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Weston College is an award-winning college of further and higher education in Weston-super-Mare. It provides education and vocational training to nearly 30,000 learners across the country.
We put the learner first and are entrepreneurial in our approach and innovative in our thinking. As a college, we are ambitious and aspirational and are responsive to the needs of students, staff, businesses, and the community.
We are Weston College. We are Creating Brighter Futures.
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Latest news and developments at Weston College
This week, our Level 3 TV, Film & Creative Production students received a guest lecture from two members of the Production Management team at Wildstar Films, Sadie Coles and Miranda Pincott, who are also from Weston-Super-Mare.
During this informative talk, Sadie and Miranda went through their career paths that led them to production management, what the roles entail, the adventures and misadventures of the job, the career ladder of production management, and what other characteristics you need to work in film.
The components outlined in the talk helped the students gain a better understanding of different aspects of TV and film that they perhaps hadn’t considered, outside of the glamourous filming and directing itself, and allowed them to review possible career paths that often go unnoticed.
Wildstar Films is a production company that collaborates with National Geographic, Disney+, and DisneyNature to make “inspirational and ground-breaking shows about the natural world”. They have created many shows including 'Queens', 'Tiger', 'America’s National Parks', and many more, and have been nominated for a Wildscreen Panda Award for their Production Management Team in 'Queens'. They also have films in production that are due to come out on Disney+ in 2025 including the Sentient and Underdogs which is voiced over by Ryan Reynolds.
Production Management is a less well-known area of TV production as it consists of many factors that people don’t necessarily consider. These factors include travel, insurance, budget, permits, legal, visas, kit, fixers, crew contracts, and accommodation. These are all important logistics to consider when filming and production management must sort it all to ensure there are no obstacles when it comes to filming.
Like many jobs, there are challenges and mishaps that must be overcome when working in production management. This can be anywhere from forgetting equipment, to misinforming an airline of the amount kit being brought. However, the students were also shown the benefits of working in film, such as getting the opportunity to travel, getting nominated for awards, and even have the chance to work with celebrities like David Attenborough!
Lynsey, Strategic Partnership Manager at Weston College, who attended the talk, said “a big thank you to Wildstar Films, a very valued Career Excellence Hub partner for our Creative Media Faculty. Today, Miranda and Sadie delivered a superb guest lecture on campus to showcase production careers in natural geographic programming.
It was eye opening and awe inspiring, and hopefully will direct our learners into a potential career. The talented production teams behind these incredible programs provided our students with invaluable insights into the industry.”
Sadie and Miranda both started out low on the ladder, either as apprentices or volunteers, and worked their way up. Miranda is the Production Manager after 30 years in TV production, sharing her career progression with the students to let them know that it is commitment and hard work that will pay off in the end.
The overall message that Wildstar Films communicated to the students was that, to work in the film industry, you need to be prepared to start from the bottom and work your way up. You can’t go into it with the expectation that you’ll start at the top. Also, it is important to get work experience where you can, whether that is paid or volunteering, you need to show that you’re interested and committed to the role.
A massive thank you to Wildstar Films for their fantastic guest talk and for giving our Level 3 TV, Film & Creative Production students the chance to see an alternative film career pathway.
Our very own marketing apprentice, Claudia, had the exciting opportunity to be featured on BBC Radio Bristol this Monday morning, where she shared her experiences of being an apprentice. During the interview Claudia was asked a range of questions, including the specifics of her apprenticeship, how she discovered the opportunity, and the valuable skills she has gained so far. She also touched on her plans for the future, whether she had always envisioned this career path, and how the apprenticeship has progressively boosted her confidence. Claudia absolutely shined during the interview, coming across as confident and completely at ease!
Ten months into her marketing apprenticeship, Claudia has already excelled in a wide range of skills, including leveraging analytics, social media marketing, creating press releases and blogs, appearing in videos as well as working behind the camera, assisting with event coordination, and ensuring the Weston College website stays up to date.
Following her interview, Claudia took on a general knowledge quiz against a BBC apprentice—and came out on top with an impressive 3-1 victory!
Well done Claudia!
To find out more about apprenticeships at Weston College, click here.
If you are passionate about education and are looking for an opportunity to join the staff team at a leading college, then look at the latest job vacancies available at Weston College here. You can find all the latest job opportunities that Weston College has to offer, with a commitment to providing quality education for learners and a focus on continuous professional development for staff, Weston College is an excellent place to work and grow in your career.
At Weston College, we want to improve the wellbeing of both our learners and our staff by promoting the importance of your mental health and providing ways that you can improve your welfare at home and at college.
In order to achieve this, we hosted a ‘Wellbeing Week’ from the 7th – 11th October to encourage people to take some time for themselves but also check in on others around them. During this week, we held many activities, sessions and support groups to allow students to take a breather from their day.
Over the course of 3 days, different charities visited Knightstone, South West Skills, and Loxton campus where they set up stalls to promote what they do and how they can help you. These charities included Off The Record, SWEDA, Samaritans, Welfare/Counselling, and Mind, and they offered support and leaflets for students to get in touch.
Not only this, many sport sessions were held over the 3 main campuses to encourage students to exercise as this is proven to improve your mood, reduce stress and anxiety, increase your self-esteem, and even provide you with a better night sleep. Whether that is just playing against a friend, doing some yoga, or even going to the gym, your mind will be clearer and you’ll feel energised.
Our main theme for the week was ‘Kindness’, and to reinforce this, we came up with the idea to ask staff and students who they were thankful for throughout the college. We received so many lovely clips which we compiled into a video and posted on our social medias to encourage everyone to promote kindness amongst each other.
In honour of Wellbeing Week at Weston College, we asked our learners what they were thankful for…
To keep our Wellbeing Week going, we also asked our staff who they were thankful for when they came to work… 🤩
Another activity that we arranged to encourage student engagement, and a positive mindset, was the ‘Vote A Quote’ competition. This was where both staff and students put forward their favourite motivational and inspirational quotes, and a winner was chosen to receive a wellbeing prize.
The most popular event of the week, however, was Paws 4 Thought day where a select few members of staff brought their dogs onto each campus to improve the moods of both the students and the staff. Not only did everyone adore the dogs and give them lots of hugs and head scratches, but the dogs also loved meeting lots of new faces and eating handfuls of treats throughout the day.
We value your mental health every day of the year and on World Mental Health Day (Thursday 10th October), we made sure this was publicised so you understand the importance of it too. On this day, we posted a wellbeing video where we provided the ‘Top Tips To Improve Your Wellbeing’, including getting some fresh air, doing some exercise, getting creative or writing out what you’re grateful for, and taking some time for yourself to wind down. These are simple tasks you can do throughout the day which will give you the chance to destress and clear your mind.
WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY!🌎 We value your mental health massively here at Weston College so here’s some tips on how you can destress and improve your mental health and wellbeing 🧘🍃 You can also visit our Welfare Team to talk to someone on campus
If you’re ever struggling, feeling alone, or just want to talk to someone, you can visit our Welfare Team on Knightstone, Loxton or South West Skills campus and they’ll be there to help. Alternatively, you can call the confidential helpline provided on our website any time of day.
You can also access our Welfare SharePoint on the website where you can use our Virtual Calming Rooms, Welfare Blog, and check out the additional support available to you.
For more support and information, visit the Welfare & Wellbeing page on our website.
