Weston College celebrates a decade of change

At a special dinner this evening catering staff at Knightstone Campus will be pulling out all the stops for staff and organisations which have supported it, through a decade of change and growth.

Since 2001 many things have changed at the college. As well as a multi-million pound facelift, the University Campus was opened by Princess Anne, the South West Skills Campus now incorporates the Business Enterprise Centre and The Hub was opened to help disadvantaged young people back into education.

The state-of-the-art Construction and Engineering Centre of Excellence was also opened.

The college has set new records for A-level passes with 99.8 per cent pass rates and there was 100 per cent pass rates for vocational courses.

It has topped the league in the West of England Education College tables for the last four years and Dr Phillips was awarded an OBE in January for his services to further education and the voluntary sector.

The 51-year-old said: “I am very proud to see where Weston College is today and I am honoured that everyone involved has given so much.

“Weston College puts the learner first and success here is down to a combined effort from everyone associated with the college.”

There has been a 34 per cent increase in numbers signed up for higher education courses, along with a 76 per cent growth in apprenticeships and a 152 per cent increase in the number of employers engaged with college training.

In 2000 there were just 45 full-time courses, today there is 119.

Also at the start of the millennium just 33 per cent of students gained grades A – C at A-level, now 80.3 per cent achieve this.

It is the first college in the South West to be awarded both gold and champion status for Investors in People and new hands-on, fast-track courses are available from plumbing and carpentry, to bricklaying and installing solar panels.

*TO SEE what the college’s future plans are check out next week’s Weston Mercury.