Dzeneta Antoneviciute, Level 1 Hairdressing and Beauty, and Amelia Searle, Level 2 Hairdressing competed in the AHT competitions at the end of January in Aberdare, Wales.

The AHT competition is open to any 16-19 year old studying hairdressing/barbering or beauty. Dzeneta and Amelia will be joining Zoe and Claire, who have direct entries within their fields at the finals on Sunday 15th March at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool.

“I am so grateful for the opportunity I have been given. I am looking forward to expanding my skills even further. Going to the finals will be an incredible experience in which I hope to excel in”, Amelia.

Each learner will now need to practice their looks for the next stage whilst developing their time management skills. Tutors will be pressure testing them (providing opportunities to practice in front of an audience) to prepare them for the big stage. This will mean that each learner will need to commit additional time for specialist training in addition to their college timetable.

Jenna, FE Curriculum Co-ordinator for Hair and Beauty, said: “I'm so proud of each of our learners who took part in the regional AHT competition, they put in outstanding performances and should be pleased to have gained first place. We pride ourselves with offering all learners the opportunity to take part in competitions. These competitions are a brilliant way to springboard their skills, improving their future employability.

We look forward to hearing how the finals go in March.

Find out more:

• www.aht-uk.com/competitions
• 16-19 Hair and barbering courses
• 16-19 Beauty courses
• Next open event

Hi I'm Emma, a Digital Marketing Apprentice at Weston College.

After finishing my A Levels, I didn’t know what to do with my career. I knew university wasn’t the route I wanted, but I was also afraid of being 20 years old and doing an apprenticeship. I saw an apprenticeship as something for school leavers, and I didn’t realise the opportunities it would present me.

I wanted to get my foot in the door with a local employer, and start a job where I could showcase my creativity, and express my passion for social media. An apprenticeship gave me just that, and was the perfect route to kick start my future career in marketing. I quickly learned that the majority of other apprentices at Weston College were the same age as me – in fact, there are several people older than me studying an apprenticeship in order to upskill.

I now laugh at the fact that I got the role of an apprentice so wrong - instead of doing the basic jobs I was expecting, I am treated the same as any other member of the team. I am given so many opportunities to fully understand what digital marketing is and why it is so beneficial to the organisation. The team are incredibly supportive, and I know that I can approach anyone with a question and not only will they help me with the situation, but it will also benefit my qualification.

I have grown in confidence so much since working at Weston College, from something simple like picking up the phone to ask someone a question, to communicating with senior staff and employers during events.

What I love most about my job is that no two days are the same. Whether I am working on adding content to one of the websites, editing a video, or covering an event on social media; my role allows me explore my creativity in the best way imaginable. My proudest moment whilst working at Weston College was creating and managing a digital campaign by myself for the first time – and seeing the impact it had on student recruitment. This is something I didn’t believe I would be able to do when I first started my apprenticeship.

Weston College has a brilliant staff mentoring program which helped me to settle in straight away. As a previous Weston College student I thought I knew most things about the college, but I was definitely wrong. I meet my mentor regularly for coffee, which really helps with my development.

I’ve recently become part of a new initiative called the ‘Inspiring Future Talent’ programme, which welcomes all current internal apprentices working at the college, and allows apprentices from across the organisation to discuss issues or struggles that come with being an apprentice. We are given the opportunity to talk about any topics that we feel will help to support us through our time at Weston College, and it’s a great opportunity to get to know others. Being inspired by the help I received from my mentor, I hope to help other people, especially apprentices into settling into the college in the future.

I am loving my time as an apprentice, and look forward to continuing my development at Weston College.

Find out more:

• Apprenticeships
• Working for Weston College

Over 40 students were recognised for their outstanding achievements at our annual awards event, Celebration of Success.

Hosted at the Winter Gardens Pavilion, the gala style event saw students of all disciplines receive awards for going above and beyond expectations, breaking the mould and succeeding against all odds.

Every year students are nominated for these prestigious awards by their lecturers, often for accomplishing greatness despite challenging circumstances.

Once nominated, a panel of judges including Principal and Chief Executive Dr Paul Philips CBE then decided on the winners for each award.

As part of the evening, the smartly dressed guests were treated to a delicious 3 course meal, planned, prepared and served by the College’s Hospitality and Catering students.

Guests were also treated to a performance from University Centre Weston’s BA (Hons) Musical Theatre students, who entertained the audience by performing songs from The Secret Garden; a musical which they previously performed at the prestigious Theatre Royal in Windsor towards the end of 2019 (click here to read more).

One-by-one, the winning students were announced and took to the stage with tremendous applause from family and guests. They were presented with their award, certificate and prize by Chair of Governors, Andrew Leighton-Price.

Champion boxer Glenn Catley also presented cheques for Further Education and Adult Student of the Year, to Amy Dyke and Michelle Pellegrino respectively, on behalf of Skylight Properties who sponsored the event.

Principal and Chief Executive Dr Paul Philips CBE commented: “Tonight we celebrated some of the inspiring individual journeys and remarkable personal achievements which have all contributed to the ongoing success story of Weston College.

"It’s difficult to think of an occasion which better encapsulates the determination, dedication and talent of our students than these awards – they bring home the lengths to which our students go to achieve success. The stories we heard of personal courage, success in adversity and outstanding ability are inspirational, and it’s immensely satisfying to see those efforts rewarded.“