Students paint the town pink!

Students studying BTEC Level 2 and 3 in Business got off to a great start to the academic year, with a guest speaker from Breast Cancer UK, launching the ‘Paint the Town Pink’ project.

The aim of the ‘Paint the Town Pink’ project is to raise money for breast cancer as well as giving the learners a real life project to work on, demonstrating many skills including finance and marketing.

Sheila Weightman, from Breast Cancer UK, gave the learners an inspiring talk, after which learners were asked to decide on a charity event that they could carry out to raise money and awareness of the charity. The learners came up with some very innovative ideas and one idea was picked by the business lecturers for the learners to complete.

The learners will be aiming to sell as much ribbon as possible to ensure that they can wrap a massive bow around the college, during breast cancer awareness week from the 22 to 26 October. Both the learners and teaching staff are very excited about this challenge as it will teach valuable business skills and raise awareness and money for a very worthwhile cause.

To find out more about studying Business at NULC click here or contact the Information Point on 01782 254254 or email info@nulc.ac.uk.

NULC Celebration Event 2012

NULC hosted it's first Celebration Event on Wednesday 27 June.  The event brought together a wide range of learners from across the College in order to celebrate their achievements over the past academic year. 

Awards were given in 11 different categories which recognised academic achievement, personal achievement, services to the College and the community as well as sporting success. 

Award winners from the Faculty of Technology and Enterprise

Award winners from the Faculty of Technology and Enterprise pictured with Head of Faculty Dominic Whittaker (centre). 

• Learner Endeavour: Alex Higgins – Level 2 Practical Engineering

• Services to College: Damien Coady – L2 Apprentice in Painting and Decorating

• Apprentice of the year: Adam Heath – AAT level 4 Diploma WBL

• Young Achiever: Keiran Weller – Level 3 year 2 Business

• Adult Achiever: Michael Jones – Level 4 AAT

• Work experience / placement; Ryan Leadbetter – Level 2 Diploma in Practical Engineering 

• Return to Learning: Jill Trueman – L1 Diploma in Bench Joinery

Each award winner received a unique trophy designed by a team of learners from our art and design courses and was made on College premises in the Engineering department. Award winners were joined by parents and guests to celebrate their achievements.     

To see the full gallery of images from the day visit our Facebook Page here.

NULC Business students visit local employer JCB.

On Thursday 15 and Friday 16 March students studying the BTEC Extended Diploma in Business at NULC visited the JCB visitor centre.

During the day, the students were kitted out with headsets and hi-vis vests where they were given a factory tour, a museum tour and watched a film about the history of JCB.  During the fascinating factory tour the students got to see how JCB's are made and tested and a tour of the main JCB offices.

The purpose of the visit was to add to the learning that has taken place in the classroom.  Students have been studying units including marketing, business structures and supply chain management and business purposes and by visiting JCB they were able to see these business tools in operation.

Comment from learner: "Good to see what we had been doing in the classroom in a real business, fascinating to see a product being made."

Claire Dickenson, Assessor in Computing, Accounting & Business at NULC said: "It really was a great trip to show students all the things they have been learning in class and to give them an insight into a potential employer."

To find out more about the range of Business courses available at NULC click here contact the Information Point on 01782 254254 or info@nulc.ac.uk.

Employer recommends 'outstanding' college apprenticeship service

National Apprenticeship Week 2012 (6 – 10 February)

Businesses across North Staffordshire are being urged to consider taking on an apprentice from one of the area’s leading training providers during National Apprenticeship Week.

Newcastle-under-Lyme College (NULC) currently provides apprenticeships in more than a dozen areas including Accounting, Business and Administration, Construction, Childcare, Electrical Installation, Engineering, Hairdressing, Health and Social Care, Retail and IT.

Last year the College reported a record increase in the number of people taking up an apprenticeship, resulting in a need for more employers to offer apprentice roles within their organisations.

Kerry Bonfiglio-Bains, Managing Director of Newcastle-based recruitment agency Appointments Personnel, is one of more than 400 local employers who have employed an apprentice through the College.

Kerry said: “I contacted various education and training providers regarding hiring an apprentice but I found NULC to be the most professional, efficient and thorough. They provided an outstanding service.

She continued: “I’d urge all local employers to consider hiring an apprentice, regardless of what sector they’re in. All the apprentices I have come in to contact with at NULC have been professional, dedicated and eager to learn.”

She added: “I was so impressed that I now regularly work with the College to provide talks and workshops to young people interested in business.”

Kerry’s apprentice is Max Powell, aged 18 from Newcastle. Max is undertaking an Apprenticeship in Business Administration whilst gaining valuable experience at the recruitment agency.

Max said: “When I first left school I wanted to study A Levels, but I soon decided that I wanted to be in a position where I could learn on the job.

“I completed the Network to Work course at NULC before starting the apprenticeship, which taught me valuable skills like interview training, networking and CV writing. It really helped my confidence and the workshops gave me a very useful insight into the business sector.”

He continued: “I thoroughly enjoy being apprentice; I get to earn money whilst I’m learning in a real workplace environment. The College and my employer Kerry have been really supportive and I’ve learnt so much about the business environment already. In the future I hope to be running my own business just like Kerry.”

With an apprentice salary starting at around £97 per week, employers can benefit from an extra member of staff and receive ongoing support from an experienced apprenticeship assessor who will visit the apprentice in the workplace to minimise disruption to the business.

Vicky Boulton-Clarke, Head of Employer Training at NULC said: “I’d urge any businesses who are interested in recruiting an apprentice or who want to train an existing employee through the apprenticeship scheme to get in touch with the College’s apprenticeships team.”

To find out more about Newcastle-under-Lyme College’s apprenticeships and other workplace training programmes visit www.nulc.ac.uk/employer or contact the Employer Training team on 01782 254376.