Archives for October 2019

Collaboration is key

31st October 2019 by Eluned Watson

October has been a month of looking at how Derwen College is Collaborative

To celebrate this value we have looked at how employers collaborate with Derwen College to provide regular work placements for our students.

Derwen College is also proud to provide work placement opportunities to people in the community looking to employment in the education or care sector.

Derwen College has strong links with Glyndwr University, providing multiple placements each year for the university’s student nurses, giving them invaluable experience in working with people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

This collaboration helps student nurses in their careers, whether they continue in a SEND-focused environment, or in a more general setting.

The college staff that mentor the student nurses benefit from the links with university staff, and the teaching and training approaches they take. Derwen students benefit from their learning and development, and from the fresh approaches brought by the student nurses themselves.

Read more about what being a Learning Disability Nurse means in this blog by Derwen College Learning Disability Nurse Liz Bailey.

Governance

Governance is another key way that an organisation such as Derwen collaborates with its local community, seeking those with a range of skills to bring oversight to the college’s strategic direction, and its long-term future. Trustees (governors) are usually drawn from the local community – volunteers, who have an interest and a passion for what Derwen is all about, and for what the students can achieve here. They work closely with the college and ensure it meets its charitable objects. We’d like to thank our governors for their commitment, hard work and enthusiasm towards Derwen College.

Tensions and triumphs at Skills Live @Derwen

29th October 2019 by Eluned Watson

Adehle, Billie-Jo and Drew demonstrate horticulture planting skills to Mayoress Cllr Joyce Barrow, judge Dave Cank of Severndale Nurseries and Mayor Cllr John Price.

Students held their nerve to showcase vocational and creative skills for an exciting week of competitions hosted by Derwen College.

Students demonstrated their talents in catering, table-laying, housekeeping, art, functional skills, IT and design and horticulture as part of the college’s new Skills Live @Derwen event which saw students from across the UK invited to take part.

Skills Live @Derwen is a new initiative at college, with competitions open to 16-25 year olds who are currently in education in mainstream or specialist colleges or schools, and working at up to Level 1. The college was pleased to welcome students from Landmarks Specialist College, near Sheffield, and James Watt College, Birmingham, and art entries from St Rose’s and St Martins, in Gloucestershire.

Competitions were held in industry-standard conditions, and were judged by industry experts. Judges included Neil Bevan of Oswestry-based branding, graphic design and marketing business Hunter Bevan; Oswestry author and Wilfred Owen Festival co-ordinator Jan Hedger; Oswestry Library manager Siobhan Shaw; Dave Cank of Severndale Nurseries; artist Liz Neal and Jim Creed from Oswestry’s The Qube.

Taking part in the competitions is a great way for students to demonstrate their skills and readiness for work and independence. The week ended with awards presentations where winners were presented with beautiful glass trophies created by Oswestry’s Designs in Mind.

Artist Liz Neal and Jim Creed from The Qube judged the art competition.

Clare Howard, Chief Executive of Natspec – an organisation which supports the specialist college sector – visited the college for the launch of the competitions.

She said: “Competitions are an effective method of stretching and challenging students – they help to measure and recognise achievement and show off the work-related skills of our learners. They drive confidence and self esteem, which are needed in the workplace, and the best competitions are based on industry standards to ensure that students are work-ready. Natspec is pleased to support the work of Derwen College and all other colleges who are using their relationships with employers to develop competitions which support students in the vocational curriculum and onto employment when they leave college.”

Derwen College ‘industry champion’ and competition judge Neil Bevan said: “As an Industry Champion for Derwen College, as well as supporting the Retail Pathway team with ‘real life’ business experience, I get invited to attend many events at the college, such as open days, performances and fundraisers. One of the highlights has been taking part in judging the SkillsLive@Derwen competitions.

“These competitions really showcase the skills the students from Derwen and other Colleges have in many areas that relate directly to employment opportunities. The students demonstrate skill and mastery in many different tasks from bed making to badge making – showing their creative skills and also a high degree of attention to detail. These are all skills that can be transferred directly to the workplace, if employers will give them the opportunity to show what they are capable of. The students are also great to talk to and it’s obvious that they gain a great deal from the competitions and from interacting with people from outside the College environment.”

Tammy Williams from Sainsbury’s and author Jan Hedger congratulate Saiful from James Watt College on winning the Library Skills competition.

Derwen College Principal Meryl Green said that the college was proud to be launching Skills Live competitions.

She said: “Derwen Skills Live is an exciting new step in our competition journey and part of our continued efforts to find innovative ways to improve opportunities for students. At Derwen, we are privileged to have the facilities and industry connections to run competitions to showcase the skills demonstrated by students following vocational pathways. Derwen Skills Live brings together students from a variety of schools and colleges to compete in a professional way and demonstrate learning and employability skills. We look forward to seeing Skills Live grow even further to become a national annual event.”

Roundabout revamp thanks to ‘Leaf It To Us’

28th October 2019 by Eluned Watson

Green-fingered horticulture students have completed work to design and create an eye-catching traffic roundabout in Baschurch, near Shrewsbury.

Baschurch Parish Council chairman Jonathan Carr met with students from Derwen@Walford. He thanked them for their hard work transforming the weed-ridden island into a roundabout to proud of.

Students from Derwen @Walford – a satellite site of national specialist college Derwen College – carried out the work for Baschurch Parish Council as part of their college business Leaf It To Us.

Leaf It To Us provides work experience opportunities for horticulture students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). The team work four days a week with teacher Ruth Braddick and Learning Support Assistant (LSA) Dan Foster.

LSA Dan Foster said: “John asked last year about doing something new and different for the roundabout. We were pleased to take him up on the offer. It was great to be given free rein from conception to creation. It was an over-grown bed full of weeds. The only specifications were that we leave the daffodils which have become a well-loved spring feature, and planted a Rowan tree in the centre. Apart from that we had a blank canvas which we were able to design, plant and now maintain.”

Collaboration

The design brief was that the roundabout look good all year around, so the team incorporated elements of evergreen, along with lavender and ornamental grasses.

Taking everyone’s input into consideration, students used their learning in horticulture as well as maths skills to measure the area and work out planting. Working on a roundabout also brought its own challenges, with staff and students constantly aware that they were working in a public place surrounded by traffic.

“We had so many lovely comments from drivers and neighbours who would often stop by and thank us for what we were doing,” said Dan.

Cllr Carr said: “We are delighted with the work the Leaf It To Us have done. They were commissioned as part of a community project, and the community have noticed and appreciated their efforts. 5000 vehicles a day drive around this roundabout, and see what the Leaf It To Us team are capable of. Baschurch Parish Council is delighted to have worked with Leaf It To Us and to see what they did with the blank canvas. We are pleased with the brilliant results which look great but are also practical, low maintenance and adapted to all seasons. We look forward to continuing our work with them.”

Cllr Carr and the team also visited Baschurch Cemetery Memorial Garden where they have created beds and a pergola with climbing plants. Plants were chosen with a connection to memories and the divine including Heaven Scent Magnolia and Dianthus Memories.

Leaf It To Us

Leaf It To Us other projects have included work at Leaton Church as well as some emergency missions in the local community.

Mr Foster thanked Shropshire Biomass Fuel who donated the bark and Worfield Plants who supplied the plants.

He said that the work placements were invaluable to students giving them real work experience in preparation for future employment.

He commented: “Some of our students complete horticulture qualifications during their time with us and all of them gain skills, knowledge and understanding of how you work effectively in a team to get a job done – skills that future employers really value. We are proud of our young people but also proud to be supporting the local community.”

Derwen is … collaborative

24th October 2019 by Eluned Watson

At Derwen College, we live by our values. Throughout all aspects of college life, all of us – from students, teachers, care staff, management and governors – aim to be: Caring, Collaborative, Creative, Ambitious and Inclusive.

This month, our focus has been on collaboration. Working together to achieve the best for students, staff, the college, and the community, is something we do all year around. However, for October, we’re taking the opportunity to really shout about some of our wonderful collaborations.

October is Work Experience Month. As a college, we are proud of the strong links we’ve made with businesses, which bring regular work placements for our students, building towards paid employment. We have have achieved three consecutive Gold certificates from Fair Train – an organisation which champions high quality work-based learning throughout the UK.

Our Work Experience and Transition team strive to forge partnerships with businesses in the local community and across the UK. These collaborations bring invaluable work placements to our students in Hospitality and Housekeeping, Retail, Creative Arts and Horticulture.

Thank you to all our work placement collaborators

We’d like to thank all the businesses who have given their time and support to offer work opportunities for our students with special educational needs and disability (SEND); promoting inclusivity, and encouraging customer service and work skills and self-confidence in our students.

We have a fantastic relationship with Premier Inn hotels. Owners Whitbread supported the college in creating our training hotel Hotel 751 which provides work placements for retail and hospitality students. Students go on to travel to work placements in Oswestry, Wrexham, Chester and Shrewsbury. A high percentage go on to achieve paid work with the hotel chain on leaving college. In turn, we have worked with Premier Inn staff, supporting them with training in working with people with SEND.

Closer to home, there are dozens of small local businesses who share our ethos, and support individual or groups of students in work placements every week. We thank them all (see below for a full list).

This week, we’ve focused on the efforts of students at our Baschurch satellite site Derwen@Walford who have established horticulture enterprise Leaf It To Us. Students have collaborated with business and council to make a difference in their community. Over the past 12 months Leaf It To Us have been working on designing, planting and maintaining the traffic roundabout in Baschurch, commissioned by Baschurch Parish Council as a community project.

Emily takes part in the Premier Inn bed making competition.

Artist Liz Neal and Jim Creed from Qube give up their time to judge the art competition.

Adelhe, Billie-Jo and Drew with their Winter Planters for the horticulture competition. Pictured with Mayoress Cllr Joyce Barrow, judge Dave Cank and Mayor Cllr John Price.

Skills Live @Derwen

This week has also seen the launch of Skills Live @Derwen, a series of competitions which will see a number of students and colleges working together to showcase the skills of people with special educational needs and disabilities. We have welcomed other colleges; industry expert judges; mayor Cllr John Price and Mayoress Cllr Joyce Barrow; and Clare Howard, Chief Executive of Natspec – the membership association for organisations which offer specialist further education and training for students with SEND.

Collaborating with others, being part of a bigger picture is vital at Derwen, but also throughout life. We recognise that all of us have different skills and strengths, that’s what makes us better together.

Thanks to work placement providers Kidszone, Gobowen Allrounders, Nightingale House, Moreton Hall School, Severn Dee Travel, McDonalds, Premier Inn, Lepones, Ty Mawr, Treflach Farm, The Spinney, Bryngwyn Hall, Oswestry Cemetery, Oswestry and Gobowen Co-op, Spar, Llangollen Market, Gobowen Library and Oswestry Markets.

Support for Sainsbury’s Autism Hour

16th October 2019 by Eluned Watson

General Merchandise and Clothing manager Laura Sandison welcomes Derwen College retail students and staff.

Students from Derwen College visited Sainsbury’s in Oswestry to support the store’s Autistic Hour event.

Retail students from the specialist FE college for young adults with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including autism, visited the store to show their backing for the event. This is the third year that Derwen College has supported the initiative.

Students helped customers and Sainsbury’s staff, including General Merchandise and Clothing manager Laura Sandison, to make their own Autism awareness badges.

Sainsbury’s has teamed up with autism charity, the National Autistic Society, to support Autism Hour, where shops take steps to create a calmer atmosphere for 60 minutes. This offers autistic people a break from the usual overload of too much information. Simple measures such as turning down the tannoy, self checkout sounds and café music can make a big impact.

The store also took the opportunity to launch its nationwide rollout of sunflower lanyards to help enhance the shopping experience for customers with hidden disabilities. The discreet lanyards indicate that a customer may need extra support or time; they are available to collect free from stores.

Sainsbury’s Tammy Williams said: “It was a pleasure to welcome Derwen College students along to support our Autism Hour, to make badges and talk to our customers.

“We are pleased to be able to offer Autism Hours to make the shopping experience a less anxious one for people with autism. It was also a good opportunity to introduce shoppers to our sunflower lanyard initiative supporting people with hidden disabilities and conditions including autism.”

The students from Derwen College work in the on-site Karten Print Shop, where they produce the college’s marketing materials and undertake orders for outside local businesses. The college offers a wealth of work placement opportunities to students in its shopping and leisure areas which include The Orangery Restaurant, Garden Café, Hotel 751, and Garden Centre and Shop.

Open Day success

16th October 2019 by Eluned Watson

Derwen College was delighted to welcome 26 families to the college’s autumn term Open Day.

Visitors from across the UK attended question and answer sessions, spoke to expert staff across the college’s vocational pathway areas, and enjoyed have-a-go activities.

Staff and students from Hospitality and Housekeeping, Retail, Horticulture, Creative Arts and Works Skills areas showcased the college’s vocational learning. Pot planting, bread making, screen printing and a workshop with sign, song and dance group Derwen on Tour (DOT) were just some of the hands-on activities available for prospective student to try.

Families were also given a tour of the college’s new hydrotherapy pool, training Hotel 751, day provision, residents’ accommodation and shopping and leisure areas. Staff and students were on hand to answer questions and to tell prospective families about independence skills learning, Student Voice, and sports and leisure facilities. The Admissions team were kept busy answering questions about how and when to start the assessment process.

It was also Open House at the college’s Short Breaks facility which offers a social holiday experience, independence skills learning and respite to young adults. Guests visited the accommodation and spoke to specialist staff about the opportunities provided by our Short Breaks.
Open Day co-ordinator Amy Snow said she was very pleased with how the day had gone, and delighted to meet so many families who were interested in Derwen College as a post-16 option.

She said: “We had 26 young people represented at the college, with some families travelling from as far afield as Kent and Buckinghamshire. We had many great comments and lovely feedback from those who visited; about how they felt they were welcomed, informed and supported in their journey to find the right college placement.”

The next Open Days will be held on 4th March and 17th June. For more information telephone Admissions on 01691 661234 or email admission@derwen.ac.uk

For more pictures of the Open Day visit our Facebook page.

Archives for October 2019