Waltham Forest College and the London Borough of Waltham Forest (LBWF) Youth Support Service teamed up to celebrate the success of students who attended the Summer University in 2008. An awards presentation ceremony was held in the College’s Mallinson Restaurant on Tuesday 31 March.
48 young people attended accompanied by their family and friends. A total of 92 students were awarded National Open College Network’s (NOCN) nationally recognised qualifications. Guests were treated to a delicious buffet which was prepared and served by the College’s Catering and Hospitality students
Young people had successfully completed a range of courses which included: Hairdressing, Beauty Make-up, Computer Animation, Web Page Design, Magazine Journalism, Catering and Fashion. These courses ran over two weeks in July and August 2008.
Lecturers from Waltham Forest College presented the certificates to their students and careers advisers from LBWF Youth Support Service were on hand to offer advice about progression opportunities to courses starting in September 2009.
Peter Glasgow, Vice Principal at Waltham Forest College said that "The Media often provide us with negative reports about young people and this is not the whole story. All the young people here had voluntarily taken time out of their summer holidays to study and this is to be commended. Currently 8 out of every 10 students who attend this College succeed and it is dedicated students such as yourselves that are helping this College to move from good to outstanding.”
Peter Bendon, Lecturer and Co-ordinator of the Summer University said "I am really pleased with the energy and positive attitude displayed by students who attend this programme. All participants felt that the Summer University had been a worthwhile experience and a number of students indicated that the taster course they had selected had helped them to decide on their future career."
Phil Slaney, Lead Careers Adviser, LBWF Youth Support Service, said "Several students have applied for full-time courses or apprenticeship programmes and others were already enrolled at the College. The Summer University is in its third year and the progress made by these young people demonstrates the benefits of trying these ‘taster’ courses held over the course of a week."
Geron Gittens, who studied Animation and Web Design, said "I saw a leaftlet advertising the Summer University at the Connexions Centre and thought I would try two courses to see what they would be like. I really enjoyed them both so I decided to study full-time at Waltham Forest College. I am currently studying for a BTEC First Diploma in Media and intend to go on to take the BTEC National Diploma next year."
The College and LBWF are already planning another Summer University in 2009 based on last year’s success and hope to offer an even wider selection of courses leading to nationally recognised qualifications. If you would like to obtain further information about the Summer University or other College courses please call 020 8501 8501.
