News

Billingham Town

After a successful first season, The Skills Academy has once again joined forces with local football team Billingham Town in a one-year sponsorship deal.

With the hope of creating valuable work experience opportunities for their students, Alternative Provision Manager at The Skills Academy, Tracey Laycock said:

“It is very important to us that we can make links with the local community. Billingham Town is important to the local area and young people. We hope it will help us create many opportunities for our learners. So many dedicated and hardworking volunteers run the club and hopefully as a college, we can get involved and help.”

With current restrictions in place, the staff at The Skills Academy have not been able to cheer on the team from the stands this season but are hoping to attend as many games as they can in the upcoming months.

Ray Morton, Football Secretary at Billingham Town Football Club, said:

“The Skills Academy provides a great opportunity for students to learn new skills, this is something we hope to assist with when conditions are more favourable.”

“Having been a teacher at Northfield School and the Bishopton Centre in recent years, I know how great the support and development is provided to students by The Skills Academy and we look forward to working together with staff and students going forward.”

Currently in the Ebac Northern League, Billingham Town aims to support local player development from grassroot football to academy level. The club aspires to use sport as a tool to motivate and inspire individuals and local communities. The club has also recently established a new Under 18 team.

Ray Morton

Billingham Town Football Club

Enterprise Project

A group of college students chose to combine education with empathy and raise money for a local charity.

The positive pathways students at The Skills Academy decided to raise money for their local Billingham food bank as part of their enterprise project.

Working closely with tutor Lee, the group planned a range of fundraising activities such as sweet bags, car washes and a bake sale.

Positive pathways tutor Lee said: “I am so proud of the students, they organised a number of fundraising events with very little assistance and they are really dedicated to helping their local community.”

The amazing staff at the University Hospital of North Tees were given a huge boost from students at The Skills Academy after receiving a poster full of inspirational poems.

Despite the tough circumstances of working from home, the positive pathways students from The Skills Academy wanted to recognise their local NHS heroes with some powerful individual poems created by both staff and students.

Using acrostic style poetry, the group wanted to show their appreciation for the NHS and used words such as ‘heroes’, ‘determined’ and ‘compassionate’ as a thank you for the amazing work they are doing during the current global pandemic. Kevin Aaron, Porter at North Tees Hospital, said: “When we received the poems, it really was a huge pick me up for myself and the team. We can’t thank the students enough for taking the time to do this for us. We have a very rewarding job here at North Tees but it can be tough sometimes, especially with the introduction of Covid. The kindness shown by the students has really made a difference and we are proud to work in a community with such hard working and thoughtful young people.”

Tracey Laycock, Alternative Provision Manager at The Skills Academy, said: “I am so proud of the work completed by our positive pathways students. Learning from home is a challenge for everyone but the way the students stayed engaged with their studies was admirable and a credit to them. We are glad that the work from our students helped put a smile on the faces of some of our NHS heroes, we continue to support and admire you in this very tough time.”

The kindness shown by the students has really made a difference and we are proud to work in a community with such hard working and thoughtful young people.

Bright futures start at The Skills Academy

Amy never dreamt that University would be for her.

In fact, she says: “I didn’t intend to go to college, never mind university.”

Despite facing her own struggles with anxiety, the 21-year-old from Nunthorpe has adopted a mentality that helps to get her through.

“You just have to get on with it!”, seems to have become her mantra, when asked how she has achieved all that she has to date.

The Art & Design student who started her college journey at The Skills Academy in Billingham before moving on to Stockton Riverside College, progressed to higher education with a Level 3 BTEC Extended Diploma triple distinction (including two distinction stars) under her belt.

Course leader, Liz Dixon, said: “Amy is really talented and she always pushes herself.”

When it comes to her work, she said: “Amy has so many ideas, she really creates and that’s what’s needed in the creative industries, people that can think differently.”

For the budding young artist, it just took finding the right place and people to help build her confidence and allow that talent to thrive.

“That’s part of our job,” said Liz, who delivers classes across both college campuses in Billingham and Stockton. “Often it’s about developing confidence, self esteem as well as the course skills.” The Skills Academy is a great place for those who don’t feel quite ready for a larger college environment. Offering entry level courses for school leavers as well

as 14 to 16 alternative provision, it can help young people to build their self esteem, learn new skills and be inspired.

Amy said: “The Skills Academy was a great stepping stone for me, everyone was friendly and that helped build my confidence and self esteem. It was a great starting point.”

After receiving an unconditional offer at the Northern School of Art to study Surface Pattern and Textiles she once again felt those nerves, but her advice to herself and others was, “Just go for it!”

And Aiden would agree. Like Amy, he found his route to success at The Skills Academy.

First to admit he wasn’t “the best in school”, studying a multi-skills course part-time at the College in Billingham helped him rediscover his motivation.

Finding he enjoyed learning in the academy’s calm and friendly atmosphere he moved on to an IT course and has never looked back. “I found college just felt like such a different environment for me, there wasn’t those categories that you can get in school where there are the “popular people” and the “unpopular people”, everyone just knows each other and you are all the same,” said the 19-year-old from Yarm.

“Our teacher is great. He puts so much extra effort in and really wants to know what you are doing next. It makes a big difference.”

It was that driving force that inspired Aiden to pursue his studies, moving on to Stockton Riverside College. Completing his level 3 qualification he progressed to the College’s HNC in Computing Systems and Development.

Tracey Laycock, Alternative Provision Manager, said: “We are so incredibly proud of our students and what they go on to achieve. The Skills Academy offers a calm and caring learning environment where we aim to encourage, inspire and motivate all of our young people to go on to reach their true potential.”

Aiden

IT

Tracey Laycock

Alternative Provision Manager