TRESHAM College is now benefiting from being part of one of the top Further Education groups in the UK, heard guests at the annual Northamptonshire Achievements Ceremony at Kettering Conference Centre.
Joining the event was the Mayor of Corby, where Tresham College has exciting campus and where a new Learning Centre to upgrade adult IT skills is to be opened. Together with the existing Learning Centre in Kettering, 1,000 students will be enrolled each year.
As well as modern campuses in Kettering and Corby, the Wellingborough campus is to benefit from as £7.5m investment which will bring 1,000 students into the town centre, reported Ian Pryce CBE, Principal and CEO of The Bedford College Group, created via the merger with Tresham College in August 2017.
He said: “Tonight we celebrate the achievements of the first full academic year since the merger and acknowledge the part played in that progress by local councils, MPs, parents and students. We thank our sponsors whose supports indicates the value local employers place on Tresham College: Howarth Timber & Building Supplies, Keepmoat Homes, Prestige Homeseeker Park & Leisure Homes, RS Components Ltd, Tata Steel and The Weetabix Food Company.
“Student results at Tresham College have been particularly impressive. As part of the group, it contributed to taking 1,000 students, who had failed their CGSE Maths or English at school, and passed after only 34 weeks at college.
“Progression for students on to Higher Education, or degree-level learning courses, is being made available through closer relationships with universities in Northamptonshire and Bedfordshire.
“So if you want to get ahead of the rest, head for Tresham.”
Mr Pryce did take the opportunity to criticise Government funding for ‘technical education’. He said: “The recent Institute for Fiscal Studies report showed that college funding per student has gone from 50 per cent above the level for schools to eight per cent below in 20 years and colleges have been hardest hit by austerity. If we want world class skills, then we must invest in colleges.”
Chair of The Bedford College Group Corporation Roger Marriott welcomed investment by the South East Midlands LEP (SEMLEP) into the group – including the campus at Wellingborough. “We are ambitious for our students and welcome the highest levels of achievement.”
