Relaxing music was played while staff enjoyed a 5 minute express hand massage compliments of the colleges Ultima Academy beauty students.  The College Nurse was also on hand to give blood pressure checks, provide results, give advice on how to stop smoking and free bottled water and fruits were available all day to promote a healthy lifestyle.  There were also a number of re-usable resources available on the day that were specifically designed for the staff including factsheets, stress toys, diet advice and online stress reduction techniques and games.

Rob Walker, Drama Lecturer at the College said, “Today’s activities have created such a positive vibe in the staffroom, which encourages a more relaxed and social atmosphere.”

Health and Safety Adviser, Andrea Kennedy commented, “Stress Down Day has been a real success this year and widely supported by college staff.  The hand massages seemed to be extremely popular and it’s been a great experience for our beauty students to be able to practice their skills on so many people.  We are planning on holding Stress Down Days at all our out reach centres over the year and hope to be able to further raise money for the Samaritans.”

 Local employers including the Chewton Glen Hotel, McCarthy & Stone and Travis Perkins sponsored special awards for students who had made particular progress over the last 2 years and were awarded with a trophy.  Brockenhurst College Principal Di Roberts presented the award for the Most Improved 14-16 Vocational Student* and said, “This evening has been a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the success of our younger students who have worked extremely hard and thoroughly deserve these awards.”

Jacquie Maguire, 14-16/Entry to Employment Programmes Co-ordinator said, “We are very proud of all our students who have achieved such successful outcomes and we would like to express our thanks to all the companies who have sponsored and supported this event”.

Apprenticeship Week 2010 ran at the beginning of February to raise the profile of Apprenticeships amongst employers and learners. The week focused on different themes throughout the week including Competitive advantage, Ambition and Apprenticeships driving business. Brockenhurst College Business Services works in partnership with local businesses like Chewton Glen to develop the talents of Apprentices who can bring enthusiasm and 21st century skills to a business.

Mark Golledge, Commis Chef at Chewton Glen, commented, “The hands-on, flexible approach offered by the Apprenticeship has been great as it has allowed me to work while gaining a recognised qualification to support my career development. My tutor at Brockenhurst College is very supportive and passionate about the subject so it pushes you to do the best you can and I’ve been able to share my skills with colleagues. I am now in the final year of my Apprenticeship and really enjoy working with great chefs at Chewton Glen who recently won the Gastronomy Team of the Year 2009 Award.”

Jerome Chenet, Senior Sous Chef at Chewton Glen, is already noticing the benefits of Mark’s Apprenticeship training.  He enthused, “Mark is fantastic, we have seen his confidence grow and his skills develop while he has been doing the Apprenticeship over the past 18 months. Apprenticeships are essential for the industry – they help nurture talent, grow confidence and encourage passion.  They are a good platform for career progression and our staff that do the training tend to stay and work their way up through the ranks. Brockenhurst College is a great place to develop young chefs and we see the results in the kitchen.” 

Brockenhurst College Business Services Manager, Chris Pates, added, “Apprentices bring key benefits to business including contributing to improved productivity and staff retention. Apprenticeships attract substantial Government funding and the College offers Apprenticeships as part of its overall training offer to employers including Train to Gain and legislative courses.”

Brockenhurst College has recently expanded its range of Apprenticeships to include Business and Administration, Construction, Customer Service, Health & Social Care (Adults), Hospitality, Outdoor Education, Retail, Sporting Excellence and Warehousing.

For more information on Apprenticeships please contact the College on: 01590 625589

Brockenhurst College has 120 uniformed Public Services students, who were all put through their paces; sitting a maths exam, a verbal reasoning exam and an English exam. Some also took part in mock interviews and interactive role play exercises, designed to prepare them for the Police force’s notoriously vigorous selection process.

Student James Woods, attended the event and is planning a career in public order policing. He said “I particularly enjoyed the presentation from the Police Roads Policing Unit and today has really helped me prepare for my future career.”

Students were also treated to a stunning display of police dog handling by Hampshire Constabulary’s Dog Support Unit which saw them tracking down and restraining an armed criminal on the College sports field.

Student Sarah Coleman who is planning a career as an RAF Nurse said “The dogs stood out for me. They were amazing. This has really reinforced my interest in working in the Public Services sector. 

Public Services Lecturer and College Commanding Officer, Lisa Hillman, said  “Today was about preparing our Public Service students for a potential career in Policing. We hope to make this an annual event.”

PC Shaun Ryan of the Safer Neighbourhoods police team, who helped Lisa organise the event said “I work closely with students from the public services course and want to give to help them to be as prepared as possible for the application and assessment process. It is great to see that so many local young people are keen to take on what is a challenging, but thoroughly rewarding, career."

Apprenticeship Week 2010 ran at the beginning of February to raise the profile of Apprenticeships amongst employers and learners. The week focused on different themes throughout the week including Competitive advantage, Ambition and Apprenticeships driving business. Brockenhurst College Business Services works in partnership with local businesses like Chewton Glen to develop the talents of Apprentices who can bring enthusiasm and 21st century skills to a business.

Mark Golledge, Commis Chef at Chewton Glen, commented, “The hands-on, flexible approach offered by the Apprenticeship has been great as it has allowed me to work while gaining a recognised qualification to support my career development. My tutor at Brockenhurst College is very supportive and passionate about the subject so it pushes you to do the best you can and I’ve been able to share my skills with colleagues. I am now in the final year of my Apprenticeship and really enjoy working with great chefs at Chewton Glen who recently won the Gastronomy Team of the Year 2009 Award.”

Jerome Chenet, Senior Sous Chef at Chewton Glen, is already noticing the benefits of Mark’s Apprenticeship training.  He enthused, “Mark is fantastic, we have seen his confidence grow and his skills develop while he has been doing the Apprenticeship over the past 18 months. Apprenticeships are essential for the industry – they help nurture talent, grow confidence and encourage passion.  They are a good platform for career progression and our staff that do the training tend to stay and work their way up through the ranks. Brockenhurst College is a great place to develop young chefs and we see the results in the kitchen.” 

Brockenhurst College Business Services Manager, Chris Pates, added, “Apprentices bring key benefits to business including contributing to improved productivity and staff retention. Apprenticeships attract substantial Government funding and the College offers Apprenticeships as part of its overall training offer to employers including Train to Gain and legislative courses.”

Brockenhurst College has recently expanded its range of Apprenticeships to include Business and Administration, Construction, Customer Service, Health & Social Care (Adults), Hospitality, Outdoor Education, Retail, Sporting Excellence and Warehousing.

For more information on Apprenticeships please contact the College on: 01590 625589.

Brockenhurst College has been busy renovating The Hengistbury Head Outdoor Activities Centre in Christchurch Harbour ahead of the spring season when a full programme of activities will be launched to the public.

Students are already benefiting from the College’s new waterfront location with immediate access to a range of watersports activities such as Sailing, Kayaking, Canoeing and Windsurfing. As part of the College’s Outdoor Education programme expansion, the College now offers Canadian Canoeing courses, RYA Sailing qualifications, Powerboating, Rowing and Surfing. With a mobile Climbing Wall and Archery range there will also be enhanced land based outdoor activities offered to local schools and the public after the official opening at Easter.

The College has worked closely with the local community to get their input into how the Centre should develop, and as a result of this process, immediate improvements will include new changing facilities and better disabled access.  An event will be held on Thursday 18th March ahead of the Easter opening to showcase the new facilities to the community.

Ted Rogers, Head of Outdoor Education at Brockenhurst College, enthused, “We are very excited about our new programme of activities which we are now able to offer to local clubs, residents, schools and businesses. We look forward to opening our doors so the community can see the improvements first hand and enjoy this unique facility on their doorstep.”  

Brockenhurst College Adult Learner Sally Lewis is once again celebrating success by winning one of only eight places on the Nuffield Theatre’s Playwriting Course.  This is a prestigious two-year course offered at Southampton’s University Theatre where she competed with hundreds of applicants across the South to secure her place on this free course.
 
Brendan McCusker, Creative Writing Tutor at the college’s Lymington Adult Learning & Skills Centre said, “Sally has recently enjoyed writing success by winning 2nd prize in the Winchester Writers’ Conference Competition for Feature Articles, so this is yet another wonderful achievement in a completely different writing genre. Many congratulations to her!”

Speaking of her success, Sally said, "I am thrilled and delighted to have achieved this privileged position to work with the Nuffield Theatre, and Director John Burgess, to develop my play writing skills. It was through Brendan McCusker, and the Adult Learning Programme who encouraged me to believe that an opportunity like this was obtainable."

Fiona Pearce, Area Co-ordinator for Lymington Adult Learning & Skills Centre said, “It is very rewarding to see one of our Adult students achieve such high recognition for their work. We wish Sally every success on her course and hope she continues to progress with her writing.”

Michael has been teaching Floral Art and Design at the College’s Adult Learning & Skills Centre in Ringwood for over 10 years.  He has been able to pass on his extensive Floral Art experience to his learners, inspiring and encouraging them to achieve their full creative flair.

Michael said, “I’ve been lucky enough to demonstrate at many prestigious NAFAS events all over the UK and to demonstrate for the Association across the world including Canada, Spain, Estonia, New Zealand and Barbados.”

A wide range of courses in flower arranging are starting soon at Brockenhurst College centres across the forest.  For more information or to enrol now call 01590 625500.

As one of the best International Baccalaureate schools in the country, Brockenhurst College’s IB pass rates have been excellent. Scoring consistently over 90% the College’s results far exceed the world-wide pass rate of 82%. Most students achieved 30 points or more, which is the equivalent of 3 ½ A levels at A grade. 

IB students enjoy the variety of subjects and small class sizes form close-knit support groups. Student Poppy Sharp, from Arnewood, who scored 42 points, said, “My results exceeded my expectations so I’m very happy, particularly as I got into Oxford! The lecturers were very supportive – they encouraged me to apply to Oxford University, helped with my personal statement and as a group we received extra revision sessions in the run up to exams. There is a really good team spirit on the IB as we are all aiming high so we help each other out. I’ve really enjoyed my subjects on the course and am now excited about my next challenge doing Experimental Psychology at Oxford.”

Patricia Harriss, Head of the International Baccalaureate Department at Brockenhurst said, “These programmes are challenging and universities recognise the breadth and depth of the work undertaken by the students. With the majority of IB students aiming for higher education, most are able to join their first choice university and last year three students secured places at Oxford or Cambridge.”  

Brockenhurst College’s Open Evening on 11th February, from 5:30-7:30 pm, offers an excellent opportunity to find out if the IB is a good option for you. Come along to one of the talks and chat to lecturers and students to see whether you could be the next success story.