Weston College is a key partner in the Bristol Post Skills for Lifecampaign. Executive director for apprenticeships and commercial strategy, Liz Redwood, explains the economic and holistic importance of creating future generations of highly skilled employees.
WESTON College is delighted to be sponsoring and working in partnership with the South West Skills Show 2016. The event will provide an exciting opportunity for young people to understand which skills needed to achieve the career of their dreams.
During the run up to the big day we will be highlighting students who have studied at Weston College and are now putting their education in to practice every day. These could either be students who are now studying for a degree at University, those who have secured full time employment or have gone on to win awards all over the world. We hope that these stories, and our attendance at the South West SkillsShow, inspires the next generation of young adults to create a brighter future.
Upskilling our young students improves their skills which then increases their chances of gaining employment, or opens the door to a wider range of career opportunities. Equipping themselves with extra skills helps them keep up with the competition for the most attractive roles in the highly competitive recruitment world.
The world we live in is constantly changing and evolving and ensuring that young people receive a good education is now more important than ever. Businesses have reported that they are struggling to fill skilled roles within their company and according to reports engineering, professional services and medical skills are the most in demand. Therefore it is essential that young people have access to good information, advice and guidance on the likely skills needed by employers to ensure for a fulfilling career.
With the local economy ever growing, it’s important that when learners leave education they are ready for the workplace and can hit the ground running. With the imminent development of Hinkley Point C there will be increased competition for skills within the South West, as it’s been agreed that 34 percent of the 25,000 employment opportunities will be within a 90 minute commute of the development. That is why equipping the workforce with the skills required for the jobs of today and those of tomorrow is paramount to ensure regional growth and development. Furthermore, businesses which do lose staff to Hinkley related jobs will need to backfill, so further skilled employment opportunities will be generated as a result of the Hinkley development and other large projects in the region.
Evidence firmly establishes that a combination of good education and training contributes to boosting future innovation and development, leads to higher wages and encourages foreign investment which in turn leads to job growth and less unemployment. Therefore, it’s important that young people become highly skilled in their craft to ensure that businesses within the South West can continue to grow and expand, which then in turn develops our economy.
Weston College won both College of the Year and Overall FE Provider of the Year at the TESFE Awards in 2015. This follows Ofsted awarding us their very top grade – outstanding – so we are officially the top performing college in the West of England. We are passionate about education and we have invested many millions of pounds in our facilities to ensure our students enjoy the best possible, industry standard resources. We have three campuses in Weston-super-Mare where we deliver a wide range of courses ranging from entry level to Level 7 (equivalent to a Masters) including;
- A-levels
- Apprenticeships and Traineeships
- Courses for students with learning difficulties/disabilities
- Degrees
- Foundation Degrees/Diplomas
- Functional skills
- Pre-employment
- Vocational (i.e BTEC)
We work closely with local businesses to ensure that we are giving our students the specific skills that employers are looking for when they come to select their staff and even if you’re unsure of what to study we have a team who provide support, advice and guidance to all students across the College, including those looking to join us.
We ensure our students have many opportunities to grow and explore whilst studying with us, we offer enrichment trips, work experience programmes with international companies, various club and societies, an Elite Athlete Programme and many more exciting opportunities. By studying with Weston College you’ll know you’ll receive the right skills to achieve your dream job and create your brighter future.
Weston College also provide training to businesses who are looking to upskill their existing workforce or bring fresh talent into their organisation. We can produce and deliver bespoke development programmes to help tackle identified skills needs within a business, as well as offering support with recruitment and advice on available grants.
Weston College is working collaboratively with North Somerset Council and the Local Enterprise Partnership to secure the economic regeneration of North Somerset, part of which ensures there is a suitably skilled, fit-for-purpose workforce to serve the area for the foreseeable future.
If you have any questions or would like to speak to someone about your future please get in touch:
Telephone: 01934 411 411 | Email: enquiries@weston.ac.uk | Website: www.weston.ac.uk