Weston College is widely known as an outstanding provider of education, but it also has been successfully changing the face of Weston-super-Mare for decades by transforming underused and unloved buildings into award-winning facilities.

Take a look at the below images to see how the College has changed over the years, and find out about the many successful building projects it has completed…

Knightstone Campus

Opened in 1970, the College’s Knightstone Campus was the first College building to be constructed. Built in a typically brutalist style, the College has invested significantly over the years to modernise the building, creating a new entrance atrium in 1998.

Before

After

Loxton Campus

The College’s second campus, which includes its Sixth Form Centre, was built on the site of the former Broadoak Sixth Form College. The site was renovated and reopened in 2008.

Before

After

South West Skills Campus

The South West Skills Campus started life as Bushacre Business park. The College moved into the former Clarks shoe factory initially, and as provision grew the site expanded into the roadside industrial units and Renault garage. This renovation earned the College a nomination for two building excellence awards.

Before

After

Weston College Conference Centre

Built in 1892, the Hans Price-designed Conference Centre was refurbished from a derelict state in 2012, winning the Somerset Trust ‘Building of the Year’ award and earning a nomination for an English Heritage Angel Award in the process.

Before

After

Law and Professional Services Academy

Weston College bought the former Arosfa Hotel in January 2016 and spent millions of pounds on much-needed renovation work to the row of Victorian terraced houses. The building opened for teaching and student accommodation in September the same year.

Before

After

[[{"fid":"5456","view_mode":"default","fields":{"format":"default","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":""},"type":"media","link_text":null,"attributes":{"height":"533","width":"800","class":"media-element file-default"}}]]

Winter Gardens Pavilion

The College reopened the Winter Gardens Pavilion to the public in September 2018. The public now benefits from updated facilities, a new modern British restaurant and a new cafe.

Click here for more before and after pictures of the Winter Gardens Pavilion.

Before

After

[[{"fid":"5458","view_mode":"default","fields":{"format":"default","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":""},"type":"media","link_text":null,"attributes":{"height":"389","width":"800","class":"media-element file-default"}}]]

Weston College and the Federation of Small Businesses Limited (FSB) have joined forces to generate more apprenticeships opportunities across the West of England.

Following the FSB ‘Make or Break, getting apprenticeships reform right for small businesses’ report in August 2016, it was discovered that two in three small-medium enterprises retain their apprentice once they have finished their studies, which represents the benefits of hiring apprentices. Weston College actively seeks to better these statistics, with over 90% of its apprentices being offered permanent positions once they have completed their course.

The objective of this partnership is to highlight opportunities for small-medium enterprise employers across the West of England to engage with apprenticeships to recruit and develop talent, supporting their business growth.

John Mayer, the FSB Weston-super-Mare branch Vice Chairman said: “The FSB are committed to supporting our members locally and nationally to understand the opportunities presented by apprenticeships to attract, retain and develop a skilled workforce. There are significant benefits to employing an apprentice, giving the employer a valuable resource they can invest in to help successfully manage their businesses. We are therefore delighted to be working in partnership with Weston College to directly address some of the myths and lack of understanding around apprenticeships and generate additional employment opportunities across the region.”

Dr Paul Phillips CBE, Principal and Chief Executive of the Weston College Group, said: “At Weston College we pride ourselves in putting students first, and we are committed to giving our learners the best opportunities possible. We are excited by the prospect of working with FSB, as we aim to expand our network of local businesses and employers, to deliver more apprenticeships in the region.”

The partnership will include Weston College and the FSB hosting a joint Apprenticeship Expo event on 31st October at the Winter Gardens in Weston-super-Mare. The event will focus on enlightening businesses to the opportunities that apprenticeships can present to their organisation. Organisations will receive advice on recruitment and funding, as well as the opportunity to hear first-hand experiences from companies that offer apprenticeships.

Employers can register their interest for the event here

To discuss the advantages apprenticeships can bring to your organisation, contact us on 01934 411 411 or email apprenticeships@weston.ac.uk

Degree apprenticeships are an exciting new way to combine academic study with work-related, practical experience which is crucial for employers.

One of the degree apprenticeships that we offer at University Centre Weston (UCW) is the BSc (Hons) Degree in Digital and Technology Solutions. This has been developed with UWE Bristol, and delivers four of the pathways which have been developed for the Digital and Technology Solutions Degree including cyber security, software engineer, business analyst and data analyst.

To get the low down on this course, and how the apprenticeships are helping our students, we spoke with two of our apprentices…

Dave Rose, who studies the Digital and Technology Solutions degree-level apprenticeship at UCW, said: “With the degree apprenticeship I was given the opportunity to have one day out of work a week, while my pay and benefits stayed the same for my job that I had already been in for quite a while.

“This has given me a great chance to upskill and as long as I put the work in I can walk away with a full honours degree all with no student loan or debt. I think that is an absolutely incredible deal, it’s almost ridiculous and anyone who can should jump at that opportunity!”

Tommy Beaton, UCW degree apprentice, said: “My course covers a large part of IT and allows me to learn a lot of the skills required to do my job.”

There is a stigma around apprenticeships that apprentices don’t get stuck in with real life tasks, however this is not the case. Tommy said: “I am working for the College and I’m currently helping to develop online courses for distance learners. I am also building a coaching and mentoring course for our online platform, 'TIDE'.

“I've always wanted to be in a working environment as I find that's when I learn best, so to be able to work on real projects allows me to be creative and learn a lot too. It's an excellent opportunity and not one I was willing to turn down.

"This apprenticeship has given me the opportunity to develop my team working skills, instructional design and website development.”

It has become an increasingly popular choice to choose an apprenticeship over a degree in recent years with apprenticeship participation at a record high.

Interested?

You can find out more about becoming a degree apprentice over on the University Centre Weston website.

Degree apprenticeships are increasingly used to upskill existing employees using this industry approach.If you’d like more information about how degree apprenticeships can support your business please contact our Training Solutions team on 01934 411 594.