28/04/2010

Colleges Proud of Collaborations

Further education colleges have thrown their efforts into collaborations that engage more and more people in learning year on year, with school head teachers, employers and learners turning out to support their local college’s bid to win the ColegauCymru / CollegesWales Awards 2010.

The quality of applications for this year’s Awards was notably high. The expert panels of judges have their work cut out for them in selecting winners from the very strong shortlists.

Judging of the ColegauCymru / CollegesWales Awards 2010 now enters its final stages, following the completion of presentations by all shortlisted colleges.

ColegauCymru’s Head of Quality Berni Tyler said: “Colleges have raised the bar this year. Colleges are working with their local networks and increasingly drawing on expertise from outside the college sector. This greater diversity has enriched the colleges’ submissions”.

It is fitting, in light of the general trend towards involving local networks and widening partnerships, that the most keenly contested category in the ColegauCymru Awards 2010 is “Effective 14-19 Collaboration”.

Critically, a successful collaboration achieves more than the sum of its parts. Judges were pleased to find consistent high quality programmes with strong senior level leadership, and importantly, more learners taking part as a result of the partnerships.

Chief Executive of ColegauCymru / CollegesWales, Dr John Graystone, said: “In addition to the eight categories of Awards that are open to colleges this year, I am delighted that the ColegauCymru Awards 2010 will recognise a Learner of the Year and a Teacher of the Year.

“It is important that we remember at all times that the purpose of colleges is to support learners in reaching their goals. Excellent teachers are key to enabling learners achieve, and it is right that they are recognised on the national stage.

“Outstanding learners are of course the success story of colleges. In some cases, learners go on to establish high-flying careers and win UK-wide and even worldwide awards. Other learners start at college having considered themselves as ‘educational failures’, but very quickly catch up with, and in some cases, outpace their peers in their learning achievements. ColegauCymru / CollegesWales is delighted and proud to be able to recognise their achievements and to sponsor the Learner of the Year Award”.

Dr Graystone concluded: “The ColegauCymru awarding ceremony is a wonderful, lively celebration of the best that Wales’ colleges can offer. I am very much looking forward to the awards ceremony on 27 May where the sponsors of the Awards 2010 will present the winners with their well deserved awards to no-doubt enthusiastic applause”.

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Contact: Sylvia Davies on 029 2052 8384 or 07968 771913.

Notes to editors:

1. ColegauCymru / CollegesWales is the new name for fforwm. It is a national educational charity that represents all 23 further education (FE) colleges and institutions in Wales. Its mission is to raise the profile of further education with key decision-makers to improve opportunities for learners in Wales. For further information about ColegauCymru / CollegesWales, and the colleges it represents, visit www.colegaucymru.ac.uk

2. The categories of the ColegauCymru / CollegesWales Awards 2010 and their sponsors:

Awards for Individuals

• Learner of the Year (ColegauCymru / CollegesWales)
• Teacher of the Year (LLUK)

Awards for Institutions

• Effective 14-19 collaboration (OCR)
• Innovation in the leadership and management of vocational education (City & Guilds/ILM)
• Outstanding use of technology (RSC Wales)
• College engagement with employers (Edexcel)
• Returning to and widening the scope of learning (Agored Cymru) Excellence in Education for Sustainable Development and Global Citizenship (ESDGC) (Welsh Assembly Government)
• Effective use of the Tribal benchmarking tool (Tribal)
• Digital Learning Resources (WJEC)

3. Details of the awards including the shortlist for each category is available from http://www.collegeswales.ac.uk/annual_awards-28.aspx

4. The awards ceremony brings the ColegauCymru annual conference to a close. It takes place on the evening of 27 May 2010 at The Hilton Hotel, Cardiff. The conference programme and the booking form for both the conference and awards ceremony is available from: http://www.collegeswales.ac.uk/annual_conference_2010-33.aspx