NORTH West Regional College (NWRC) has scooped a national education award, recognising the outstanding contribution made by its Careers Academy to the lives of learners in the region.
NWRC was the only college in Northern Ireland to win a coveted Association of College’s Beacon Award, picking up the accolade for Careers Education and Guidance.
Now in its 24th year, the Bea-con Awards celebrate the best and most innovative practice among UK further education colleges, rewarding those that go above and beyond in providing high-quality technical and professional education.
The Careers Academy within NWRC runs a careers programme focused on employability, enter-prise and enrichment, providing a one-stop support service for students; an open door policy for career planning and guidance interviews; and bespoke programmes and interactive workshops.
Its careers strategy extends into the community and annually the Academy holds a roadshow, taking the college’s offering to central locations to promote further education as a route into employment. North West Region-al College also runs a packed calendar of events including weeks dedicated to exploring the topics of resilience, enterprise and mental health week.
In their citation, assessors for the awards recognised NWRC’s dedicated Careers Academy, which is helping to tackle high levels of unemployment in the wider community by offering work-ready courses.
Assessors also acknowledged that the college operates in “a very challenging area, facing the remnants of sectarianism and extreme levels of deprivation’’ The assessors said they were impressed with the “culture and commitment that is transforming learners’ prospects and lives, and supporting the economy of the region itself through innovative bespoke career workshops for different sectors’’
NWRC’s Careers Academy manager, Finneen Bradley said she was delighted to pick up the gong, adding that it underpinned the outstanding standard of education and training that is being delivered across all five campuses of North West Region-al College.
She said: “When we first opened the Academy it was because we recognised the need for Careers Education to firmly be embedded across all areas of the Curriculum. The work my team and I undertake is changing and enhancing lives, not only in our college but in our community on a daily basis.
“We believe not only in delivering the best education at NWRC, but we are passionate about building the careers and futures of our young people’’