Weston College toasted the outstanding success of learners and employer partners at its annual Business Awards on Thursday (June 20).

Winners from a range of categories were presented with awards at the Oscars-style event at the Winter Gardens.

Guests – including students, employers and local dignitaries – enjoyed a three-course dinner and heard an inspirational keynote talk from Nick Elston, one of the country’s most renowned speakers on the subjects of anxiety, mental health and well-being.

Principal and CEO of Weston College Group, Dr Paul Phillips, who hosted the awards, said: “This year we received a record number of nominations and, while this made judging an unenviable task, it highlights the wealth of talent among our learners and the level of dedication and expertise within our employer network.

“It was fantastic to celebrate the many successes of our work-based learners, who show outstanding commitment to their programmes. They are truly a credit to the College and their employers.

“This year’s event is also notable as it fell between the opening of two significant new training facilities – the Construction Training Centre and Health and Active Living Centre. These state-of-the-art resources will provide huge benefits for learners, businesses and the community as a whole.”

It was an evening to remember for Thatchers Cider apprentice Molly O’Flaherty, 17 who was named Overall Learner of the Year and Professional Services Apprentice of the Year. Molly, who is completing a Customer Services Apprenticeship, was singled out for her maturity, work-ethic and passion to learn.

Molly said: “I am delighted to have won this award, as it shows how far I have come over such a short period of time with Thatchers.

“The support I have received from Weston College and Thatchers has been excellent, and I can’t wait to continue my development with such a great employer.”

Thatchers Cider made it a ‘quadruple’ celebration by picking up the Overall Employer and New Apprentice Employer of the Year awards.

Emma Cox, Training and Development Manager at Thatchers Cider, said: “At Thatchers we are committed to supporting young people and providing them with an opportunity to develop their skills.

“Being recognised for this award is testament to the hard work that we have put in, the dedication of the learners and the support we have received from Weston College in creating a bespoke programme to suit our business needs.”

The National Children’s Orchestras of Great Britain (NCO) was recognised as Industry Placement Employer of the year. Sophie Lewis, Managing Director at NCO, commented: “The Industry Placement programme has had a really positive impact on NCO. As a charity we have benefitted from additional capacity and fresh perspectives through our placement who immediately became a fantastic addition to our team.

“We are thrilled to win this award and look forward to engaging with the programme further in the future.”

Business Award winners list:

Employer awards

• Small Employer of the Year – Ridgeway House
• Medium Employer of the Year – YMCA Barley Wood Day Nursery
• Large Employer of the Year – SUEZ Recycling and Recovery UK
• New Apprentice Employer of the Year – Thatchers Cider
• Industry Placement Employer of the Year – National Children's Orchestras of Great Britain
• Work Experience Employer of the Year – Visit Somerset
• Traineeship Employer of the Year – University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust
• Pre-employment Employer of the Year – OCS Group
• Disability Confident Employer of the Year – Weston Museum
• Inspiring Future Talent Employer of the Year – OnPoint Barbers
• Commercial Training Employer of the Year – Kings Heavy Haulage of Bristol)
• Overall Employer of the Year – Thatchers Cider

Learners awards

• Construction Apprentice of the Year – Patrick Hollritt, of John Mansfield Electrical
• Digital Apprentice of the Year – Sean Haberfield, of Osborne Clarke
• Early Years and Education Apprentice of the Year – Charlotte Redstone, of King Alfred School
• Engineering and Manufacturing Apprentice of the Year – Matthew Vicarage, of Ipeco Composites
• Hair and Beauty Apprentice of the Year – George Sheppard, of OnPoint Barbers
• Hospitality and Food Industry Apprentice of the Year – Chris Barry, of St Monica Trust
• Industry Placement Learner of the Year – Olivia Farley of Green Pastures Veterinary Centre
• Leadership Apprentice of the Year – Mark Cordy, of Bradbury House
• Professional Services Apprentice of the Year – Molly O'Flaherty, of Thatchers Cider
• SEND Learner into Employment Student of the Year – Jack Tiley, of Lasseter's restaurant
• Sport, Health, Lab Tech and Social Care Apprentice of the Year – Rebecca Twinney of Royal United Hospital, Bath
• Traineeship Learner of the Year – Holly Griffiths, of Ready Steady Go Nursery
• Transport and Logistics Learner of the Year – Harrison King, of Kings Heavy Haulage
• Overall Learner of the Year – Molly O'Flaherty, of Thatchers Cider

Last year, four Media Production students were given an exciting brief from Aerospace Bristol – to create a short video to be played in the museum’s exhibition.

This live project brief saw four students gain valuable experience, as they put their theory to the test and ran a project from start to finish.

As part of this project, students carried out research on the engineering industry, planned video content and organised interviews. They also worked closely with Weston College engineering students, to get a taste of what the industry entails.

One student that worked on the project is Chloe Bailey. She said: “I believe that every single member of the team worked to their strengths, which is what pulled us through to the screening day and finishing off the project. We were proud of the final outcome and look forward to seeing it at the exhibition.”

Chloe was joined on the project by her classmates Kate Busby, John Davies and Kraig Taylor-Bryant.

Amy Seadon, Learning and Community Engagement Manager at Aerospace Bristol, said: “The team did a fantastic job.

“They listened carefully to the brief and produced a wonderful short film which truly brought out and showcased the enthusiasm of the engineering students. We hope that seeing it will inspire more young people to explore a career in engineering.”

The video, which showcased the world of engineering – including what it is like to study engineering in the 21st century – premiered last December and is now on display for Aerospace Bristol visitors to see.

The project was carried out as part of the Media Production Level 3 ‘Client Brief’ unit, which is designed to give our students real-life experience of working with a client.

You can find out more information on our Media Production courses, here.

Generous staff at Weston College’s Training Solutions are donating money to charity this year rather than sending Christmas cards to one another.

A decision was made by the staff to place one card to all staff members on a communal noticeboard and then make a donation to international charity ‘World Vision’.

Training Solutions, who are one of the largest training providers in the South West, offer a diverse Apprenticeship programme. It was therefore decided that all monies raised would go towards buying ‘Woman’s Apprenticeship’ gifts from the charity.

These gifts pay for less privileged women to learn new skills, from handicrafts to tailoring and baking, and will help unemployed women find a job and earn an income for their family.

High unemployment is hitting women particularly hard in third world countries. They are struggling to gain marketable skills and losing out on opportunities even when they have the qualifications and ability to do the job. This project aims to change this.

The Women’s Apprenticeship, which can be purchased from www.musthavegifts.org, is just £18, and the Training Solutions team are hoping to buy as many of these as they can this year.

World Vision ‘must have gifts’ are special because they are genuinely needed. Other gifts include mosquito nets, birth certificates, chickens and scholarships for children.

Training Solutions offers a wide range of training including Apprenticeships and NVQs, the majority of which are delivered in the workplace. They currently work with more than 1000 businesses and organisations supporting them to achieve significant improvements in overall performance. They achieve this through helping organisations maximise the performance of one of their most expensive resources - their people.

For further information please call Training Solutions on 01934 411594.

World Vision is a Christian relief, development and advocacy organisation dedicated to working with children, families and communities to overcome poverty and injustice.

Four Weston College apprentices have been recruited by a high-growth local company which launched with three staff in 2007 and now employs over 40 people.

Purplex Marketing, based on Oldmixon Crescent, has taken on four IT apprentices as part of its ambitious growth strategy.

College Apprenticeships Recruitment Coordinator James Wilmot said: “Apprenticeship applications have risen considerably because businesses like Purplex are seeing benefits.

“They can mould someone to the company's needs and put them at the heart of their business. More than 90 per cent of our apprentices are offered permanent jobs by their employers at the end of their training programme.”

Purplex Marketing, part of the Ascot Group, was founded by Andrew Scott and is one of the fastest growing marketing technology companies in the UK.

 It plans to double its 40-strong staff by 2017 in areas such as web design, search engine marketing, app development and social media.

Andrew said: “I am delighted to welcome the four new apprentices from Weston College.

“Our digital marketing division continues to grow rapidly as we attract clients locally and from across the UK and Europe.

“It is essential we develop our team to keep pace with growth and new technologies, and introducing Apprenticeships will help train the next generation of digital marketing experts.”

More than 90 per cent of Weston College apprentices were offered permanent jobs by their employers at the end of their training programmes – a 46 per cent increase in filled jobs compared to last year.

The College currently supports 1,200 Apprentices and works with 1,400 employers. It is the biggest facilitator of Apprenticeship programmes in the region.

Its new Training Solutions, based at the South West Skills Campus on Locking Road provide businesses with relevant and flexible training programmes.

The College offers a wide programme of Apprenticeships to people aged 16 and over with adults looking for a new career via training or an alternative to A Levels.

The College's Apprenticeship programme can be studied at Levels 2, 3 and 4 and learners can progress through these levels while continuing to work alongside experienced and skilled staff.

The 50-strong team of work based learning Assessors work with more than 1400 organisations in the South West.

The College was also the first in the South West to launch the Higher Apprenticeship Scheme enabling employees to gain university level qualifications while working in areas such as accountancy, care and business.

Although apprentices receive workplace training, they access the same College benefits as students including bus passes, gym sessions, discounted driving lessons plus hair and beauty treatments.

For more information about taking on an Apprentice contact the Training Solutions Team on 01934 411 594.

TWO performing arts students from Weston College have been commissioned by a theatre in Taunton to perform their solo shows.

Charlie French and Katrina Titcombe, who are both on the College’s BA (Hons) Performing Arts course, will be performing at The Brewhouse, in Coal Orchard, on Saturday 4th June.

Charlie’s show, Scratch, is a piece exploring who we really are through the words of others. It asks whether words convey identity or just paraphrase the thoughts people hear from those around them.

He said: “'I'm thrilled to have my work commissioned by the Brewhouse Theatre.

“Not only is it fantastic experience for an aspiring actor to see what it's really like to work within the industry, it is also a great encouragement.

“It is because of my training at the Wessex Academy of Performing Arts that I feel I have grown in overall confidence since starting the course and have ultimately matured as a performer, both in terms of my knowledge of performance and the skills that I have learned.”

Katrina’s show, You Are Invited, revolves around a few items of clothing which combine to perform a wedding in 40 minutes.

She said: “I am really excited for my first commissioned show. I think it will be a really good experience and a start to the outside world of performing.

“I think it will be a really good experience and a start to the outside world of performing!

The course has helped me develop my confidence within performing. It's made me explore more of what theatre really is and different ways it can be explored.”

The College’s Higher Education Section Leader in Performing Arts, Ged Stephenson, said: “Performing arts students held a festival of contemporary performance in which each student performed their own 40-minute solo piece.

“The Brewhouse was impressed with the festival and chose two of the performances to be put on at their venue as a double-header.”

The performance will begin at 7.30pm and tickets, priced £5, are available via www.thebrewhouse.net or 01823 283 244.

What is the first thing you do if you want to find out about someone you don't know?

Chances are, you answered that question with ‘Google them’ or even ‘Facebook them’. Practically everyone has an account on one of the many social media networks out there, and search engines like Google can pull up vast amounts of information that people have shared online.

Everything you share on the internet should be treated as a permanent record of who you are as a person. Even if you delete pictures and posts they might have been screenshotted and shared by your friends, and could still be accessible using an internet archive search such as Wayback Machine. Many celebrities have paid hundreds of thousands of pounds to try to remove images from the internet to no avail.

A lot of employers will use the internet to find out about the kind of person they’re employing, and when you start working for a company many people will check out your Facebook profile to learn more about their new colleague.

Big companies use social media monitoring software to protect their reputation and can easily find posts which mention them; so if you’re going to talk about your employer online make sure that your privacy setting reflect the amount of information you want them to see!

Don’t let your social media profiles have a negative impact on your reputation and employability – follow our useful guidelines:

• Don’t share anything online that you would not be comfortable with everybody knowing
• Ensure your public photos are employer-friendly – they are often the first impression
• If you are unsure about a post, be cautious and don’t post it – or post it privately
• Be thoughtful and polite when commenting on a public page
• Don’t post confidential information about yourself or others
• Report anything you see that might result in someone causing harm to themselves or others
• Create a LinkedIn profile so that you can easily control your professional image.

Our ASPECT team is on hand for further guidance on social media and employability...

At Weston College we get a lot of questions from members of the public who want to improve their hair and beauty knowledge. In the first of a two-part hair and beauty advice special we ask Jessica Stagg, former Weston College student and owner of Essential Beauty and Aesthetics, for answers to some of the most frequently beauty questions…

Click here for part two!

How can I tell when makeup expires?

Many people don’t know this essential beauty tip, and the answer is more simple than a lot of people think!

Almost every product you use has an expiry date, and using the product when it has gone off can damage your skin or affect results. Look for a symbol on the back of the makeup which looks like an open jar. In it, there should be a number which indicates how long the product will last after it has been opened.

How do I remove gel nail polish?

Removing gel nails is easy, all you need is acetone, cotton balls, a high-grit buffer, a nail file, and aluminium foil cut into squares big enough to wrap around your fingertips.

First, use the file to break the seal of the gel polish, making sure that you don’t file too deep as this could damage your nail. Cut the foil into 10 three-centimetre wide squares.

Next, soak a cotton ball in acetone and place it on your fingernail and wrap the foil around your fingertip to hold the cotton ball in place. Wait 15 minutes and the gel nail should flake off easily. Use a buffer on your nails to remove any residue.

You could become an expert in gel nails as little as three months with one of Weston College's nail technology part-time courses. Click here to find out more!

How should I clean makeup brushes?

To properly clean your makeup brushes you’ll need a shallow bowl, gentle shampoo, a sink and a lint-free cloth. Begin by running your brushes under lukewarm tap water to remove any remaining makeup. Focus on cleansing the bristles but try to avoid the handle as the heat of the water may loosen the glue over time.

Fill the bowl with lukewarm water and put a small amount of shampoo in it. Swirl the tip of your brush in the water and then swirl the brush in the palm of your hand to work up a lather. Rinse the brush under running water when you’re satisfied that the brush is clean, and then leave to dry!

How can I earn money with my beauty skills?

If you’re talented in makeup, nail art or massage you could earn money in the beauty industry as a beauty technician. Getting qualified and learning new skills is important, and I started my career by taking a beauty therapy qualification at Weston College. I then worked in salons for five years, and opened my first salon Essential Beauty and Aesthetics in Weston-super-Mare in 2016.

Weston College has courses for all ages and abilities, including part-time courses designed to fit around your schedule.

There are nearly 20,000 people employed in the beauty industry in the Bristol and Somerset area. The average starting salary in this sector is £15,000, however more qualified and specialist beauty therapists can earn over £20,000 per year.

Find out what courses we have on offer by clicking here!

Mind Matters is a weekly informal session highlighting the importance of looking after your mental health.

We are providing advice on anything from low mood to anxiety. They are run by the specialist mental health team here at the College and are for any students looking for support about an issue either inside or outside of the College, ask for advice or questions, or just to pick up some information.

You can also self-refer for support here as well as sign up for or forthcoming sessions on self esteem and anxiety, or to be a Time to Change Ambassador.

Mondays 9.30am to 11.30am

Knightstone Campus LibraryPlus

Loxton Campus Bistro

Weston College business student Bella Febry went out of her way to apply to complete her internship with international oil and gas company ‘OiLSERV’ in Dubai. 

James Foster, Executive Vice President at OiLSERV, said: “We tried our best to challenge her, and give her experience of what it is like working in a fast paced service industry – where we deliver operations 24/7, 365 days a year across multiple countries and time zones. The intent of the program was to help her understand how all elements of the organisation have to work together to be successful. 

“She worked exceptionally hard, learnt quickly, and integrated into all of the culturally diverse teams she worked with. Our teams enjoyed working with her, it was a pleasure for us to have her here.” 

At the end of her placement Bella was asked to do a presentation on her time with OiLSERV to the various teams she had worked with. Following this she received a glowing letter of recommendation from the company, which they say she ‘fully deserved’.

Bella is in the first year of her BTEC Extended Diploma in Business Studies here at Weston College. By completing this invaluable work experience she has gained skills in HR, finance, IT, supply chain, law, marketing, sales, and project delivery. 

When reflecting on her time with OiLSERV, Bella told us: “It was an amazing, once in a lifetime opportunity. I was really pleased when I read the feedback. It’ll definitely help my CV and future career prospects. I think it will make me stand out.”