"Talking Business" Magazine

Hartlepool College’s Newsletter for Partners 2016 Hartlepool College’s Newsletter for Partners and Employers& Employers S P R I N G 2 0 1Spring 5

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Apprenticeships NATIONAL APPRENTICESHIP WEEK 14 - 18 March Hartlepool College is the biggest provider of Apprenticeships in the local area and the seventh best in the entire country, and as always we’re going to be marking National Apprenticeship Week with a huge Open Event. However, the Government have recently made some major changes to how they work - find out more on page 2.

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Contact our Business Team for more information or to arrange a visit: Hartlepool College Business Services Stockton Street, Hartlepool TS24 7NT 01429 292888 business@hartlepoolfe.ac.uk

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Also in this issue

PRINCIPAL’S BLOG - HOW FE CAN HELP YOUR BUSINESS page 3 PARTNERSHIPS IN ACTION page 4 WORLD CHAMPION BOXER JOINS TEAMHCFE page 5 HCFE HELPS FLOOD VICTIMS page 5 COMMERCIAL TRAINING & CONFERENCE FACILITIES page 7

Did you know...?

...Hartlepool College is the seventh best Apprenticeship provider in the entire country, and the biggest in the area ...is in the top 10% of all colleges for adult education ...has a 90% satisfaction rate for Higher Education courses

Huge evening, huge opportunities

#skillsunited

SKILLS UNITED

17th March, 5-8pm

Apprenticeship Open Event | Wed 12 March 2015 | 5pm - 8pm

#skillsunited

SKILLS UNITED

Don’t miss the Hartlepool College Apprenticeship Open Event 2016

HAIRDRESSING APPRENTICESHIPS @ HARTLEPOOL COLLEGE

#skillsunited

Under our umbrella brand for Apprenticeships of Skills United, Hartlepool College is holding its annual Apprenticeship Open Evening as part of National Apprenticeship Week. Previous events have attracted dozens of employers and hundreds of people looking for information, advice or recruitment, and we expect 2016 to be our biggest yet.

01429 295000 | #skillsunited

SKILLS UNITED

HCFE is one of the country’s most experienced and highly regarded deliverers of apprenticeships, with literally decades of experience working with thousands of employers. As our short video (see link below) highlights, no other organisation in the area can match our heritage.

apprenticeships, with restrictions and conditions applied. Furthermore, with the emergence of new apprenticeship CONSTRUCTION CRAFTstandards, APPRENTICESHIPSofficially @ HARTLEPOOL COLLEGE known as Trailblazers, and the change to government agencies for funding the changes to apprenticeships are set to affect all.

However, with apprenticeships high on the Government’s agenda it was always anticipated that changes would occur. This has proven to be the case, though evidence suggests that many companies still don’t understand the volume and the scale of those changes and the impact they may have.

These are things employers need to know about, and the HCFE Open Event is the idea place to get up to speed. But that’s not the only reason - as leading company Sulzer contacted us to say, “The College’s Apprenticeship Open Evening is a fantastic event. We at Sulzer are passionate to offer people the same opportunities we have had - as apprenticeships for the future. The profile this event gives allows us to meet with potential apprentices and to raise the profile of our training programme”.

In April 2017 companies will be mandated to pay a levy to the Government for the training of

HCFE Apprenticeship Event 2015 - a brief reminder

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Above: Caterpillar had one of its huge trucks on display again, worth a whopping £400,000 but still actually cheaper to insure than the average student’s Corsa.

Above: as is now common, the event was jam packed, and at peak times literally became standing room only in the Atrium.

Above: Gestamp’s virtual welding was equally popular with both genders - a reflection of the College’s proactive approach to encouraging females into Engineering.

Above: The flight simulator proved popular once again, with visitors having a chance to “fly” a BAE Hawk fast jet, the type HCFE students work on at RAF Leeming.

Above: Iain Wright MP was one of many visitors who took a chance to have a go, finding it easier to get off the ground than a new policy...

Above: Once again Glenn Young and the team from Heritage Craft Alliance came along with Apprenticeships specialising in the restoration and conservation of heritage buildings.

Above: As always Heerema made a big splash, with the ubiquitous Dave Scrafton on hand.

Above: The tone of the evening was unpressured, and many attendees had a lot of fun and good banter, and a chance to have a go at some fun activities.

Above: It was very nice to see so many young people from local schools attending, obviously keen to make an early start on their career plans.

You can view the College’s official Apprenticeship Heritage & Provision short promo video at bit.ly/Appvid You can view the full photo gallery for the 2015 event, with 88 images at http://bit.ly/HCFEApps2015

Education is vital to STEM the “skills shortage” OPINION: Darren Hankey - Principal, Hartlepool College Welcome to this revamped edition of Talking Business, which aims to highlight how Hartlepool College of Further Education contributes to the skills agenda in the Tees Valley, County Durham and beyond. This edition is timely as skills have recently featured in the local news. The BBC Look North & Cumbria team featured skills shortages in its show on Friday 8th January and this theme was picked up again in the Sunday Politics show a couple of days later.

The general theme of the two shows was that there are severe skills shortages in the North East, especially in terms of STEM, and that schools, colleges and universities should be doing more to ensure young people are ‘work ready’. The planned University Technical College (UTC) in Newton Aycliffe was featured, as was a short clip related to vocational education in Austria with the clear message that the UK’s vocational education should be more like theirs. Whilst these messages are clearly pervasive when skills are mentioned, for me, they tend to overlook two key points.

I know I am biased, but I’d put the College’s STEM provision up against the very best that Austria has to offer.

Firstly, whilst there are some issues with some aspects of education in the North East, this is not all encompassing. Please look through this magazine, see the link below or, even better, come and see us - and then tell me the provision of STEM technical education in our part of the world is weak.

We’re fortunate at Hartlepool College as we work with some wonderful organisations which give young people an opportunity and they and the College are central to those organisations’ workforce development plans. If you’re impressed by what you see in this magazine and want to learn more about how we can help please feel free to get in touch.

Secondly, the current narrative generally focuses on the supply of skills and there’s little if no focus on the demand for and utilisation of skills. Latest government figures suggest that less than 20% of North East firms employ apprentices and this figure would reduce even further if it focused on the employment of apprentices aged between 16 and 18 years of age.

Darren Hankey Principal & Chief Executive @HCFEprincipal

Above: The College’s STEM credentials are highlighted by an ex-RAF Jet Provost within our grounds, fully restored to display condition by students to serve as a visible link between our Engineering heritage and the skills demands of the future.

Above: The College’s various Engineering laboratories and facilities offer students the opportunity to become fully familiar with the kind of technology and systems they will encounter in the “real world”, meaning employers have to spend less time with familiarisation and training.

Find out more and watch a short film about our STEM provision at www.hartlepoolfe.ac.uk/schoolleavers/stem

Above: The College is committed to recruiting more females into STEM subjects, and in 2015 we hosted one of the country’s biggest events to mark Women Into Engineering Day, delivering practical sessions to over 60 prospective young engineers in areas such as our Automotive Engineering workshop.

Above: The College keeps itself at the cutting edge of new technologies, with areas such as Industrial Automation, CAD, 3D scanning and Rapid Prototyping amongst many others.

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Partnerships in action

Some of the recent ways Hartlepool College has been helping businesses to innovate and achieve their goals A Fine boost for new talent

Training for a risky business

Above L-R: Liam Groom, Steve Barugh, Jack Dolman, Graham Plant (Hartlepool College), Cathy Macnamara (HR Manager Fine Organics), Ben Murray, Daniel Pardue, Arthur Sigsworth (Lean manufacturing Co-ordinator Fine Organics).

Above L-R: Darren Hankey with Ian Hayton, Managing Director at CFB Risk Management.

Dozens of opportunities have been created for process apprentices after a link-up between Hartlepool College and Fine Organics, a chemical production facility in the Fine Industries group which supplies chemicals to customers worldwide. The partnership first began in 2012 and now its first seven process specialists have graduated, along with another four who had specialised in the laboratory technician apprenticeship course. Eight more process apprentices and four lab technicians are in the early stages of the latest course, and the recruitment process for more is well under way.

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Ten new recruits are set to start an exciting career in high-risk safety management after an innovative link-up between Cleveland Fire Brigade Risk Management Services and Hartlepool College. CFB Risk Management provides services to the high-hazard private sector. Contracts include bluechip companies in the oil and gas, petrochemical, and nuclear sectors, all of which are taking it towards a £2m turnover with all profits going into community projects that improve safety for Teesside residents.

Graham Plant, Business Development Manager at Hartlepool College, said the College was now delivering process apprentices who are “learning on the job and when they finish their three-year training programme they fit exactly into the in-house requirements.”

The College will provide the training, with successful applicants gaining qualifications including BTEC, Institution of Occupational Safety & Health (IOSH) and International Trauma Life Support (ITLS). Initially, ten Apprentice Site Protection Officers on 18-month fixed term contracts have been recruited and the successful applicants will complete a three-month training course before joining an on-site protection team and working towards an NVQ qualification through the College.

Apprentices have civic pride

Foundations of a great career

Above: Hartlepool Borough Council leader Christopher Akers-Belcher, front left, with chief executive Gill Alexander with young apprentices and College representatives.

Above L-R: Rebecca Hodge, left, and Klaudia Robinson with Steve Laughton on the construction site of the new Cleveland Fire Brigade HQ in Hartlepool.

Hartlepool Borough Council has taken on board thirteen young people in a variety of jobs, while another twenty are set to progress to the next level of their on the job training. The council runs the programme in a joint initiative with Hartlepool College, with apprenticeships in a wide range of disciplines including business administration, customer service, electrical installation, heating engineering, painting and decorating, bricklaying, building control, housing strategy and civil engineering. Council leader Councillor Christopher Akers-Belcher and Chief Executive Gill Alexander addressed the young people and spoke about the value of the apprentice scheme.

Two students have proved the can stand the heat after setting their sights on new careers in Construction. Rebecca Hodge, 17, and Klaudia Robinson, 16, are both in the first year of diplomas in Construction and the Built Environment at Hartlepool College. Both teenagers hope to work as quantity surveyors when they complete their studies, and have spent time working on the construction of the new Cleveland Fire Brigade headquarters at Queens Meadow Business Park to gain some vital experience. The site, which is being constructed by international building firm ISG, was started in March this year and is due for completion July 2016.

Councillor Akers-Belcher told them: “It is our responsibility to nurture the many talents you have to ensure that you achieve the very best for yourselves and for our town.”

Steve Laughton, Projects Manager for ISG, said “We have built up a strong relationship with Hartlepool College over the years, and as a company we are committed and passionate about supporting and benefitting the communities that we are working in.”

Sports training is literally world class Savannah proves there is no upper limit for achieving success

Kind-hearted students send a little Christmas cheer to Cumbria flood victims

Above L-R: Alisha Copeland, Jack Fraser, Jordan Thompson, Jamie Charlton, Phoebe Gallon, Amy Pattison and Abigail Carbro with some of the hampers that were sent to Cumbria.

Above: Savannah Marshall, centre, with mentees Sadie Thomas (left) and Shelby Brazell, two boxers also tipped for the top.

Savannah Marshall, the first British female boxer ever to win a world title and current Commonweath champion, started her career as a student at Hartlepool College. She has now returned to “give something back”, in the role of Athlete Mentor on the College’s new innovative #TeamHCFE Savannah studied on the College’s BTEC National Diploma Sport & Exercise, gaining a distinction. She credits the flexible support she received while there, allowing her to study around competitions and training camps, as a major reason she was able to achieve her many accolades.

Savannah made history by becoming Britain’s first female world boxing champion in Qinhuangdao, China, beating Azerbaijan’s Elena Vystropova 17-15 to claim middleweight gold on her 21st birthday. Following this achievement Savannah joined Team GB and was a favourite to win Olympic gold in London 2012. However, she was defeated 16 - 12 by Marina Volnova of Kazakhstan in her opening, quarter-final bout. However, the mark of a true champion is the ability to bounce back from setbacks, and at the 2014 Commonwealth

Above: Savannah with her Commonwealth gold medal...

Photo ©ITV

Games in Glasgow Savannah beat Ariane Fortin of Canada to take the gold medal.

Savannah is also a Sky Scholar, and is currently preparing for Rio 2016. Her quiet nature has earned her the nickname “The Silent Assassin”, but she openly credits the College for giving her the confidence to reach the top level, saying “I believe that if you’re dedicated and motivated and have the will to achieve, then you will achieve your dreams but I couldn’t have done it without HCFE.” Of the new programme Savannah mentors on, TeamHCFE head coach and sports lecturer Ian Clark said “We provide the highest level of support including individualised strength and conditioning programming, recovery and rehabilitation, and financial support with kit and equipment.”

...and after presenting up-and-coming boxer Shelby Brazell with the Sporting Achievement award as guest of honour at the College’s Celebration of Achievement 2015.

Hospitality and Catering students from Hartlepool College sent food hampers to victims of the Cumbria floods to remind them that others are thinking about their plight.

The group of kind-hearted students were touched after hearing many of the families affected by the floods would be unable to return to their homes before the festive period. They then rallied around to give their time and resources collecting food donations before creating hampers to deliver to the various support groups working in the most badly affected areas like Carlisle (below).

More than 4,500 homes were flooded in Cumbria after storm Desmond hit earlier this month. Kevin Dove, Lecturer in Hospitality and Catering, was delighted with the gesture shown by his students, saying “After seeing the devastation that has hit the lives of those in Cumbria as a result of the flooding, we decided to have a discussion with the students to see if there was anything we could do to help. We thought the best thing we could do to help would be to create hampers of food from the resources we had and we delivered them to the affected areas in time for Christmas.

“We pride ourselves at the College of doing what we can to help out in the community, and while Cumbria isn’t in our catchment area we were all moved by the pictures we saw on TV and in the newspapers and we are delighted to be able to help out in our own way.”

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Aerospace engineers get a brand new kite (mark, that is) BEng and MEng accreditation means the sky really is the limit Aerospace is a sector that needs and demands the very best people working in it - after all, the consequences of even the smallest mistake can be catastrophic.

Aerospace engineers in both the civil and military sectors need to be at the top of their game, with the right skills and qualifications that show employers in the sector that the lives of possibly thousands of people each day are safe in their hands.

Hartlepool College and Teesside University have received confirmation that the jointly delivered BEng (Hons) Degree in Aerospace Engineering has been approved by the Engineering Council.

One of the first students to take advantage of this accreditation was David Marshall, who attained a 2:1 in his BEng degree in November 2015 and is now progressing towards a career in Aerospace.

After a review by the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (involving two visits to the College and University and scrutiny of staff expertise, facilities and student work produced), the degree programme has been accredited as meeting fully the educational requirements for the professional qualification of Incorporated Engineer (IEng) within the UK Standard for Professional Engineering Competence. This is the first accredited degree running at the College with an internationally recognised kite mark reflecting the high quality of education provided on this programme.

David has since met the technical knowledge component required to become a registered Incorporated Engineer, which means he is now recognised internationally for his professional competence and ability in the Aerospace Engineering discipline.

Above: The College’s impressive in-house facilities include an aircraft hangar with three full training airframes, a sub-sonic wind tunnel and a variety of avionic systems and powerplants, including a Rolls-Royce engine from a Boeing 747 airliner.

Above: Local universities often use HCFE’s Aerospace facilities to supplement their own, while students can also take advantage of materials such as a unique interactive ground crew training simulation made in co-operation with Babcock and RAF 100 Sqn.

Above: Aerospace graduate David Marshall in the College’s hangar with one of the College’s Jet Provost Viper engines that helped launch his career.

David started on his training studying the Level 3 BTEC Extended Diploma in Aerospace Engineering programme five years ago at HCFE and continued his studies with us, progressing to the degree programme and success at Level 6.

Business Awards seek top contenders Thursday 12th May sees the 2016 Hartlepool Business Awards, organised through the Hartlepool Business Forum, with top businesses again competing for prizes across a number of key categories.

This three-course gala dinner event has, over the past two decades, grown to became a real highlight of the Hartlepool business calendar.

Andy Steel, Hartlepool Business Forum Coordinator and also an Assistant Principal at Hartlepool College, will once again be organising and hosting the event, which also offers businesses a chance to sponsor individual categories and raise their profile to a large number of key players in the local business community.

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The Forum exists to be the prime business networking body in Hartlepool, encouraging business and employers to trade with each other with a view to mutual success for individual firms and the town as a whole.

Individual category winners receive a prestigious award, a prize to the value of £1,000 and, of course, significant kudos and opportunities for promotion. From the category winners is chosen an overall Business of the Year, which attracts a further £1000 prize. Closing date for applications is Friday 11th March 2016.

To reserve places or discuss sponsorship, call 01429 404038 or email cbibby@ hartlepoolbusinessforum.co.uk To find out more about the Hartlepool Business Awards or apply for an award visit www.hartlepoolbusinessforum.co.uk or www.twitter.com/HartBusForum and www.facebook.com/hartlepoolbusinessforum

Above: Andy Steel, co-ordinator of the Hartlepool Business Forum, hosting the 2015 awards.

When it comes to commercial training, HCFE is the business Set and bespoke training packages at Hartlepool College Hartlepool College has long been the training provider of choice for many businesses in the North East and beyond. With a record of outstanding employer engagement that extends to over 2000 businesses, we have built an enviable reputation for innovation, flexibility and value for money. Working with industry experts Hartlepool College continues to develop the offer of business and commercial training across a wide variety of industry sectors.

Beacon programmes, such as those delivered in partnership with the National Skills Academy of Nuclear have long been a staple of the College offer.

In addition the College has formed strategic partnerships with MT Training Solutions, Amacus Training, CFB Risk Management and others to deliver a variety of management, vocational and legislative training.

The College offers commercial business and training courses in a huge number of areas, including Accountancy, CAD, Construction, Electrical, Engineering, Environmental Technologies, First Aid, Gas, HCVA Welder Codes, Health & Care, Health & Safety, Hairdressing & Beauty Therapy, Information Technology,

Management, Nuclear, PLCs, Plumbing, Teaching and Welding.

Flexibility is a major factor in our approach, and just about every element of delivery can be tailored to the needs of the client. This includes the ability to deliver either at our own dedicated facilities or on a client’s own premises. Courses can be delivered to groups of all sizes, while the actual content can also be adapted to specific demands. We can even create completely bespoke courses, and have a reputation for anticipating trends and new developments that allow our customers to keep ahead of the game - and their competitors.

For more information call Carol on 01429 404038 or email cbibby@hartlepoolfe.ac.uk

Extend your event horizons Highlighting ambience, comfort, flexibility and innovation, the Conference Area is custom-designed to meet the demands of businesses of all sizes and areas of operation, and features boardroom facilities, a 200+ seat large screen conference hall and even a gourmet restaurant to add a unique touch of class to meetings and events.

Our three main Conference Rooms have a combined capacity of almost 400 people. The largest of these utilises cinema-style tiered seating (up to 240, which also folds back to allow table seating) to allow an unhindered view of a 6m glarefree high definition screen. We also have one of the best boardrooms available for hire in the area.

Above: As well as it’s sit-down provision (both custom and from a set menu), The Flagship can prepare buffets and wine receptions for within the Conference Centre (the College is fully licenced). The Conference Centre is complemented by a large, impressively furnished boardroom, with full AV features.

Hospitality Support extends from simple tea, coffee and water to elaborate buffets and dinner options.

The Conference Area is served by two large kitchens with set and bespoke menus devised by our own Executive Chef Fergus Robertson, which can be served either in the conference areas or our own stylish restaurant, The Flagship.

To arrange a tour or for more information contact Carol on 01429 404038 or email cbibby@hartlepoolfe.ac.uk

The College’s main Conference Hall can be configured in numerous ways, such as tables for a gala dinner, ceremony or product launch, or as tiered theatre-style seating for up to 240 delegates. It has a 6m HD screen, Dolby sound, a microphoned lectern and fully customisable coloured lighting.

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Apprenticeships are changing!

Is your business ready?

As you may have seen in the media recently, the Government has placed a renewed emphasis on apprenticeships, but there have also been some changes to the way they work that raise a lot of questions. Whether you currently employ apprentices or are thinking of doing so in the future, as the biggest provider in the area and the seventh best in the entire country Hartlepool College has the expertise and experience to provide all the answers.

Topics covered will include: The introduction of the Apprenticship Levy Trailblazers: Changes from Frameworks to New Standards New Methods of Funding New Government Departments New agenda for increasing apprenticeships to three million

Special Awareness Events are being held on Tuesday 23rd February, 8-9am & Wednesday 24th February, 5.30-6.30pm Places are limited - you can book now by calling Carol Bibby on 01429 404038 or email cbibby@hartlepoolbusinessforum.co.uk Reserved parking is available by pre-arrangement

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All information is correct at time of going to press.