Welcome to the April Edition of the Careers and Employability Team Blog! 

As we move into April, our focus remains on supporting our learners to develop their skills, understand their pathways, and make progress toward meaningful destinations.

Careers Café Success! 

Our recent Careers Café sessions have been a great success, giving students the chance to drop in, chat informally, and get personalised guidance from our Careers Coordinators. The relaxed café-style setting has made it easier for students to ask questions, explore their ideas, and build confidence around their next steps. 

We’ve loved seeing so many students take the opportunity to talk through courses, apprenticeships, work experience, CVs, and future goals. The Careers Coordinators have been on hand throughout, offering tailored advice and helping students understand the wide range of pathways available. 

A huge well done to every student who came along - your enthusiasm and curiosity made each session lively and meaningful. And thank you to our brilliant Careers Coordinators for creating such a supportive and welcoming space. 

A reminder that our Careers drop-ins take place every week. 

All drop-in sessions take place between 12:15pm and 1:15pm on the following days and locations

• Loxton Library: Every Tuesday 
• South West Skills Campus Library: Every Wednesday 
• Knightstone Library: Every Thursday  

Celebrating Our CV Competition: Over 65 Impressive Entries and Valuable Feedback Ahead 

Over the past few weeks, we’ve been blown away by the enthusiasm and hard work students put into our CV Competition. With more than 65 entries submitted, this has been one of our most successful competitions yet — and the standard has been incredibly high. 

What made this competition especially exciting was seeing the range of experiences, career ambitions, and personal stories reflected in the submissions. Whether students were applying for part-time roles, apprenticeships, internships, or their dream future careers, each CV showed genuine effort and growth. 

What Happens Next? 

Our team is now carefully reviewing every CV. Because we want this competition to be a meaningful learning experience for everyone involved, we’ll be offering individualised feedback to all entrants and will be announcing the winners as soon as possible.

From Industry Placement to Degree Apprenticeship: A T-Level Success Story 

This term, we’re celebrating an inspiring achievement from one of our T Level students from Business and Administration, who has shown exactly where hard work, determination, and high-quality industry experience can lead. 

As part of his T Level programme, Thomas completed a 10-week industry placement with Lloyds Bank in Bristol alongside other students from Weston College. Throughout the placement, he demonstrated professionalism, enthusiasm, and a real willingness to learn - qualities that made a strong impression on the team at Lloyds. 

His strong performance opened an exciting door: an invitation to apply for Lloyds Bank’s competitive Degree Apprenticeship programme. Rising to the challenge, Thomas completed each stage of the application process, including attending a full assessment centre alongside candidates from across the region. His hard work paid off - he successfully secured a place on the Degree Apprenticeship, starting this September. 

This fantastic achievement highlights the value of T-Level industry placements in giving students real-world experience, industry insight, and, in some cases, a direct pathway into long term career opportunities. We’re incredibly proud of their journey and wish him continued success as he embarks on this next exciting chapter with Lloyds Bank.

Key Dates: 

Thursday 9th April 2026 - Weston Jobs Fair

Tuesday 14th April 2026 - Knightstone Campus Half-Term Workshops

Wednesday 15th April 2026 - Loxton Campus Half-Term Workshops

Wednesday 22nd April 2026 - Engineering Fast Track Event

Get in touch with the Careers and Employability Team, by clicking here. 

On Thursday 26th March, learners at Weston Bay hosted an impressive Art Exhibition, named ‘Seeing Beneath the Surface’. The purpose of the exhibition was to celebrate the creativity, lived experiences, and self‑expression of our neurodiverse learners.

The exhibition transformed the Weston Bay building into a vibrant creative space and attracted an impressive turnout. Visitors explored rooms filled with diverse artwork, enjoyed a dedicated cinema room, and had the option to purchase food and drink. The pieces on display were created by learners as part of their curriculum, showcasing their exploration of a wide range of artistic practices, including weaving, photography, and mindfulness-inspired art.

The logo created for the exhibition features a subtle, faceless figure lifting away a mask to reveal a cluster of purple and green hydrangeas. The figure represents the pressure many of our learners feel to mask their authentic selves in wider society, contrasted with the space we create at Weston Bay where they can express themselves openly and confidently.

Hydrangeas are traditionally linked with heartfelt emotions and gratitude, reflecting the warmth and welcome our autistic learners experience within Weston College. The colour symbolism deepens this connection:

• Purple expresses a desire for deep understanding.
• Green symbolises renewal and growth.

Together, these elements capture the personal journeys, resilience, and identities of our students.

Armanda Costa, Lead Practitioner – Autism Residential and Employment Pathways, “Yesterday’s Art exhibition at Weston Bay was a powerful reminder of how creativity can bring a community together. What stood out most was the neurodiversity of learners’ voices represented -each artwork offering a unique lens on identity, nature, and lived experience. Events like this don’t just showcase talent; they celebrate the spirit of Weston Bay, Weston College, and the people who shape it.

“Thank you to everyone who came along - especially the parents, local schools, Weston College staff, and colleagues - whose encouraging feedback meant so much.”

Ned, Weston Bay learner, “We've been preparing for this for a whole term. My favourite part of the exhibition is seeing my performance on the screen and seeing James's reaction to my painting of him.”

This week, Weston College celebrated the fantastic achievements of our learners by hosting a Student Conference, bringing together our Student Reps, Student Leadership Team and nominated students to recognise their hard work and commitment so far this academic year.

The day was introduced by Deputy Principal, Ben Knocks, who welcomed the students and outlined the activities for the day before handing over to the Head of Student Engagement, Luke Penberthy, who introduced the first activity: building their dream college. This task allowed our students to consider what makes a great college and the aspects they deem as the most important to improve their student experience, giving them the opportunity to develop their ideas through constructive conversations and teamwork, whilst thinking logistically and thoughtfully about their decisions.

Our Students’ Union President, Niya Thomas, then introduced the guest speaker and former Sixth Form student, Dave Trevaskus from the LEGO Group, where he shared his journey and the challenges he faced throughout his progression, having worked at over 20 companies before landing in his current role as the Retail Training Lead at the LEGO Group.

He taught valuable lessons to the students in a fun and engaging way, creating an interactive quiz with LEGO sets as prizes, giving everyone a duck to build to test their adaptability, and leading an engaging memory test to prove how we learn through play effectively. Dave created a safe environment for the students to get involved in activities, reassuring them by chatting informally and creating a casual and comfortable environment that made a lasting impression on the room.

Following an engaging Q&A session with Dave and the students, a delicious lunch was provided by our catering staff for attendees to enjoy with their peers.

After lunch, Ben Knocks discussed the core values within Weston College and the importance of these in creating an inclusive and safe environment for everyone. Students then had the opportunity to share their thoughts and feedback on the values most important to them. This feedback is invaluable to ensure the quality and standards at Weston College continues to progress and grow, with student feedback at the forefront of our approach.

Finally, the Student Awards were announced, recognising students for their resilience, outstanding progress, community engagement, and inclusion throughout this academic year. Lecturers and staff nominated students they felt had gone above and beyond and deserved to be celebrated for their achievements. Winners and highly commended students were then chosen from the nominations and given a certificate to commemorate their efforts.

Tia Beard, Student Engagement Officer and organiser of the event, said, “It was fantastic to see such a great turnout to celebrate the hard work of the students so far this year and for so many amazing nominations to celebrate students’ achievements. I’d also like to say a huge thank you for the hard work of the Student Representatives and the Student Leadership Team for all the hard work you’ve done this year to help improve our college and make it an inclusive and enjoyable environment for everyone. Your involvement is imperative to the work we do!”

Well done to all the students who were nominated for each category. It is this commitment that reflects the standard of students and dedication of our lecturers. We also want to say a huge thank you to the Student Engagement Team, Tia Beard, Luke Penberthy, Morgan Jenkins, and Liv Haly, for all their hard work to make this event possible.

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.