<div style="float:right;width:50%;"><iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/oeWk0CxblmI?si=46WOepQfs45F5Boe&quot; width="560"></iframe></div><p>It’s official, <a href="https://www.ucw.ac.uk/">University Centre Weston (UCW)</a> is among the best places to study at university level in the UK, according to the results of the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) published on September 28th 2023.</p><p>The TEF panel considered the overall rating for UCW to be Gold, placing it among the country’s best university and college higher education providers. This recognition by the TEF Panel reflects UCW’s unwavering dedication to providing outstanding education to a diverse student body and places it within the top 20% in the UK and one of only six colleges nationally to achieve the status.</p><p>The Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) is a national scheme run by the Office for Students (OfS) that aims to encourage higher education providers to improve and deliver excellence in the areas that students care about the most: teaching, learning and achieving positive outcomes from their studies.</p><p>The TEF does this by assessing and rating universities and colleges for excellence above a set of minimum requirements for quality and standards.</p><p>Providers that take part in the TEF receive an overall rating as well as two underpinning ratings – one for the student experience and one for student outcomes.</p><p>The ratings reflect the extent to which a provider delivers an excellent experience and outcomes for its mix of undergraduate students and across the range of its undergraduate courses and subjects.</p><p>Hundreds of higher education institutions in England, Wales and Scotland have had their teaching quality, learning environment, and student outcome data assessed by the TEF Panel and rated as either Gold, Silver, Bronze or Requires Improvement.</p><p>The TEF Panel judged that UCW delivers consistently outstanding teaching, learning and outcomes for its students, which is of the highest quality found in Britain.</p><p>Jacqui Ford, Interim Principal and Chief Executive of the Weston College Group expressed her delight, saying,</p><p>“This achievement represents a significant milestone for our region, confirming the excellence of our institution for higher education. Furthermore, it underscores the Weston College Group’s positive impact on learners both locally and nationally. Attaining Gold status also validates UCW’s approach of seamlessly blending high-quality academic learning with practical, career-oriented education, providing our students and university partners with confidence in our offerings.”</p><p>Ford extended her gratitude to the dedicated staff at UCW, Weston College, and partner universities, recognising their instrumental role in achieving this remarkable status. She noted:</p><p>"Our journey to this point would not have been possible without the invaluable support of my predecessor Sir Paul Phillips who led the Weston College Group since 2001 until his retirement in August 2023, our partner universities, the University of the West of England, Bath Spa University, and Hartpury University, as well as UCW’s Vice Principal for Higher Education, Sadie Skellon. The dedication of our staff, and governors, and the collaborative efforts with the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership and North Somerset Council have also been essential in reaching this remarkable achievement.”</p><p>UCW’s Vice Principal for Higher Education, Sadie Skellon added:</p><p>“The TEF Panel has recognised the efforts of the talented and dedicated students and staff that we have at UCW and across the Weston College Group, and the value of the outstanding support we provide.</p><p>“UCW is committed to being an inclusive institution, promoting participation from students from all backgrounds and supporting students to ensuring positive outcomes for all. We have strategic aims to articulate this and are pleased the OfS has acknowledged that UCW ‘tailors provision and succeeds in its aim of supporting underrepresented groups of students from its region to achieve in their studies’.</p><p>In addition to praise for the student experience, UCW was praised for its supportive learning environment, offering students access to a wide range of high-quality academic support tailored to their needs. The institution has also demonstrated a commitment to embedding employability and entrepreneurship into its course content, preparing students for successful futures.</p><p>UCW’s dedication to research, innovation, scholarship, professional practice, and employer engagement further enhances the academic experience, contributing to the institution’s outstanding standing in the TEF.</p><p>This Gold rating in the 2023 Teaching Excellence Framework solidifies UCW’s status as a leading institution committed to excellence in higher education.</p><p>&nbsp;</p>

<p paraeid="{56aab9ee-9380-459a-a1f1-36cc8d93a50d}{191}" paraid="728221350">For many students ready to embark on their futures, making the crucial decision of what to study post-16, Sport is forced to shift from a passion to a hobby, in the search for a more 'sensible’ or ‘stable’ prospective career.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{56aab9ee-9380-459a-a1f1-36cc8d93a50d}{219}" paraid="125315468">The reality is that Sport is an excellent career pathway. In 2023, there are so many more opportunities and prospects than simply playing or competing professionally. In the UK alone, the Sport industry contributes over £39 million to economy – a figure that would be far lower without all the supporting roles within the field.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{56aab9ee-9380-459a-a1f1-36cc8d93a50d}{255}" paraid="1145331481">Football, Rugby, Netball. Sport is no longer all about the players.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{88d88f36-76fb-4303-bb92-de160737527d}{16}" paraid="1137870278">To make the game safe we need physios, to make a match fair, we need referees and to enhance the skill of the game, we need coaches and Performance Analysts.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{88d88f36-76fb-4303-bb92-de160737527d}{36}" paraid="1854525819">This brings us to one of our outstanding alumni, Harrison.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{88d88f36-76fb-4303-bb92-de160737527d}{48}" paraid="163645984">After studying Sport at Weston College from 2003—2005, Harrison has gone on to have the most vibrant and successful career in football.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{88d88f36-76fb-4303-bb92-de160737527d}{58}" paraid="879416194">From the Bluebirds (Cardiff City) to Liverpool FC, all the way to his current role as Director of Performance Analysis for the Royal Moroccan Football Federation and contributing to the team’s recent success in the World Cup in Qatar, Harrison boasts an incredibly impressive portfolio of clientele and experience. <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/64353402&quot; rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Read the BBC Sport article about Harrison as the Englishman who helped to plot Morrocco's success here</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{88d88f36-76fb-4303-bb92-de160737527d}{103}" paraid="328250279">We recently caught up with Harrison, who told us all about his journey into the Performance Analysis industry. He says:&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{88d88f36-76fb-4303-bb92-de160737527d}{111}" paraid="966971859">My career started whilst I was still a student at University of Wales Institute Cardiff (UWIC) now known as Cardiff Metropolitan University. My first step and knowledge of the Analysis industry came from a course module and task we were given. This led to an internship with Cardiff City's Youth &amp; Reserve teams, and I combined this role with my undergraduate studies, taking specialist modules in Performance Analysis (now a course in its own right).&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{88d88f36-76fb-4303-bb92-de160737527d}{121}" paraid="71502039">Beyond this I continued gaining as much experience as possible and continued my studies by starting a Masters in Performance Analysis (also at UWIC). In this time, I worked with various teams in different sports (Welsh Football Association, Welsh Rugby, University of Glamorgan) and in a variety of roles.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{88d88f36-76fb-4303-bb92-de160737527d}{138}" paraid="808407009">My next step was into full time employment with Tottenham Hotspur U18 as the Youth Team Analyst. From here I made the move into the 1st team football environment with Burnley FC (Head of Analysis/1st Team Analyst) and then onto Liverpool FC (Head of Post Match Analysis). I was really able to take something and learn from each experience.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{88d88f36-76fb-4303-bb92-de160737527d}{192}" paraid="640136190">My current role is Director of Performance Analysis for the Royal Moroccan Football Federation, it is a wide-ranging role covering many aspects including creating and managing an Analysis Department to provide analysis support for all our national teams (across all age groups/categories).&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{88d88f36-76fb-4303-bb92-de160737527d}{192}" paraid="640136190">I enjoy all aspects of the role as I get to do a mixture of everything. Of course, a huge highlight was working with the National team for the recent World Cup in Qatar, privileged and proud to play my small part of an incredible story.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{88d88f36-76fb-4303-bb92-de160737527d}{216}" paraid="682628734">In layman's terms I get to watch football for a living and, whilst it is a bit more intricate and complex than that, it is still a joy to combine a passion of mine (and many others I'm sure) and call it work. As well as this, the job has definitely offered me some of the best seats in world football at some of the best games in recent history.&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{1f7e817a-3a3f-46a9-8685-cb6ea960c726}{10}" paraid="1664078305">Sport is a fantastic topic to study, often it is a passion and one that therefore needs little motivation to learn and improve your understanding of. It's a fantastic tool for development and of course the competitive drive often associated with it is something that really pushes people on.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{1f7e817a-3a3f-46a9-8685-cb6ea960c726}{23}" paraid="1900061864">My advice for new students starting out on this path is to get as much experience outside of your studies as possible. You probably don't realise how much 'free' time you have at this stage of your life, so get out there, test and challenge yourself to apply the theory you are learning, and don't always look immediately to the big names and clubs (in time it will come, if you want to arrive there). You often get a fuller, more rounded experience of the role and jobs it entails at a lower level, plus the pressure here is less so it's a good place to experiment, make mistakes, and learn.&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{1f7e817a-3a3f-46a9-8685-cb6ea960c726}{70}" paraid="1111428694">My time at Weston college was the perfect steppingstone for further education, providing and adding to the foundation knowledge I had in sport and particularly in the Sports Science discipline. It was the ideal place for me to continue my studies and combine this with a continued education in football. I learned and developed many key skills from my time at Weston College, gaining coaching qualifications also.&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{1f7e817a-3a3f-46a9-8685-cb6ea960c726}{80}" paraid="168167538">Huge thanks to Harrison for such incredible insight into exciting pathways and opportunities within the wider Sports industry.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{1f7e817a-3a3f-46a9-8685-cb6ea960c726}{88}" paraid="1295935300">To read more about our Sport programmes, <a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/what-can-i-study/courses-16-18-year-olds/sport… here</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

<p paraeid="{56eea5ff-c6ed-42ce-9344-2c91bc08f189}{174}" paraid="1967173483">Last week <a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/what-can-i-study/courses-16-18-year-olds/sport…; rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Sport</a> learners held another instalment in their series of sports and exercise festivals.&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{56eea5ff-c6ed-42ce-9344-2c91bc08f189}{201}" paraid="1611224397">The festivals are a fantastic initiative put in place in order to engage local schools and boost the presence of inclusive sport practice within the community.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{1}" paraid="1171525437"><a href="https://weston.sharepoint.com/:w:/r/sites/WC_STA_Marketing/_layouts/15/…; rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Read more about the festivals here</a>.&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{10}" paraid="1558775464">The most recent event was a football festival in partnership with local Uphill-based school, <a href="https://www.westhavenschool.org.uk/&quot; rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Westhaven</a>.&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{29}" paraid="436424569">According to Head Teacher, Jamie Peacock, “Westhaven is a specialist school, and a unique environment, for children and young people who experience complex barriers to learning.”&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{37}" paraid="443570240">The festival, which took place at Loxton Campus in our Health and Active Living Skills Centre, was an excellent opportunity for both Weston College and Westhaven students to collaborate and engage in a fun-filled, active-focused afternoon.&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{49}" paraid="1526312479">Our Sport learners planned, set up and carried out a circuit of fun activities centred around improving football skills which the Westhaven learners eagerly participated in.&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{83}" paraid="376369969">Jack, Sports Academy and Enrichment Management, said “We’re really excited to be growing and building local links with local stakeholders. This is a fantastic opportunity for us to provide sport and enrichment to the community.”&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{83}" paraid="376369969">&nbsp;</p><img src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/0N1A5823.JPG" data-align="center" data-entity-uuid="4dff2925-2230-4488-bfd5-b87ca2994064" data-entity-type="file" alt="Westhaven students at Weston Sport Football Festival" width="547" height="471"><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{97}" paraid="1004631141">&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{97}" paraid="1004631141">Sports learners, Ella and Skyia, had this to say:&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{117}" paraid="836082947">“We had the opportunity to work with the Westhaven students, teaching them the basics and getting them involved in sport.&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{136}" paraid="36045031">We think this is important because we’re practicing valuable skills that we’ll need in our future coaching careers.&nbsp;It’s also really important to encourage inclusivity in sports and exercise.”&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{172}" paraid="1416776561">Amazing work guys!&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{178}" paraid="4872376">To learn more about Sport courses at Weston College, <a href="https://www.weston.ac.uk/what-can-i-study/courses-16-18-year-olds/sport…; rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">click here</a>.&nbsp;</p><p paraeid="{685e0582-5d92-4132-b6b4-4b6a662eb1ad}{178}" paraid="4872376">&nbsp;</p>