International Women's Day encourages the world to reflect on the importance of gender equality, to celebrate the successes of women, and to acknowledge the work that is still left to be done. Newbury College celebrated the success and achievements of its female students and staff via a special social media campaign for the global movement. Many classes and activities were also dedicated to researching the contribution that inspirational women have made to our society and exploring the careers and progression routes available in today's world of equal opportunities.
Using the hashtags #iwd19 and #newburycollege, the further education provider featured the inspirational women who both work and study at the College, including members of the senior management team, tutors, technicians and support staff.
Newbury College has a proud history of promoting equal opportunities within its staffing and its curriculum. One of the very first students to attend the college when it opened in 1948 was Sheila Smith, an engineering apprentice from Plenty (now SPX Flow Technology). Sheila left the Newbury Girl's Grammar School Sixth Form to join a traditionally male-dominated industry. After completing her apprenticeship, Sheila went on to study an HNC in Engineering and later taught Technical Drawing at Newbury College and Park House School.
Karen Taylor, Careers Lead at Newbury College, said, It has been wonderful to highlight the amazing work that women do, not only at Newbury College, but around the world. We actively encourage all of our students to follow their dreams, whatever they may be, and not to let stereotypes define their future.
Newbury College inspires women of all ages to experience more and achieve more through a wide range of vocational and technical courses from accountancy, creative arts and hairdressing to forensic science, sport and engineering. The College also offers a vast range of one-day courses for adults and businesses starting from just £30.
Newbury College played host to the district qualifying heat of the Rotary Young Chef Competition 2019 on Saturday 19 January.
In the national competition, which is open to young people aged 17 years and under, contestants must create a healthy three-course meal in under two hours for no more than £20.
The budding chefs, who have already won their local heats earlier in the year, are judged on their costing skills, planning of the menu and the quality of the meal that they produce.
The Rotary Club of Thatcham and District once again selected the College to host part of this annual event because of the ideal location and excellent facilities, including a commercial kitchen and restaurant. Ron Howard, Competition Organiser at The Rotary Club of Thatcham and District, said I am delighted with the excellent facilities provided by Newbury College and we are very grateful they have been made available to us. The skills and maturity shown by all the candidates during the competition were very impressive."
The winner of the competition was Amy Price, 15, of Licenced Victuallers School, Ascot, closely followed by runner-up Emily Woodford, 14, of St Gabriel's School, Newbury.
Amy and Emily were presented with book tokens and a voucher for a meal at the Red House, Hamstead Marshall and will go forward to the regional heat in February, where they will compete for a place at the national final.
The winner of the national final will win a prize which includes a visit to the olive harvest, sponsored by Filippo Berio, international producers of olive oil.
Newbury College inspires young chefs with full-time professional cookery courses for school leavers that include real-life experience in their commercial kitchen and restaurant. The College also offers a vast range of one-day cookery courses and masterclasses for adults starting from just £30. Find out more.
December 2018 - We are delighted to announce the appointment of our new Student Governor, Sophie Hemsley.
Sophie joined Newbury College from The Clere in Burghclere, in September 2017 to study L1 Catering and Hospitality, driven by a passion for catering from an early age and impressed by the industry standard training kitchen at the College.
In December 2018, now working towards her Level 3 in Catering and Hospitality, Sophie was appointed Student Governor. As a Student Governor I provide student insight, working together with the staff to generate ideas and feedback a student perspective. I meet with the College Governors to discuss the agenda for the term, and I have an opportunity to give feedback from the student council, which I chair. It is good to know our student voice is heard and I am privileged to have been chosen to represent the students amongst the governors.
We asked Sophie to tell us about a typical day at Newbury College
08:00 - Arrive at College and head to The Street Diner for a Starbucks to kick start the day. I tend to get into the Restaurant early and begin polishing the cutlery ready for service. 09:00 - I pop out for a Maths lesson for an hour and then head back to the Restaurant to help set-up the tables, stock the fridges and polish the glasses. 10:00 - Tasks rotate every week; either cooking or front-of-house, this ensures we get experience of all aspects of catering and hospitality. Today I'm in the kitchen, its December so we're cooking Christmas dinner with all the trimmings. All items are prepared from scratch. 12:00 - Service starts. We plate the food ready for the waiting staff, serving between 30-50 people per sitting. Once we finish in the kitchen we go and help front-of-house with clean down. 15:30 - I head home and have a rest before starting work. I work 4 times a week as a chef at a local pub and love the fact that I have actual experience within my course. It has made it a lot easier to adapt to life in a professional kitchen.
A little bit of royalty Sophie is also a Pearly Princess, and having celebrated her 18th birthday, takes the title of Pearly Queen in 2019.
Former and current staff, governors and students of Newbury College attended a special event on 04 Thursday 2018 for the opening of an exhibition celebrating 70 years of the further education provider.
The exhibition, which showcases the history of Newbury College through stories, photographs, news articles and memorabilia, was attended by a host of invited guests including Dr Anne Murdoch OBE, former Principal from 2001 to 2018, Jan Cover, Mayor of Thatcham and Tony Allen, former Chair and member of the Corporation from 1997 to 2015.
Former Newbury College alumni also joined in with the celebrations and provided memorabilia for a special cabinet of curiosities, including Mrs Elkins, who studied with the College in 1953 and Roly Wise, who started his Newbury College journey as an apprentice before enjoying a long and successful career within the engineering department.
Iain Wolloff, Principal, said: It's wonderful to look back and celebrate the rich tradition that Newbury College has had shaping education and training in West Berkshire and it is equally as important that we build on this as we look to the future. Our work with employers, the building of Highwood Copse Primary School and our plans for a university centre will ensure that we continue to meet the needs of our community.
The exhibition is open to the public throughout October at the West Berkshire Museum and will be rehomed at the Newbury College campus on Monks Lane for the remainder of the year.
Newbury College is still looking for stories from people in the local area who have fond memories of their involvement with the College, and would like anyone who would like to share their experience to visit the exhibition or their website at www.newbury-college.ac.uk/70