The City of Bath College has been shortlisted for a prestigious Association of Colleges (AoC) Beacon Award for its practical teaching and learning in stonemasonry.
Staff and students have been nationally recognised for their inspirational and imaginative work through community projects.
The College has pioneered ‘living classroom’ on-site training projects to increase the professional stonemasonry and employability skills of students to significantly enhance their career prospects and future success.
The ‘living classroom’ incorporates the restoration and conservation of the Grade II* Orangery at the Tyntesfield Estate in North Somerset, which was at risk of being lost forever. Students worked with the National Trust and specialist stone conservators Nimbus Conservation to totally transform the building in a three-year project. Level 3 students undertook the work whilst studying for the NVQ in Heritage Skills.
Stonemasonry students also participated in the on-going restoration of the 19th century Victorian Gothic Woodchester Mansion in the Cotswolds. The building boasts incredible architecture and its carvings are among the best in the world. Level 2 students completed the work whilst studying for their Stonemasonry Diploma.
The Beacon Award, sponsored by independent education charity The Edge Foundation, demonstrates that vocational learning teaches new skills to students that can shape their future.
Up to 16 Colleges from across the UK will be awarded Beacon status in recognition of high quality, innovative approaches in Further Education in a number of different categories. The winners will be announced at the AoC Annual Conference in Birmingham in November.
If the College is successful in achieving its first Beacon Award, the good practice recognised will be shared with other providers in the sector to promote innovation for the general benefit of the wider learning and skills community.
Plans are already progressing for an extension of the ‘living classroom’ into a much broader project in collaboration with Bath and North East Somerset Council at Cleveland Pools in Bath.
Director of Development Rob Sibley said being shortlisted for the national award was a tribute to the dedication and commitment of staff and students.
He said: “I am absolutely delighted we have been recognised for our innovative teaching which focuses on the ‘living classroom.’
“It’s an outstanding achievement and really satisfying to know that we have recognition for something we do really well.
“Students get real on-site experience to give them the skills and practical experience to progress. We want to keep this going by sharing good practice and helping others.”
To apply for a Beacon Award, City of Bath College had to prepare a 3,000 word submission showing how its practical style of stonemasonry teaching and learning benefited students.
The submission explained that young people are given opportunities to tackle real life problems by learning from people who are experts, using the ‘tools of the trade.’ It also demonstrated that stonemasonry courses were meaningful, challenging and life-changing for students.
Assessors from the AoC and The Edge Foundation then visited the College to meet staff and students, observe a presentation on the outstanding work of the stonemasonry department and meet representatives from the National Trust and Nimbus Conservation on site at the Tyntesfield Estate.
The AoC Beacon Awards were launched in 1994 to highlight the breadth and quality of education in Further Education Colleges throughout the UK.
