This week, we attended the prestigious Educate North Awards ceremony in Manchester a few months after being shortlisted for the Social Mobility Award in the Higher and Further Education sector.
The Educate North Awards
Staged by RM Communications in partnership with Why?Events, the Award aims to celebrate, recognise, and share best practice and excellence in the northern education sector.
It comprises twenty-three categories including Diversity, Equality & Inclusion, Employer Engagement, and Student Experience.
Deciding who to crown as winners fell to an esteemed judging panel comprised of industry experts such as singer-songwriter Mali Hayes, Mehmooda Duke MBE, Founder of Moosa-Duke Solicitors, and John Cater CBE DL, Vice-Chancellor of Edge Hill University, among others.
The event attracts hundreds of education professionals from further and higher education institutions across the North, together with a range of key suppliers to the sector.
Social Mobility
We were shortlisted after impressing judges with our Integrated Approach – a whole-college methodology to student development in an inclusive post-16 setting. It represents a rare innovation of curriculum design benefitting those young people who are most in need.
“The approach represents highly effective ‘levelling-up’, a rare example of innovation-delivering most benefit to those who need it most. For a community-based inclusive College, this is truly an outstanding way of working together,” said Pete Kennedy, Principal of Franklin Sixth Form College.
“This approach has shaped how we operate the College on every level in communication and responsibilities to students, staff, and stakeholders. It allows every action to be more effective through continuous communication and evaluation. It has become our mantra!”
Congratulations to the winners
It was a point of pride to be shortlisted in recognition of our ongoing efforts to transform life chances for young people in our community. Our very own CLT Associate Nick Jennings attended the awards evening on our behalf this week.
Although we didn’t win, we were delighted to be shortlisted and Nick can confirm a great evening was enjoyed by all.
Congratulations to category winners Hopwood Hall College and to all the evening’s victors. You can see the full list here.