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Focus on sustainability

We have made great strides towards meeting our net zero aims, with sustainability becoming a key part of the curriculum, a new e-bike partnership and plans for the renovation of one of our Centres.

Our lecturers have embraced sustainability in their curriculum planning, with the Creative Arts and Media Department already including the theme in their classes. The Level 3 BTEC Art and Design took part in an exhibition reflecting on the impact we are having on our environment, with two winners being named from the multiple entries.

Our Construction and Motor Vehicle Departments have also been exploring how they can contribute to achieving our lofty environmental ambitions, with construction lecturers and technical support staff a series of masterclasses on net zero topics. The lecturers who attended the session will now be looking to develop a resource bank to launch a new unit, Sustainability in Construction, to embed into the curriculum of the Level 1 and Level 2 trade programmes from September 2022.

The Motor Vehicle department is also getting to grips with the fast-paced world of electric cars, with multiple lecturers attending the IMI Level 2 Award in Electric/Hybrid Vehicle Routine Maintenance Activities course. They are due to be assessed next month. The qualification is designed to help training providers deliver modules on working with electric and hybrid cars and it is hoped the module will be worked into the curriculum once some electric and hybrid cars have been obtained.

Students support charities and local community

We have been supporting the nationwide Good For Me, Good For FE campaign which supports and promotes our staff and students participating in voluntary work. A recent survey of 80 students showed 37% of the participants carry out between two to four hours of volunteering each week with up to 400 hours completed by the students each week in total.

We have already been celebrating the efforts of our staff members who dedicate hours of their time to volunteering each week, so now it’s time to celebrate the work of our students!

Sunflowers for Ukraine

Our Health and Fitness students partnered up with our Floristry students at our South Bristol Skills Academy to cut, wrap and sell sunflowers to raise money for those fleeing the conflict in Ukraine. The floristry students cut and wrapped the individual sunflowers before handing the buckets over to the sport students to walk around the centre to sell the flowers, with both students and staff picking up a flower to show their support.

ESOL students join gathering for refugees

Some of our ESOL students joined a gathering on College Green to highlight the plight of refugees around the world, including those fleeing the conflict in Ukraine. They carried orange hearts to represent compassion for people fleeing war and persecution. Inspired by the refugee national flag, and the colours of a lifebelt, the heart symbolises hope and kindness.

Access student volunteers for suicide prevention charity

Access to Social Work student Rachael, aged 48, volunteers one to twice a week for Suicide Prevention Bristol with both patrolling and helpline. Her key responsibility is to hold face-to-face or over the phone conversations with someone who is experiencing suicidal feelings. She said:

“I like volunteering as you can give something back but also voluntary work is about quality not quantity. Volunteering can give you confidence, lift your self-esteem as well as raise your profile on your CV. It can help you to choose your career path without being tied to a contract.”

NAMSS award for our Creative Community students!

The co-creators of the College’s Creative Community were honoured with an award at the recent NAMSS Conference.

Jason Budd, Dexter Hill, Beth Moss and John Percival were presented with the Best Student-Led Initiative or Campaign Award at the conference, which was hosted in Liverpool on 14-15 March.

The Creative Community has also been running a weekly Film Club and arranges regular off-site trips to cultural institutions such as art galleries, media centres, theatres, talks/events and more. It has created a basis for students to socialise with one another and work on things they may not normally get to work on. Dexter said:

“It’s amazing to have been presented with this award. The acknowledgement is fantastic and we never expected to get this or for the project to be as big as it has become, with more than 170 members – we still can’t quite take it in! Thanks really go to our members for being a part of it, Fergal for helping us set it up and our lecturers for letting us attend lessons to promote it.” “Joining the Good for Me, Good for FE campaign is enabling us to showcase the great work our students and staff already do to help people in so many ways. There have been lots of activities at the College and many more planned for the rest of the academic year.”

The students’ lecturer, Ali Grant, was over the moon with their achievement. She said:

“I’m so excited to hear the students won the award for setting up the Creative Community. They fully deserve it. The way they’ve brought students from different courses and departments together has resulted in some exciting collaborations which have not only created new friendships, but enhanced student work. I’m so proud that they are students on my course and hope that the Creative Community continues to grow and flourish for years to come.”