Portal Press
Issue 1 | 26 September 2014
Â
1
Welcome Colleagues, Welcome back to the beginning of the new academic year. I hope you have all had a wellearned summer break. During the summer the Estates team has been exceptionally busy and I hope you will be pleased with the work carried out to our new dedicated 14-16 centre, the rebranding and relocation of some of our curriculum as well as the updating of the estate across all sites, not all of which is totally visible! Our enrolment is still ongoing and we still have some work to do to meet our recruitment targets across all areas. A clearer picture will emerge in the coming weeks. At this busy time of the year we are also closing off last year and ensuring all achievements are entered onto the system . We still have a significant way to go to achieve last year’s outturn and to achieve our target for success rates. As colleagues are aware as we enter our inspection year it is critical that we can demonstrate our sustained improvements in success rates since the 2008 inspection so can I ask that all academic staff ensure any outstanding achievements are passed to the data team as quickly as possible. Regards,
Gary Warke, Chief Executive
Contents £1000 raised for Marie Curie 3 Art exhibition opens 3 Employability Hub Post Work Programme Success 3 Update with Liberty’s 4 Deep in success 4 Goole students carry our volunteer work 4 Employability Hub achieves 100% job outcomes! 5 Student earns part-time newspaper placement 5 HCUK Social Committee Army-style Corporate Challenge 6 First HE open day for College 6 Moodle Page of the Month for October 7 Another Success via The Employability Hub 7 Enterprise event 8 National recognition for student designers 8
2
£1000 raised for Marie Curie Foundation Learning students and staff from Harrogate College last week presented representatives of Marie Curie Cancer Care with a cheque for just over £1000 which had been raised in The Bridge Coffee Bar at The Methodist Church Centre On Gracious Street in Knaresborough during the months leading up to the Tour de France. The students had organised monthly events including a table top sale, two French Cafés, yellow bric-a-brac stalls, raffles, quizzes and competitions. Joyce Hoare, The Bridge Coordinator, said “We’re absolutely thrilled to have raised £1000 for Marie Curie and want to say a really big thank you to the students for all their hard work and to all our customers for their generous support.” The Bridge Coffee Bar is open every weekday morning from 10.00am and is run by the students three days a week. The café is open to all those who live locally and visitors to the town – everyone is very welcome.
Art exhibition opens You are warmly invited to visit ‘On the Endless Here’ at Studio Eleven, Hull, from 13th September – 6th October. Featuring work from Cath Keay, Jo Ray, Desmond Brett, Carlo Verda, Michael McKimm and Anna Kirk-Smith inspired by their field trips with geologists from the Flamborough Quaternary Research Group. Please visit the website for more information on the project: http://www.ontheendlesshere.com/
Employability Hub Post Work Programme Success The Employability Hub run a number of different short courses aimed at helping unemployed adults into work. The Post work Programme is designed to help re-engage and motivate learners who have been out of work for a minimum of three years. We were therefore delighted when 4 students from our most recent course gained full-time employment at DHS Hospitality Agency, Greencore, Douglas James LTD and Tony Lawson. With the help from their tutor Nikki Wordsworth students developed skills that helped them tap into hidden job markets and present themselves in person, in writing and online to make a positive first impression. They received an NCFE Employability Award Level 1 qualification upon completion of the course. Julie Lockley, Employability Hub Manager stated, “It is especially pleasing to see students, who have completed training with other providers, but who have not been successful, flourish and achieve on one of our courses. I believe that this is down to considered course planning, exceptional classroom delivery and the on-going support offered by the Employability Hub”. Congratulations to the 4 students that have now secured work!
3
Update with Liberty’s Vicky Woodall and Josh Faulkner attended a Sector Based Work Academy in Hospitality for the opportunity to work at the new American diner, Liberty’s. They both successfully passed their basic food hygiene level 2 while attending the Employability Hubs academy and are both loving working full time at Liberty’s. Josh said he was extremely grateful for the opportunity and he is really enjoying being back in employment. Vicky stated that she is so happy and glad she was given the opportunity to work at Liberty’s through the work academy. Employer’s feedback has also been extremely positive, joint owner Karen said that ‘having a work academy with Hull College made employing staff much easier; the relationship with the Employability Hub was fantastic and the work they did was exceptional.’
Deep in success
William joined an Employability Sector Based Work Academy for a consortium of employers in the hospitality industry. This academy was aimed at those looking for front of house, customer service and bar work. During the course, William found an opportunity to work at the Deep and asked his Employability Coach, Gareth Poole to help prepare his application. William was successful in securing employment with them and was selected from over a 1,000 applicants. He said ‘By attending the Sector Based Work Academy it gave me the skills and confidence I needed to help me with my interview to get the job, the support I was given during the course and after was fantastic’. Congratulations William we wish you all the best for the future!
Goole students carry out volunteer work
4
Students from the Public Service course at Goole College carried out volunteering work on Wednesday 10th September. They replanted and tidied up the memorial garden at Normandy Way in Goole. The students make sure that they replenish and tidy up this site before Poppy day every year.
Employability Hub achieves 100% job outcomes! In July the Employability Hub delivered our most successful academy to date for the company Greencore Group plc, the leading international manufacturer of convenience foods and celebration cakes. During the academy, learners were encouraged to work in teams and build their own individual confidence through group discussions. The group covered health and safety within an industrial work place, using presentations, activities, discussions and relating to real work situations. They also spent time in a training kitchen to prepare and present a buffet to Job Centre plus staff. This allowed the learners to work as part of a team and gain an insight into food manufacturing. A fantastic 100% of learners that attended were successful in gaining employment and are ready to start their new jobs. Julie Lockley, Employability Hub Manager, “The Hub always achieves amazing results from Sector Based Work Academies but 100% job outcomes is truly outstanding and demonstrates the hard work and dedication of the staff involved”.
Student earns part-time newspaper placement Brad Rial, final year BA(Hons) Journalism and Digital Media student, takes another step towards a career in sports journalism. Brad has spent the last two years writing live text updates for the Hull Daily Mail at Hull City home games. Jamie Macaskill, Deputy Editor at the Mail, is so pleased with Brad’s work that he has offered him the chance to work part-time for the paper while he completes his studies. Brad follows in the footsteps of Sophie Kitching, who graduated this summer and now works full-time at Hull Daily Mail in page production and reporting. Watch out for these two names when you read your local paper!
5
HCUK Social Committee Army-style Corporate Challenge Fancy pushing yourself to the max? We need you! HCUK Social Committee are entering a team of College into an army-style corporate challenge in East Park on Saturday 11th Oct 2014 at 10am. We are able to enter a team of up to 10 staff and are interested to hear from anyone who would like to compete. Entry is on a first come, first served basis (names to be forwarded to Rachel Clayton rclayton@hull-college. ac.uk or ex 2011). Spaces have already started to fill so you need to act fast! The Social Committee will pay the ÂŁ10 team entry charge and supply you with a HCUK t-shirt to wear during the challenge. All we ask from you is the commitment to rise to the challenge and put HCUK as the fastest team in Hull!
First HE open day for College Hull College is to host its first Higher Education (HE) Open Day, giving students a chance to find out about every aspect of studying HE at Hull College. The Open Day, which will will be held on Wednesday October 15 from 10 am, will include academic taster sessions, guidance on UCAS applications, fees myth busting, advice on personal statement writing, plus details of available accommodation and the Students’ Union etc. HE student ambassadors will be helping to direct students around the campus on the day and will be talking to potential applicants about their experience studying at Degree/Higher National level at Hull and Harrogate. Anyone thinking of studying a Degree or other Higher qualification next year is welcome to attend the event, although appointments must be booked. A number of bookings have already been taken from students across the country, places can be booked online here.
6
Moodle Page of the Month for October VRQ Level 3 in Beauty Therapy Goole http://moodle.hull-college.ac.uk/enrol/index.php?id=2730 What makes this site so useful? This site has been well thought through to provide very good support in a number of ways and is being actively used by students. To begin with, the page is well laid out in folders and is arranged logically and consistently with an Introduction, content and assignment for each section. There is a good use of clear and consistent headings. Most sections have a Prezi recapping what has been learned so the page can be used for catching up on missed lessons or for refreshing knowledge and skills. This helps secure the reader’s interest and encourages further exploration. There are relevant, attractive images illustrating the topics and the layout is clear and uncluttered. There is also some use of video content from a CD which is an unusual feature. This course leader has used a good practice feature which is to place materials for staff on this page which are hidden from the students. This helps to keep all the material such as schemes of work in one place for the teaching team. For further information on how to do this, contact David Perry in the E-learning team. There will shortly be an addition to the page to support Anatomy and Physiology. The College has access to an on-line resource to support this area of study and Chris Skerrow can be contacted to help all staff to make this addition if it is relevant to your course. The panel has been impressed by the excellent progress in the development of Moodle pages at Goole. Very well done to Sue Walker for an excellent resource and for showing the spirit of adventure! Thanks to the e-learning team for their support and training. Review provided by Val Maybury, Head of Teaching &eLearning Moodle Page of the Month is selected by Val Maybury and Emily Armstrong, Library Manager. Judges’ decision is final
Another Success via The Employability Hub – how a student benefits from The Skills Show Experience
A recent group of candidates attending the Employability Hub had the usual barriers to learning and came from a very diverse range of backgrounds. The hard work and perseverance of staff & students paid off as the successes achieved by them after the course was very encouraging, especially one student named Abshir Aadan. Originally from Somalia, Abshir has been in England for six years. He has passed his UK Citizenship test and wants to integrate as best that he can into the local community. He has worked as a security guard on a temporary basis but wants to make a career for himself, to support his family so needed our help.
During the course we discussed what area of work he was interested in and he had
7
always wanted to work as a mechanic. I assessed his level of English etc. and decided that he would be able to cope with the content. He was directed to one of our Job Coaches who confirmed this and signposted him to the correct course and he then applied via student services. Abshir was very lucky that the excellent Skills Show Experience was running while he was attending the college. Here he could peruse various options and the amazing range of courses offered by Hull College. He was able to visit a stand and discuss the full extent of his worries and options with the tutor first hand. He had a “hands on” demonstration and practice with the rig that was set up. This was a very valuable exchange for both the student and the college. The Good News -Abshir starts Hull College in September 2014 at Cannon Street on the first leg of fulfilling his ambition to become a mechanic. This is a true example how effort on the part of the student and interaction with the tutor can enable our well-oiled machine that is Hull College does its stuff!!
Enterprise event Wednesday the 22nd of October 2014 10am - 6pm Guildhall, Alfred Gelder Street, Hull Hull College is working with the Department of Work and Pensions, and a cross city partnership to deliver an inspiring day open to students and members of the public that would like to find out more about starting their own businesses. The event is free and will comprise of entrepreneurs talking about their successes in starting up in business, as well as advice and guidance on sales/marketing, accessing finance, online business and business start-up. This event should be of interest to students across all curriculum areas, so please could tutors let students know about it. Additionally the Business and Management Degree and L3 students will be helping to run the event. If any tutors would like to take class groups to the event please contact Alex Alterskye, or students can just drop in on the day.
National recognition for student designers Eight students from Hull College and Harrogate College, which together with Goole College form Hull College Group, have achieved success in national bridal design competition, the Bridal Buyer Awards. Harrogate student Samantha Henty was named Best Student Designer while a further seven learners, five from Hull and two from Harrogate, were category finalists. Each competing student created a mood board and specification sheets, as well as the wedding dress itself. The challenge set by the judging panel was to demonstrate a comprehension of the female form, and to suggest fabrics suitable for a royal bride. The Hull students who made the final were Jennifer Sygrove, Jessica Harrison and Leonie Atkinson, all of whom are studying BA (Hons) Applied Creative Design: Fashion, as well as Damien Mackinder and Natalie Clark, studying FdA Fashion Design & Interpretation. The Harrogate students were Thekla Hall and Charlotte Roe, both in their second year FdA Fashion Design and Production. Samantha, who in addition to winning her award earned a First Class BA Hons in Applied Creative Design, said: “It was a very exciting evening and I’m delighted to have won. I’m now
8
really excited about starting my career with Eternity Bride who sponsored the category and have offered me a job!”. Lynn Benson, Programme Leader Fashion & Costume at Hull College, said: “Hull School of Art & Design has an abundance of very talented young people who always rise to the challenges of national and international competitions, proving unique solutions. “The Bridal Buyers competition challenge to create a wedding dress for a royal bride was no exception – all students’ final creations were extremely creative, using fabric and trimming to produce that special dress which had panache and individuality for a bride’s memorable day.” Gary Warke, Chief Executive of Hull College Group, said: We are incredibly proud of all eight of our students who made the final and particularly of Samantha, who has done outstandingly well. “At Hull College Group we place great importance on encouraging our students to showcase their work and to receive national recognition from industry professionals is a reflection of the extremely high standard they are working at. We are sure that all of those recognised have an exceptional career ahead of them. “It is also testament to the hard work and commitment of tutors at both colleges that the nine students were able to develop the skills and creative freedom to put them ahead of the other competitors”. Both Hull College and Harrogate College still have a small number of available degree places for this academic year, including MA Creative Practice, BA Hons Fine Art and BA Hons Interior Design. For further information, call: (01482) 598744 or visit: www.hull-college.ac.uk for Hull, for Harrogate call: (01423) 879466 or visit: www.harrogate.ac.uk.
9
10