Heart of Worcestershire College is an academic institution with campuses at
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Engla ...
,
Malvern,
Redditch
Redditch is a town, and local government district, in north-east Worcestershire, England, approximately south of Birmingham. The district has a population of 85,000 as of 2019. In the 19th century, it became the international centre for the ...
and
Bromsgrove. It was established in August 2014 on the merging of Worcester College of Technology and North East Worcestershire College (commonly abbreviated to NEW College).
History
North East Worcestershire College
North East Worcestershire College (NEW College) was founded in 1988 from the merger of North Worcestershire College and Redditch College of Further Education.
It had campuses at Redditch and Bromsgrove which also offered outreach courses in community and employer premises across Worcestershire. Enrolment was open to anyone aged 16 and over and during the year 2009 -2010 there were around 3000 full-time and 6000 part-time students enrolled at the college. In addition to full and part-time courses, the college offered apprenticeship training in subjects that included Accounting, Business Administration, Child-Care, Construction Trades, Engineering, Hairdressing, Health and Social Care and Motor Vehicle Engineering.
In an Ofsted inspection in 2010 inspectors assessed the college's overall performance as "good, with outstanding features" describing the college as "a lively, modern, safe and friendly place to study". Over a ten-year period investments totalling £40m were made in upgrading existing buildings and substantial new build projects in both Redditch and Bromsgrove. The college was noted for its development of innovative projects with private and public sector partners including Artrix the Bromsgrove Arts Centre and a
Harley-Davidson
Harley-Davidson, Inc. (H-D, or simply Harley) is an American motorcycle manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1903, it is one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depressi ...
European Training Centre that provided training for Harley-Davidson technicians from the UK, Europe and the Middle East. The college was designated as an LSIS 'Beacon' college.
In 2011, NEW College opened a £3.5m extension which included a new TV studio, Music Centre and Games/Interactive Media studio.
In November 2012, the Foundation Degree Media Moving Image students, created an animated music video featuring the song "''All the Broken Toys at Christmas''" and toys such as
Action Man,
Barbie
Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by American toy company Mattel, Inc. and launched on March 9, 1959. American businesswoman Ruth Handler is credited with the creation of the doll using a German doll called Bild Lilli as her inspiration. ...
and
Scalextric
Scalextric is a brand of slot car racing sets which first appeared in the late 1950s. The Scalextric were first invented by engineer B. Fred Francis, when he added an electric motor to the ''Scalex'' tin cars that were produced by Minimodels Lt ...
, to raise money for
Sense
A sense is a biological system used by an organism for sensation, the process of gathering information about the world through the detection of stimuli. (For example, in the human body, the brain which is part of the central nervous system re ...
for the Christmas period. At the world premiere of the music video, held at the college on 28 November, two days before its official release, Virginia Von Malachowski, a manager from Sense was present and praised the project.
Worcester College of Technology (aka Worcester College or Worcester Tech)
The college had its origin in a School of Design which was opened in Pierpoint Street, Worcester, in 1851. In 1894, a School of Science and Art was built in Sansome Walk as part of the Victoria Institute and this served as the headquarters of the college until 1962 when the new buildings in Deansway were occupied. In 1991, the college adopted its current name of Worcester College of Technology.
The college also had two main sites including its Art and Design and Sports departments (including beauty courses) on Barbourne Road, about a mile from the City Centre, and at other locations in the city.
In 1939 the annual College enrolment was around 600 students, most of whom attended evening classes. This had risen to 15,000 enrolled students in 2006, including 3,000 full-time students. Around 1,000 of the students were studying for Higher Education Qualifications.
The college included a Sixth Form Centre, offering A-Levels and other qualifications. No state schools in Worcester had sixth forms, and so it was one of only two Sixth Form Centres in the city.
In 2014 the college received "Good" in their
Ofsted inspection, which was a clear improvement from their previous grade of "Satisfactory". The inspection report stated the following: "Students develop very good personal, social and employability skills through clearly developed study programmes, particularly for those aged 16 to 18 year olds, which include a qualification in job search and interview skills. Carefully planned work experience, in real work environments, accurately matches students courses and to their future aspirations."
Barbourne College
It originally opened in 1929 as the third site of the Worcester Secondary School for Girls. In September 1945, it became the City of Worcester Grammar School for Girls and in 1962 it was moved across the city to the site of the current
Worcester Sixth Form College
Worcester Sixth Form College is a 16-19 Academy in Worcester, England. It is located in the south-east of the city and was founded on the site of the former Worcester Grammar School for Girls following reorganisation in 1983.
Admissions
The cam ...
. It merged with the School of Science and Art and became an Art and Design College up to 1991 when the college adopted its name to Worcester College of Technology, and the Barbourne College became the Art, Design and Sports department. It ran many courses including Media Production, Graphic Design, Photography, Make-up and Hair and Beauty. It stayed that way until it closed in 2014 and the college was moved to the old Russell and Dorrell building in the city centre as the college changed its name to the Heart of Worcestershire College after it merged with North East Worcestershire College in August 2014. Much of the Barbourne building has been knocked down and turned into an apartment building for old people. The front of the building still has not changed since its opening.
Heart of Worcestershire College
On 1 August 2014, North East Worcestershire College (NEW College) and Worcester College of Technology formally amalgamated. The decision, was agreed by both corporations, and the name was approved by the appointed Skills Minister,
Nicholas Boles
Nicholas Edward Coleridge Boles (born 2 November 1965) is a British politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Grantham and Stamford from 2010 to 2019. He was a member of the Conservative Party until 2019.
Before entering Parliament ...
.
Name of the college
The first name proposed for the merged college was Worcestershire College, but this was rejected by the then Skills Minister,
Matthew Hancock
Matthew John David Hancock (born 2 October 1978) is a British politician who served as Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General from 2015 to 2016, Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport from January to July 201 ...
. During the consultation phase of the merger Sir
Peter Luff
Sir Peter James Luff (born 18 February 1955) is Chair of the National Heritage Memorial Fund and the National Lottery Heritage Fund. Formerly a British Conservative Party politician, he was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Mid Worcestershire ...
, the MP for Mid-Worcestershire, complained that Worcestershire College made it sound like it was the only college in the county and that this would be unfair to
South Worcestershire College
Malvern Hills Arts and Community College is a non-profit company set up in April 2021 to manage the bid to save the site of the former Malvern Hills College / Malvern School of Art from being sold to developers by its current owners who received ...
and
Warwickshire College
WCG (formerly ''Warwickshire College Group'' and ''Warwickshire College'') is the managing body that administers several colleges of further education in the English West Midlands, namely in the counties of Warwickshire and Worcestershire. Its ...
, who both have campuses in
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...
.
Campuses
Bromsgrove
The
Bromsgrove campus is situated at Slideslow Drive, next door to the Artrix, which is a multi purpose arts centre that provides theatre and cinema screening.
Malvern Campus
The college's "Construction Centre of Excellence" opened in 2006 at Spring Lane in
Malvern. The centre teaches construction trades, brickwork and painting and decorating.
Redditch
The main campus is the
Redditch
Redditch is a town, and local government district, in north-east Worcestershire, England, approximately south of Birmingham. The district has a population of 85,000 as of 2019. In the 19th century, it became the international centre for the ...
campus situated at Peakman Street, while also the town situates Osprey House located at Albert Street and Alliance House, located on Fishing Line Road
Worcester
There are several buildings for the college in the city of
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Engla ...
. One is the ''All Saints' Building'', located on Deansway. Following a £298,000 investment from the Worcestershire Local Enterprise Partnership, the college has refurbished and developed its Special Education Needs (SEN) facilities, The Base.
The Base facilities include a sensory room, a mocked up ‘flat’ to be used to support learners to develop independence skills, refurbished classroom areas and improved access to online facilities which support independent learning, in preparation for employment or living independently.
Its St Andrew's Building has been transformed into a modern, state-of-the-art campus with a Virtual Reality Studio, equipped with both virtual (VR) and augmented (AR) reality headsets and a Data Centre, supported by the organisation's partner Simply Hosting and Worcestershire Local Enterprise Partnership.
Moreover, the building is also home to its Spires Theatre equipped with computerised lighting system, sound systems and multiple stages and seating positions, predominantly used by its performing arts and music students.
Its St Dunstan's Building is dedicated to its creative arts and hair and beauty provision. Short-listed for the prestigious AJ Retrofit Awards, this modern building has a commercial salon, Fountains, art and design studios and coffee shop.
In 2017, the college teamed up with Freedom Leisure and Worcester City Council to develop brand new sports facilities exclusively for its students at Perdiswell Leisure Club. Facilities include: fitness studios, football pitch and bespoke teaching classrooms.
The Duckworth Centre of Engineering, is home to the college's automotive workshops, following a move from the Northbrook Automotive Centre in 2019, and offers students the opportunity to enhance their studies by applying classroom based learning in a practical environment. Working on real vehicles in the workshop, students can build on their knowledge of key vehicle systems, identify and rectify faults, conduct diagnostic checks and learn how to remove and repair engines.
As well as its facilities at The Duckworth Centre of Engineering, on Midland Road, Worcester, the college also has engineering facilities at its Cathedral Building. Located on Deansway, the building is furnished with workshops and industry standard equipment and hosts its electrical installation and manufacturing courses.
Notable former students and staff
*
Benjamin Williams Leader
Benjamin Williams Leader (12 March 1831 – 22 March 1923) was an English landscape painter.
Life and work
Early years and training
Leader was born in Worcester as Benjamin Leader Williams, the son, and third child of eleven children, of ...
(1831-1923), landscape painter - studied at Worcester College of Design
*
Thomas Brock
Sir Thomas Brock (1 March 184722 August 1922) was an English sculptor and medallist, notable for the creation of several large public sculptures and monuments in Britain and abroad in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
His mos ...
(1847-1922), sculptor - studied at Worcester College of Design
*
Michael John Foster (born 1963), politician - lecturer in accountancy and finance at Worcester College of Technology
References
External links
Heart of Worcestershire website
{{Coord, 52.337647, -2.050066, display=title
Further education colleges in Worcestershire
Education in Worcestershire
Bromsgrove
Malvern, Worcestershire
Redditch
Worcester, England
Learning and Skills Beacons
Schools in Malvern, Worcestershire