased to offer a range of 7 A Level courses for adults. Following the demand for the programmes to be continued, the college have now also added two new courses, Photography and Sociology, which traditionally have only been available for 16-19 year olds.
All the adult A Levels will be delivered online with specialist tutors, who will provide learners with online group lessons, individual one-to-one and small group tutorials on a weekly basis in the evenings.
There are also fast-track A Levels available, meaning learners can complete the qualification in just one year via a mixture each week of three hours of teaching, small groups sessions and one-to-one tutorials. The College have advised adults that they should also be prepared to do at least three hours of reading and research outside of these sessions each week.
The Government invested £2.5 billion into The National Skills Fund in 2020 to help adults retrain and gain the valuable skills they need to improve their job prospects and support the economy. As part of this scheme the College can offer the Business and Maths A Level for free if learners do not already have a Level 3 qualification.
Sir Paul Phillips KBE, Principal and Chief Executive of Weston College, said: “Weston College is delighted to continue to provide A Level qualifications to adults, now with two added courses in Photography and Sociology! An A Level is an incredibly valuable and rewarding qualification to study and can lead to several positive outcomes such as University, improving job prospects or simply expanding your knowledge on a deeper level. The delivery of these programmes is particularly innovative and has been designed to support adults to progress whilst fitting it in around their busy lives.”
Former Weston College Music Performance and Production Learner, Michael "Mike-e", has gained an outstanding achievement in securing a place on the highly reputable MA Electronic Music Production at dB’s Institute of Sound and Digital Technologies, partnered with Falmouth University.
Mike-e has been a part of the Weston College Group family since joining onto a Level 1 Music course in 2015.
Since then, he has gone from strength to strength - excelling into Level 2 and 3, then into the UCW Professional Music Performance and Production Degree and finally earning a spot to study his MA with Bristol-based dB’s Institute of Sound and Digital Technologies, commencing in September.
Mike-e's journey and success is a truly commendable achievement and a powerful demonstration of hard work, passion, and dedication.
Upon hearing news of his offer to study at dB’s Institute of Sound and Digital Technologies, Mike-e tell us he was ecstatic; “I have a habit of telling myself I won’t be successful in these kinds of opportunities so to hear back so quickly was so uplifting”.
Mike-e's future career prospects and goals after University include continuing to work as a sound designer and composer for films and video games while operating a sample library and software instrument business.
When asked about his time studying Music at UCW he told us: “I would recommend the course to anyone who wants to better their performance skills and develop some business knowledge. The studios and equipment are amazing, and I’ve really enjoyed and appreciated the opportunity to use them”.
