Welcome to the CMN…
Gower College Swansea Celebrates Strong International Partnerships
Gower College Swansea continues to proudly welcome a diverse group of international students studying mainly A Levels at its Gorseinon Campus.
This year, students have joined us from countries including China, Vietnam, Canada, Italy, and Botswana, bringing with them a wealth of cultural experiences that enhance and internationalise our College community.
The College has earned an excellent reputation for its outstanding A Level results and strong progression rates to top universities both in Wales and across the UK. International students benefit from this high-quality academic environment, with dedicated support to help them achieve their aspirations.
To strengthen these international ties, the College maintains numerous partnerships with schools around the world. In support of this initiative, our Head of International Ruth Owen Lewis and CEO Mark Jones MBE recently returned from an enriching visit to China.
The visit included engagements with a number of schools and stakeholders, with two days spent in Wuhan, central China’s Hubei province. Wuhan is Swansea’s sister city and shares a rich historical connection with our community.
The bond between Wuhan and Swansea dates back to the mid-19th century, highlighted by the contributions of Griffith John, a Swansea-born missionary who arrived in Wuhan in 1861. His enduring legacy includes the establishment of Wuhan’s first hospital, which has since evolved into the United Hospital of China, serving over 3.5 million people annually. The hospital’s museum remains a tribute to Griffith John’s remarkable work.
Additionally, Griffith John founded the city’s first school in 1896, the site of today’s Wuhan Number 4 Middle School and one of the most successful schools in the city. Some of the original buildings, meticulously restored, stand as a testament to his contributions and are a source of pride and gratitude for the people of Wuhan.
Speaking about the visit, Mark Jones MBE said: “It was a privilege to witness first hand the strength of our sister city relationship and the lasting impact of Griffith John’s legacy.
“These ties continue to develop cultural understanding and collaboration between our communities.”
Gower College Swansea looks forward to continuing its commitment to international engagement, celebrating the rich exchange of ideas and experiences that benefit both our students and the wider community.
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Opportunity of a Lifetime as HSDC Students Visit India
HSDC is proud to celebrate the success of its recent educational expedition to India, organized in collaboration with Manav Rachna Educational Institutions (MREI) and funded by the Turing Scheme. This initiative provided students with an unparalleled opportunity to expand their academic, professional, and personal horizons through immersive learning experiences abroad.
Over the course of 18 days, 24 students from diverse disciplines engaged in a structured program designed to enhance global awareness, foster cross-cultural collaboration, and develop industry-specific skills. From tackling India’s environmental and water management challenges to exploring the richness of its culinary arts, sports science, and performing arts, students gained invaluable hands-on experience in a completely new environment.
The trip was designed to align with HSDC’s commitment to inclusive, high-impact learning, ensuring that all participants could develop resilience, adaptability, and problem-solving skills – key attributes for success in today’s interconnected world. By stepping outside their comfort zones, students were able to build confidence, embrace new perspectives, and form meaningful international connections.
Beyond academics, students took part in cultural immersion activities, including visits to iconic sites such as the Taj Mahal, traditional Indian dance workshops, and community engagement projects. These experiences allowed them to appreciate India’s rich heritage while reflecting on their own personal and professional growth.
Julio Carrillo, HSDC’s Turing Scheme Coordinator, emphasised the significance of this initiative:
“The Turing Scheme enables us to go beyond the classroom, turning global mobility into a powerful educational tool. This trip was about more than just travel—it was about fostering innovation, creating opportunities, and removing barriers to learning. Watching students thrive in this environment has been truly inspiring.”
As HSDC continues to strengthen its partnership with MREI, the success of this trip paves the way for future collaborations, with plans already in motion for a 2026 mobility program. The achievements of this expedition reinforce the college’s dedication to providing students with transformative international experiences that equip them for the future.
To find out more about HSDC’s previous Turing Trips, click here: https://www.hsdc.ac.uk/news/tag/turing-scheme/
Nicolas Makes Final of Illustrious Combiguru Challenge
Level 2 Hospitality and Catering learner Nic Tachenny will represent Stoke on Trent College at the final of the illustrious Combiguru Challenge in Venice, Italy on Friday 4 April 2025.
Nic, was ranked among the top 40 competitors from FE colleges right across the United Kingdom, and will now be jetting off to Venice to compete in the Oven Challenge.
To win a place in the Oven Challenge, Nic completed an app challenge set by organisers Unox, who visited the college’s Hospitality and Catering Level 2 learners in February.
The Oven challenge gives each competitor 3 hours to prepare a main course and dessert.
All contestants will also be given the opportunity to explore the stunning city of Venice, immersing themselves in the Italian culture as well as having an unforgettable dining experience.
The first place winner of the Combiguru Challenge will win their college a 5-tray CHEFTOP MIND.Maps PLUS commercial oven with second and third place winning a professional knife with the competition logo offered by partner company Maglionero.
Nic Tachenny said;
“This Hospitality and Catering course has helped me a lot to gain new skills, and I’ve learned a lot about the hospitality and catering sector.
“I really want to win this competition, as well as experiencing the different culture and try their foods too. I am a bit nervous but really fired up.”
Hassan Rizvi, Principal & CEO at Stoke on Trent College said:
“We would like to congratulate Nic on making the finals of the Combiguru Challenge. This is a fantastic opportunity for him to showcase his skills to industry leaders in the hospitality and catering industry.
“We’re extremely proud that he will be representing Stoke on Trent College.”
To find out more about the Combiguru Challenge please visit – https://www.combiguruchallenge.com/en_gb/
Find out more about Hospitality and Catering courses at Stoke on Trent College here – https://stokecoll.ac.uk/course-areas/hospitality-catering/
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Notes to Editors
- Stoke on Trent College serves up to 9000 students a year including young people, adults and apprentices. Working with a wide range of employers in key growth areas of the economy such as Digital, Construction, Engineering, STEM and Health and Social Care and more.
- The College also work with young adults who may have a special educational or additional need.
- A wide range of flexible and distance learning is provided by the College to individuals and businesses.
For all media enquiries, please contact marketing@stokecoll.ac.uk
Walsall College’s Future Flames Productions Scoops Industry Award for Real World Learning
Walsall College’s in-house company, Future Flames Productions (FFP) is celebrating after winning an Association of Colleges (AoC) Beacon Award. The creative media team manages the initiative on behalf of their students and received the Edge Foundation Award for Excellence in Real World Learning.
Future Flames Productions (FFP) is the UK’s only college-based commercial production company giving creative media students real live experience of producing high- quality video content. Any money from their client commissions goes towards students’ academic and personal development including course-related trips and resources to complete their coursework.
Run by the AoC, the Beacon Awards celebrate best practice and innovation and highlight excellence within the further education sector across a range of categories. The aim of the awards programme is to demonstrate and promote the far-reaching impact of colleges on their student and the communities they serve.
Creative media lecturer and Future Flames Productions founder, Melissa Tisdale said she was thrilled by the award win.
“This is the icing on the cake for an initiative originally designed to give students extra opportunities to enhance their learning and help them feel they truly belong in the creative media industry,” she said.
“While it has grown into so much more—enabling students to engage with community stakeholders, raise awareness of social issues, and advocate for positive change—at its core, it remains about believing in what’s possible.
“I’m proud our work has been recognised in such a high-profile way, giving the FE sector a chance to come together and celebrate our lasting impact across the communities we serve.”
Since launching in 2021, FFP has seen students work on over 100 films for organisations including Walsall Council, West Midlands Combined Authority, whg and The James Brindley Foundation. Their work has addressed issues relating to health and wellbeing, race equality, knife crime and child exploitation.
FFP’s ethos is very much about doing what is taught in the classroom out in the real world and in real time, with commissioned work directly contributing to student assessments and shaping their career paths.
As a result, students’ progression onto higher education at the college and other universities has increased and they have ventured into freelance work and self-employment as video editors and content creators. FFP continues to evolve and grow by creating work experience avenues for other creative industries students and by increasing their client base.
Kat Emms, Education & Policy Senior Research at Edge Foundation added: “Congratulations to Walsall College! This AoC Beacon Award for Excellence in Real World Learning is so important for recognising the innovative and cutting-edge approaches to teaching and learning from the sector. Walsall College have shown that through the fantastic Future Flames Production initiative, they have enabled their learners to have life-changing experiences that are embedded in the real world, allowing them to engage with employers and the wider community to ultimately develop their professional and personal skills and inspire their career aspirations.”
Jatinder Sharma CBE DL, Principal and Chief Executive at Walsall College added: “This award celebrates how a pathway between the classroom and the real working world inspires, informs and helps prepare students for their future careers.
“It’s fantastic that so many local employers are supporting emerging talent within one of our region’s fastest-growing industries.
“The college is also pleased that our talented students and staff can invest in their professional development while advocating for social change. The success of FFP is a result of their drive and ambition and we hope this initiative continues to bring many more positive outcomes for the individuals and organisations involved.”
Second Cohort of Tourism Ambassadors Graduate from Leicester College Course
Leicester College has announced that the second cohort of students on its new volunteer tourism ambassador course have graduated.
The course was launched in 2024 and focuses on customer care and related key skills for Visit Leicester’s Volunteer Tourism Ambassador programme. The programme aims to help the Visit Leicester team welcome visitors to Leicester and promote the city’s tourism offer.
The volunteering scheme is aimed at getting a diverse range of people involved in showcasing heritage events, cultural activities, visitor attractions, venues, and hotels throughout the city. It offers participants a chance to get free training, learn new skills and gain access to tourism events while being part of a busy team promoting the best that Leicester has to offer.
Along with welcoming visitors to the city, work could include providing information, guidance, and recommendations on what to see and do during their visit; conducting tours; sharing local knowledge about the city’s history, culture, architecture and communities; and supporting the city’s annual festivals and events programme.
Tourism Ambassador Alan Coltman says that he “heard about becoming a tourism ambassador by seeing an advert in the local paper. It sounded like an interesting job. I have lived in Leicester all my life and thought that I’d give something back to the city.
“The tourism ambassador role is developing my knowledge of Leicester to pass on to other people. Although I’ve lived in Leicester all my life, I’ve learnt about a few new places, and it has given me access to places that I wouldn’t necessarily be able to go. The course is interesting, you meet great people, and you get to learn about your own city.”
Jean Matthews commented: “To begin with, the tourism ambassador role was quite daunting, as even though I’m Leicester born and bred, I didn’t feel that I had too much knowledge about the city, but they teach you lots of details about Richard III, the Old Town and places that I hadn’t even visited.
“Since being on the journey, I have learnt so much about Leicester that I didn’t know or had forgotten! I’ve met lots of nice people and am educating myself at a late stage in my life.”
Anzar Popat, Programme Area Manager – Travel & Tourism at Leicester College, added: “We’re delighted that the second cohort of students on this course have graduated. We’ve been equipping them with key skills to help with the volunteer roles, but these skills will also help with their employability. This is another example of the College’s commitment to delivering meaningful volunteer or employment opportunities for adult learners.”
Sarah Harrison, City Centre Director at Leicester City Council, said: “We are delighted to have partnered with Leicester College to deliver the training course for our Volunteer Tourism Ambassador scheme. Together with the guided tours provided by the city’s tourism venues and attractions, this course has provided the volunteers with the knowledge and skills they need to engage with visitors to the city.”
More details of the tourism volunteer programme are available from Visit Leicester or by contacting Gitte Magielse, Leicester City Council tourism project officer, at Gitte.Magielse@leicester.gov.uk or by phone on 0116 454 0199. Volunteers must be at least 18 years old and will need to be able to commit to a minimum of 12 volunteering sessions, spread over one year.
Leicester College currently offers Travel and Tourism courses at Levels 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 full time and level 2 part time courses. These courses offer different modules, which include areas such as aviation, cabin crew, resort representatives, travel services, tourism, customer service, planning and promoting events, and marketing.
York College ‘Paramount’ on Martyn’s Pathway to Becoming a Paramedic
When Martyn Platt decided in his late-20s that he wanted to switch career from electrical engineer to paramedic, he admits that he would have “fallen at the first hurdle” without the help of York College & University Centre.
Reflecting on his life and vocational aspirations while being furloughed during the Covid-19 pandemic, it was a chance remark by a friend that first ignited the idea that Martyn might like to pursue a job in the emergency healthcare profession.
“I do quite a bit of DIY and tend to injure myself a lot,” he laughed. “Because of that, I’ve become pretty good at dealing with wounds, so somebody casually said, ‘You’d be quite a good paramedic’ and that planted a seed in me. I thought why not?”
That seed grew into the roots of a clearer career pathway when Martyn attended one of our Open Events and was informed about the Access to HE Diploma in Science, where he could specialise in Biology and Chemistry.
“I spoke to somebody who would become one of my teachers and she told me the Access option was perfect for what I needed to get onto a Paramedic Science degree, which was the route I wanted to go down,” he explained. “So, as soon as I knew that, it was a case of please tell me where to sign up.”
It proved transformative advice with Martyn going on to land a degree offer at Sheffield Hallam University, where he will complete his three-year course this summer to become a newly-qualified paramedic.
Martyn, now 32, has also admitted that his journey to this point would not have been possible without the confidence York College instilled in him on his return to education, the quality of tutoring he received and the structure his fixed timetable provided in terms of being able to continue working part-time in his old job and make everything financially manageable.
“York College has been paramount in getting me where I am now,” he declared. “I couldn’t have just gone straight to uni and done the course.
“Some people did – even as school leavers – but the first unit was about pathophysiology, which was all about human systems and, if I hadn’t had the background biology knowledge from the Access course, I think I would have fallen at the first hurdle, because I’d have felt that I wasn’t prepared for it and couldn’t do it. I got Bs and Cs in the sciences at school, but the Access course gave me the confidence to believe in myself.
“It allowed me to hit the ground running at university, which I really appreciate. The teaching was outstanding, too.
“I fully respect the teachers that I had and what they did for me. They got me back into a way of learning again, because it had been well over ten years since I had done any assignments, essays or notetaking. I don’t think I’d used a pen for about five years!
“The first two or three months were a bit difficult. I didn’t know if I knew 2,500 words (let alone scientific ones) when I sat down to do my first assignment but, once I got into the routine, I found it a lot easier and, by the last two or three and my 5,000-word dissertation, I was happy with what I was producing.
“I’m really grateful for that, because it made my life much easier during the first year of university. I’d already learned how to reference and was one of only a few people who could do that, so I was actually helping others.
“The practical aspects of the Access course – with the experiments we did for Biology and Chemistry – were also helpful in terms of getting used to that hands-on work.”
Martyn, who also did Electrical Installation and Electronic Engineering at York College after leaving school in 2008, went on to stress how he was able to reach a balance between studying and continuing to work and pay the bills on his return to Campus as an adult learner.
“College had a very structured schedule of Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Friday mornings, which helped me a lot when I was discussing part-time hours with my boss,” he explained.
Sacrificing a full-time wage for four years of studies was also made more justifiable by the post-graduation employment prospects.
“You can never guarantee that there will be a job at the end of it, but I know that the odds will be in my favour with this pathway,” he reasoned.
The rewarding nature of paramedic work has been a motivating factor, too.
“It’s nice to know you’ve made a difference for somebody and it’s very rewarding when you hand over a patient to the hospital and you’re thanked for all the work that you’ve done,” Martyn pointed out. “When I was considering a career as a paramedic, I looked at it this way – if I need help, I want to know that somebody is there to help me, so it’s only fair that I’m there to help somebody if they need me.
“In my old job, I was also working on the same bench doing the same thing day in, day out whereas, being a paramedic, every day there’s a different scenario. You can go from somebody who has just fallen over in the night and can’t get up to dealing with a newborn or a heart attack.
“There’s such a variety of life that you see and you learn a lot from cardiac arrests, because a lot happens in 15 minutes, and then you have a debrief.”
Unsurprisingly, significant chunks of Martyn’s degree education have been dedicated to practical learning on placement, where he has worked on ambulances in York and in hospitals at Barnsley and Chesterfield.
Experiencing a typical work pattern of four 12-hour shifts – two days and two nights – in a week, Martyn spent much of his first year observing as a crew mate.
In his second year, he was then assigned more leadership duties, assuming responsibility for questioning patients and families and performing certain advanced skills like fixing cannulas in veins.
This year, meanwhile, he has been pretty much handed full supervised control of situations, right up to the call of whether a patient should be taken to hospital or not – a decision that is then ratified or corrected, with an explanation, by Martyn’s mentor.
Other training, which he has described as “really useful”, are the simulated emergency scenarios that York College’s Media Make-up students often assist with, which help create highly realistic wounded patients and offer the opportunity to work with actual people, as opposed to mannequins, to practice conversation skills on.
Communication with families, of course, can be just as important, especially in the awful situations when they might have lost a loved one with Martyn adding: “You have to be professional while showing compassion. It’s all about finding the right balance, because it’s normally the worst day in people’s lives.”
It’s that desire to help people that also shapes Martyn’s thoughts on which direction he would like his career to follow in future years.
“I’d like to work on ambulances and you start off as a newly-qualified paramedic for two years,” he said. “After that, I’d like around another two or three years of experience before looking elsewhere.
“Paramedics are now being trained to do as much as possible to try and prevent people going to hospital, so there are off-branches, like critical care paramedics who get a lot more training and go to the heavier jobs. They also had quick response people on motorbikes before in Yorkshire.
“They’ve stopped that now but, if they reintroduced it, I’d be interested in that, too. I’m not just looking for a job – I’m looking for career progression, but you need the fundamental experience before you can start advancing.”
To learn more about our Access to HE Diploma in Science, please click here
You can also get further details about our full range of Adult and Access courses at our next Open Event on Tuesday 1st April (5.30pm-7.30pm). Register here
Gower College Swansea Celebrates Skills Competition Wales Medal Success
Gower College Swansea is celebrating a fantastic set of medals success at Skills Competition Wales 2025.
Staff and students from the College attended the recent ‘watch party’ and medal ceremony at Swansea Building Society Arena where they brought home five Gold medals, five Silver and seven Bronze.
In addition, there were 14 Highly Commended certificates awarded to College students and two learners – Sarah James and Eva Roberts – were designated Best in Region in their respective categories.
The attendees from Gower College Swansea were thrilled to take their place alongside representatives from Coleg Sir Gar, Coleg Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire College, NPTC Group of Colleges and Coleg Elidyr, who had all gathered together to celebrate ‘the best of the best’ in vocational skills and achievement.
Gold
Rhys Freeman – Industrial Electronics
Sarah James – Childcare
Chloe Eames – Digital Media Production
Evangeline Roberts – Photography
Nicole Farcas – Cyber Security
Silver
Kobi Williams – Industrial Electronics
Eva Robins – Inclusive Skills: Restaurant Service
Layla Melville – Childcare
Cai Smith – Coding
Brandon Price – Web Development
Bronze
Cieron Redden – Brickwork
Meena Gray – Laboratory Technician
Connor Brown – Industrial Electronics
Ffion Davies – Creative Make-up
Kaleb Piecko – Inclusive Skills: Health and Social Care
Hannah Leach – Graphic Design
Holly Pitt – Cyber Security
Highly Commended
David Reed – Carpentry
Oliver Jones – Industrial Electronics
Thomas Rideout – Industrial Electronics
Thomas Weston – Industrial Electronics
Keisha Wilde – Beauty Therapist
Zaria Jenkins – Creative Make-up
Ethan Berry – Inclusive Skills: Food Preparation
Ryan Robinson – Inclusive Skills: Food Preparation
Neve Price-Horton – Inclusive Skills: Restaurant Service
Sophie Wheland – Health and Social Care
Kelsey Scales – Health and Social Care
Cassie Henderson – Inclusive Skills: Health and Social Care
Evie Basher – Childcare
Cameron Crayford – Plumbing and Heating
Best in Region: West Wales
Sarah James – Childcare
Eva Robins – Inclusive Skills: Restaurant Service
Skills Competition Wales aims to raise the profile of skills in Wales and offers students, trainees and apprentices in Wales a chance to challenge, benchmark and raise their skills by taking part in competitions across a range of sectors.
Funded by the Welsh Government and run by a dedicated network of colleges, work-based learning providers and employer-led organisations, it consists of a series of local skills competitions, aligned to WorldSkills and the needs of the Welsh economy.