The 70th anniversary celebrations at Newbury College were officially launched today as Principal Iain Wolloff spoke to That's Thames Valley (Freeview channel 7) appealing for stories from students and staff, past and present, to include in a special exhibition at West Berkshire Museum.
Iain spoke to That's Thames Valley's Ali Monjack about the history of Newbury College, established in 1948 as the Newbury Institute of Further Education, one of the first colleges nationally to offer further education. The college has had a long and fascinating history, facing radical changes in education and a cross-town relocation, whilst remaining at the heart of the local community and continuing to meet the needs of students and local employers.
Today, Newbury College continues to work closely with local employers to ensure we offer the relevant skills and qualifications that people in West Berkshire and North Hampshire require and looking towards the future by sponsoring a new primary school and continuing to expand and support both further and higher education in the area.
The exhibition of Newbury College's history will be on display at the West Berkshire Museum from 03 October 2018, and we hope to get lots of interesting stories from former students and staff members as we celebrate 70 years shaping the future of Newbury.
If you have any pictures and stories of your time at Newbury College, whether you studied at the old or current campus, we would love to hear from you. Please send your stories to: Newbury College 70, Freepost, Monks Lane, Newbury RG14 7BR or email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Students and staff at Newbury College welcomed former Team GB Sprinter, Mark Richardson, to officially open its new gym and wellbeing facility on Thursday 17 May 2018.
Councillor David Fenn, Mayor of Newbury, joined the Berkshire based athlete to formally cut the ribbon on the new facility, which is supported by Sport England.
Newbury College Sport Maker, Louise Neil, said, This new facility has been created to provide all students with the opportunity to participate in physical fitness and wellbeing activities that complement the already extensive programme of sports-based activities we offer through the college enrichment programme.
Following the official opening of the gym, Mark Richardson gave students an inspirational talk and presentation about his athletic career and achievements. Richardson, along with his teammates Iwan Thomas, Jamie Baulch and Roger Black, set a world record for the 4 x 400m relay during the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and has achieved an impressive two gold medals, two silver medals and three bronze medals across different solo and team events throughout his career.
Newbury College hopes that the new facility, which has had specially adapted and accessible equipment installed, will be very popular with students of all abilities, engaging both mainstream and high needs students in improving their wellbeing through physical activity.
Do you want to know what it's like working at Newbury College?
Newbury College Sports Maker, Louise Neil, was recently interviewed for a feature on the Association of Colleges Jobs website aocjobs.com.
Louise, who has a degree in Sport Development, was asked about her career progression, from working at Aldershot Town FC and NCS to taking on her current role at Newbury College. She also spoke about the personal skills and attributes that someone needs to work in a similar career, including some of the memorable and challenging moments she has sometimes faced delivering such a wide range of enrichment activities at the college.
"The variation in my role, the freedom to engage with everyone and a very friendly college with a great community." were just a few of the many positives that Louise highlighted in her interview, as well as the recent LGBT pride events and educational visits.
Newbury College art student Finn Swift won the Young Persons' prize for an Open Exhibition, entitled The Four Seasons, at Southampton City Art Gallery.
Finn was one of many artists who submitted their work as part of the gallery's biennial open submission exhibition. The gallery invited artists in the South of England to take inspiration from the changing nature of the seasons. Newbury College art and design course leaders set the exhibition brief as an assignment for the students to complete towards their Level 3 Diploma in Art and Design. Course leader Jacky Purtill and student Evelyn Pritchett also had work displayed at the exhibition.
Finn's winning artwork was an intricate 3D printed model of trees and vines entitled Seasons'. The gallery wrote to Finn describing his work as a fine, complex, intriguing and beautiful sculpture'. His prize was a 12 month subscription to the National Art Pass, giving Finn free access to over 240 museums, galleries and historic houses.
I was shocked but very pleased to discover I had won, said Finn. I enjoy working in this media and like how much detail you can incorporate into the design. The lecturers at College were very good at encouraging and supporting me once I'd generated the idea and I was also happy to receive a distinction for this project as part of my course.
We are very proud of Finn, said Sarah Whittham, art and design course leader at Newbury College. It is such an achievement for him to be awarded first prize in such a prestigious gallery.
The exhibition is open at Southampton City Art Gallery until 21 April, Monday to Friday 10am-3pm, Saturdays 10am to 5pm. Entry is free. Click here for more information visit.
Newbury College offers full-time Art and Design courses from Level 2 to Higher National Diploma and many part-time painting and drawing leisure courses. To find out more, visit its Open Event on Saturday 12 May 10am to 1pm.