Our Music learners and lecturers aren’t only passionate about their studies. Along with creating musical masterpieces, they are also passionate about supporting one another and bringing people together when times get tough.                                                                          

Music Instructor and Technician, Oz Cahill’s proactivity and industry experience enabled him to organise an event at The Electric Banana in Weston-super-Mare in aid of MacMillan Cancer Support. 

This came about after one of our UCW music degree students regrettably informed Oz that his mother had been diagnosed with cancer. The music team asked him what they could do to support, and he suggested he would like to put on a blues gig.              

After catching up with Oz, he told us: “Knowing the learners' parents quite well and their love for music, we felt we could do this for and with him. As with any events I am involved in; I put up a post on social media, anticipating a few local bands who knew me would agree to play alongside the learner's band. However, a good friend requested more details. The Dirt Road Band were key to the complete line-up. Sadly, a band member had to have surgery on his hand and so they were unable to attend but will be playing Weston in the near future!”.                         

Despite this, Oz was able to recruit another band to headline: Sons of Liberty,who are also very well known on the circuit.  
            
All in all, the night was a huge success and the dedication and hard work from all resulted in an amazing £2300 being raised for MacMillan Cancer Support, including a generous donation from Dr Paul.

Weston Music Shop also very kindly supported the event by donating an electric guitar which is to be auctioned. Oz told us: “It will have photographic and certificated authentication to increase its value as all of the guitarists of the event played it and were photographed with it”.                                 
 

Rideout's Cancer Kickback turned out to be one of the most exciting and successful events in the venue, being full to capacity throughout the evening session. It was also great to see our learners’ band play on the same bill as an array of outstanding professional musicians.     

We are immensely proud of all of those who took part and supported the event for such an important cause! Oz looks forward to securing further opportunities that will help our learners to gain genuine industry experience. 

To find out more about Music at Weston College, click here. 

As part of ‘My Future Month’, the Careers Advice Team and the Business Growth Team have collaborated to deliver CareersFest!

CareersFest was held at the Winter Gardens Pavilion in Weston-super-Mare on the 7th March. The event was designed to help learners explore your potential career pathways, as well as considering their interests and skills. Approximately 1000 Weston College learners and 400 school students were welcomed for our biggest ever Careers event!

The aim was to make learners aware of all their options for the future, including apprenticeships, higher education, and everything in between. Around fifty employers were also in attendance, to discuss the opportunities they could offer to the learners.

53 exhibitors had stalls around the venue, with representatives from each, excited to meet their potential employees, apprentices or university students. Employers who were in attendance included the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, EDF Energy, GKN Aerospace, the NHS and Jet2, as well as many more, with universities including UCW, Cardiff, Exeter, Gloucestershire and Falmouth there too.

Anna Holton, School Liaison & IAG Manager, commented on the success of the day: “We’re so thrilled at the outcome of our CareersFest 2023 event, where we were able to bring together both Weston College learners and school leavers to meet potential employers, universities and other future options! Here at Weston College, our mantra is ‘careers, not courses’, so ensuring our learners have opportunities to engage in meaningful conversations with these exhibitors is crucial. We've already had positive feedback from the exhibitors that attended and our learners about their experience yesterday. This event, held in National Careers Week kick starts a series of virtual Careers activities for our learners through our very own ‘My Future Month’. CareersFest is a positive way to start a Careers focussed month, we can’t wait to see where our learners’ journeys take them!”

If you would like to receive some advice on your future, you can contact the school advice team here!

Working with animals can be a dream for many people, and one way in which you can achieve this, to become a vet.

In the UK there are over 29,000 veterinary positions, with vets earning an average salary of £47,000 a year!

You might now be wondering how you can become a vet… we’ll tell you how.

In order to become a vet, you will need to complete a veterinary degree approved by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS).

Entry to these courses is highly competitive, so it is important that you stand out from the crowd, with great results and relevant work experience. Here are some of the options that you can take, to progress onto an approved degree.

Animal Management

Animal Management is perfect for animal lovers who want to develop their animal care skills to work in the industry.

Animal Management courses offer a balance of practical work and theory, that will provide you with the opportunity to work with a wide variety of animals. You will gain detailed academic knowledge and understanding of all aspects of animal science, management, behaviour and husbandry through theory-based and practical sessions.

You will also have the opportunity to gain valuable work experience, working with a local organisation to build your knowledge and practical skills.

Click here to view our Animal Management courses.

A Levels

A Levels are the most common route to university. They offer a more academic route, but thanks to our Career Excellence Hub, you will have unrivalled access to employers, where you can gain work experience, attend masterclasses and hear from industry insiders.

The subjects that universities will want you to study varies, but typically the science-related subjects are required.

Click here to view our A Level courses.

Access to Higher Education

Access to Higher Education (HE) is a great way for people over the age of 19 to gain the qualifications needed to progress on to a degree.

At Weston College, we offer an Access to HE Diploma in Animal Science, which is taught flexibly over 10 hours, per week.

The course is a great way to gain the qualifications needed for university and covers a wide range of topics, such as: zoo enclosure management, behaviour, exotic animal husbandry, vet nursing, welfare, conservation, behaviour, biology, chemistry.

All learners receive tutorial sessions and also complete independent study units in study skills sessions.

Click here to view the course details.

If you'd like to find out more about a career in animal management, come along to one of our open evenings and chat to the team, they will be more than happy to help!