Newbury College hosted the West Berkshire heat of the Rotary Young Chef Competition on Saturday 16 January in the College's excellent teaching kitchens.
A number of local schools in West Berkshire took part in the contest in which entrants, between the ages of 11 to 17, were required to prepare a healthy three course meal for two people costing no more than £15.
Curriculum Manager for Services at Newbury College Rachael Elsey said, We were delighted to host the West Berkshire round of the nationally run Young Chef of the Year Competition. There was a real buzz amongst the young competitors who enjoyed the chance to test their skills in a commercial kitchen.
The winner of the local heat was Newbury College student Martin Fisher who will go on to compete at the Regional Final in February.
Newbury College students were given the opportunity to take part in a writing competition with almost 70 students taking part from a variety of different courses. Students were invited to submit either a short story, poem, review of a book or film, or a play.
The annual writing competition provides real benefits to student. For some it develops their confidence in writing, while others use the competition as an extension of their curriculum work. Taking part in the competition also encourages students from different course areas to socialise with each other and become better acquainted with the College library.
Library Manager Fiona Lees who organised the competition said, We were very impressed with the standard of work submitted. As well as our outstanding winning entries, we had a large number of very highly commended' certificates to give out this year.
The pieces of writing were judged on originality, content and style. There were winners from a range of different courses and abilities who were; Eleanor Read, Lucia Miralles Valdivia, Chloe Goulding, Olga Helyar and Robert Marcinek.
Newbury College students have been participating in the Sport England campaign This Girl Can' throughout the autumn term with a variety of sessions including; pilates, boxing, and a favourite of the stars such a Kelly Brook, hula hooping.
During this term there has been a 50% increase in sports participation in comparison with this time last year. Sports Maker Aimee Kaur who works with Sport England to provide sporting opportunities for young people said, I am delighted with the increase in participation. Sports provides students with skills for life including team work, decision making and confidence which are all needed in the workplace.
Newbury College has a range of part time professional courses starting in January 2016 including Principles and Practices of Coaching Sport Level 2 Certificate which starts on 5th January, and runs on Tuesday evenings for 24 weeks 5.30pm ' 9pm. For more information about courses starting in January call 01635 845000.
Newbury College students recently became the champions of the West Berkshire Finals of Champions of Enterprise. A programme run in partnership with the Education Business Partnership.
Champions of Enterprise enabled the student teams to compete against one another in a two day programme which saw them reviewing and analysing possible business ventures with the support of local entrepreneurs before judges decided which business to invest in. The winning team made up of Business Students Ollie Hicks and Joshua Carter, IT student Daniel Hicks and Art & Design student Ashleigh Cook went on to compete against schools at the local finals at The Regency Park Hotel on Tuesday 8 December.
Course Leader for Business Studies Peter Doyle who helped organise the programme said, Thank you to the Education Business Partnership for organising the event. It's been a fantastic way to introduce the students to the business world, which they have all learnt a lot during the programme. The students put a lot of time and effort into their business idea and are delighted to have won.
At the end of the night Amanda Richards, CEO of EPB West Berkshire said, One of the students here this afternoon not only felt she had learnt so much more about presenting creative ideas and team work but as a 2nd year art student, she also found herself learning about the language of business.
The event was hosted in order to enhance students' enterprise skills and give them an insight into how a business is set up and run, and the factors that makes businesses successful.