Former City of Bath College student Peter France, the Chief Executive of Bath-based Rotork Plc, is to receive a prestigious Association of Colleges (AoC) Gold Award at the House of Commons.
Staff and students from City of Bath College will be present at the 13th June awards ceremony, which is held each year to recognise Further Education alumni as well as acknowledge the vital role that colleges play in the careers of the winners and of their continuing achievements.
Peter France was nominated by the College where he studied an apprenticeship in electrical and electronic engineering between 1984 and 1989. As soon as he left the College he joined Rotork as an Inside Sales Engineer and began his steady ascent through the company which started with a move to Leeds as the company’s Sales Engineer for Northern England. His sales career continued as International Area Sales Manager for territories in Europe, the Middle East and India.
In 1998, Peter was appointed Director and General Manager at Rotork Singapore. He held this post until March 2001 when he returned to the UK to become Managing Director of Rotork Fluid Systems. In May 2008 Peter was promoted to Group Chief Executive of Rotork plc, which has around 2,500 employees worldwide, is represented in 89 countries with 19 manufacturing centres and 104 offices globally.
On winning his award, Peter said: “The combination of practical work experience and academic study provided a fantastic foundation for my working life. It is an educational model that works and one that this country should be very proud of. I will always be grateful for the time I spent at City of Bath College.”
To highlight the important role Further Education continues to play for today’s students, the AoC Charitable Trust runs a ‘mini me’ campaign alongside the Gold Awards. The nominating colleges each select a current student who shows promise in a similar field to their Gold Award winner.
Ryan Carr, 16, from Steeple Ashton in Wiltshire, was selected by City of Bath College. Ryan is currently studying a BTEC Extended Diploma in Engineering (Design) Level 3. After leaving the College he hopes to get an apprenticeship so he can continue to study whilst working at the same time.
Ryan had the opportunity to meet Peter France when he was treated to a special ‘behind the scenes’ tour of the Rotork’s Brassmill Lane headquarters.
Ryan said: “It was great to meet Peter and find out more about the industry as well as getting some useful advice on what I need to do to have a successful career in engineering.
“Peter has also offered me a one-week work placement at Rotork which is a fantastic opportunity for me and something I’m really looking forward to.”
Ryan said he was enjoying his course at City of Bath College. “It’s been really good. It’s a challenging course but it’s interesting and there’s a lot of ‘hands-on’ learning, which I like. The teaching has been great. The tutors are very knowledgeable and are always on hand to offer you support if you need it.”
Peter France is among eight former students whose careers have been positively influenced by their former colleges. The other A0C Gold Award winners are Trevor Baylis – Inventor and Entrepreneur; Idris Elba – Actor; Katy Etherington – Graphic Designer and Founder of PA Pool; Justine Greening MP – Secretary of State for Transport; Amir Khan – Professional Boxer; Justin King – Chief Executive of Sainsbury’s and Sir Kevin Smith – Chief Executive of GKN plc.
