Coleg Sir Gar

Coleg Sir Gâr’s A-level Sir Gâr 6 team has been awarded the Alps Gold Award which puts the college in the top 25% performing schools and colleges for A-levels in England and Wales.

This award recognises student achievement within the college’s 2025 A-level results which saw students progress to Cambridge, Oxford and Princeton to respectively read law, history and psychology. 

It’s not just about grades at Coleg Sir Gâr, it’s about each student’s journey and this award demonstrates the effort that staff commit in helping them reach their very best potential.

In 2025, 88% of students progressed to undergraduate study with over a quarter attending Russell group universities.

Within the college’s 2025 results, 14% of students achieved A* grades, 32% received A* to A grades, 56% achieved A* to B, 83% achieved A*-C and 99% of students achieved A* to E.

Angharad Mansfield, head of A-levels at Coleg Sir Gâr said:

The Alps system is a nationally recognised measurement tool that tracks learner progress from GCSE to A-level including target and predicted grades. It recognises the quality of teaching within an organisation when students vastly exceed this.

A Coleg Sir Gâr A-level student is preparing to study in the USA following an acceptance to study liberal arts at Princeton University.

Hannah Freckleton has fully embraced her college experience, successfully gaining Student Union President status and representing the college as an ambassador.

She applied to Princeton University to study liberal arts and is interested in majoring in psychology, public policy or sociology but what she values about the programme is that she doesn’t have to choose a major until her second year, giving her time to explore.

She applied with the support of her lecturers and through the Sutton Trust Fullbright US Programme.

Hannah Freckleton said:

Hannah is someone who is passionate about music and is looking forward to getting involved in extracurricular life, exploring performance opportunities through campus ensembles and musical groups.

She also said that the application process came with its challenges, especially as it’s so different to the UK system but the Sutton Trust US Programme was a huge help in offering support and guidance.

The Coleg Sir Gâr A-level team also supported Hannah in reaching her aspirations.

At college, Hannah studied A-levels in psychology, Welsh and sociology and is awaiting her results in August.

Hannah Freckleton added:

Travel and tourism students at Coleg Sir Gâr have recently returned from what they are describing as a ‘lifechanging visit’ to Vietnam.

The Taith-funded eight-day trip, took eight students to Ho Chi Minh City and specifically linked them with Thu Duc College of Technology (TDC).

Dr Andrew Cornish, principal and CEO at Coleg Sir Gâr has been developing links with Vietnam for the past four years.

During the visit, he signed a memorandum of understanding, which was included in a special event which saw special guests attending, including the British Consulate, British Ambassador and local television news teams.

Coleg Sir Gâr travel and tourism lecturer Beverley James said:

Students spent two days at TDC and both Vietnamese and Welsh parties shared a cultural day where they sang and displayed traditional dances and shared each other’s languages, including Vietnamese, English and Welsh.

They had the opportunity of visiting the pagodas, climbed the statue of Christ of Vũng Tàu and tried out the Củ Chi Tunnels and visited the War Remnants Museum.

Travel and tourism student Mia Bowskill said:

Mags Walters, travel and tourism lecturer at Coleg Sir Gâr added:

A mechanical engineering lecturer at Coleg Sir Gâr has recently returned from London where he was nominated along with his wife, to attend the King’s Garden Party at Buckingham Palace.

Rob Rees and his wife Michele, were nominated for their services to veterans with Michele being general manager of Links mental health in Llanelli and Rob as a former Royal Air Force mechanical engineering technician.

Guests are nominated by charities and organisations with royal links, and are invited as a thank you for their public service.

Serving 12 years in the RAF, Rob spent much of his life stationed at various UK military bases which included a five-month detachment in the Falkland Islands.

In 1997, Rob left the military and gained a position as a design engineer at Kerton Plastics in Swansea and following some years in the mechanical engineering industry, he gained a teaching position at Coleg Sir Gâr in 2001.

However, Rob retained his service connections and through a colleague of Michele, he was approached by the local Welsh Guards Association to help out at a veterans event.

“The bond with like-minded armed forces veterans was instant,” said Rob, who was persuaded to join the branch and has been treasurer of the association for the past five years, volunteering his time at meetings, events and parades.

The Welsh Guards Association raises money for charity, maintains war graves and provides a military presence at veteran funeral and events.

Working with his wife Michele, who supports the local veteran community through her working role, the couple regularly attend NAAFI breakfast clubs and have helped set up a very popular annual veteran Christmas lunch organised by Links.

Robert Rees, mechanical engineering lecturer at Coleg Sir Gâr said:

Katie Cobley, a 19-year-old horticultural apprentice at Coleg Sir Gâr, relocated from the Lake District after securing an apprenticeship at the National Botanic Garden of Wales.

She has recently been awarded the Colegrave Seabrook Foundation/RHS bursary which is to support young horticulturists in their career journey.

The bursary offers financial support to study abroad or engage in horticultural courses for further development.

Katie has booked a course in tropical plant identification at Cambridge University and ideally would like to explore Madeira for its endemic plants.

Being brought up on a smallholding, growing vegetables and other plants was second nature and although she’d initially planned on studying Russian and history at university, that all changed after she took a year out after school.

After travelling and working around France and Ireland exploring native fauna and flora Katie decided that university wasn’t for her.

She saw an advert for a horticultural apprentice at National Botanic Garden of Wales and following an interview, she was offered the position.

Katie is working at the gardens and undertaking one study day a week at Coleg Sir Gâr’s Gelli Aur agricultural campus where she is studying an RHS certificate in horticulture.

She is currently studying historic and heritage gardens at college and on a typical study day, she may study plant science in the morning and then ecology and biodiversity in the afternoon.

At the gardens, where she is completing a two-year apprenticeship,  she is working a three-month rotational pattern working in the glasshouses currently with South African succulents and is keen to learn more with an interest in sub-tropical ferns.

Katie Cobley said:

Katie is getting into community life in Dryslwyn learning Welsh and preparing to judge Llandeilo and Llanarthne flower shows.

She is totally committed to her horticultural studies and even slept in her car when she went to Ireland to explore its bogland flora and carnivorous plants.

A Coleg Sir Gâr director who leads technology development within teaching and learning at Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion, has been quoted in a book written by one of the world’s foremost voices on AI in education.

Director of teaching, learning and education, Bryony Evett Hackfort, is leading the development of AI generative technologies for students and staff at both colleges.

Her ‘enhancement not replacement’ ethos was used in Dan Fitzpatrick’s book, entitled Infinite Education: The Four-Step Strategy for Leading Change in the Age of Artificial Intelligence.

The quote read:

The book questions amongst other things, why some schools are thriving in a world dominated by AI while others cling to outdated methods, leaving students and teachers behind.

Dan Fitzpatrick, is a trusted advisor to educational leaders and a pioneer in AI-driven strategies and has visited Coleg Sir Gâr in the past when AI technologies were emerging.

Bryony’s quote joins other educational leaders’ thoughts including Sandra H Ruffo, president of the New York State School Boards Association and professor Sugata Mitra, educational theorist.

Her approach to AI is all inclusive and not restricted to the education sector, highlighting that anyone can use it and whilst there are lessons to be learnt along the way, exploring creativity is key.

The college is currently running Team Teaching with Pioneers action research project, which brings alive key historical figures through the use of ChatGPT, PlayHT and D-ID Studios, to bring learning to life, which has received positive feedback and increased student engagement.

Bryony has introduced four pillars to consider when using AI generation at the college, which question whether the activity is innovative, ethical, safe and effective.

She is also working on a qualification that could be used by any sector or individual to help them confidently approach and access AI.

Her team is currently engaged as the only further education representative, in a Proof-of-Concept project through the Atlantic Rim Collaboratory (ARC), led by the Welsh Government.

Philosophies have also been shared at the CICan2024 conference in Calgary, the national and international voice of Canada’s largest post-secondary education network.

Bryony Evett Hackfort added:

A-Level students with an interest in the healthcare sector, started their first year of college with a visit to Swansea University, as part of the college’s Medical Field Programme partnership.

This programme, in partnership with Swansea University, is aimed at students who want to explore outside of the traditional doctor role and look at careers including biochemistry, audiology, genetics, radiography and theatre.  

The visit included a tour of Swansea University Medical School Institute of Life Science where students talked to degree students working in the NHS and training as operating department practitioners, more commonly known as ODPs. 

They showed students the medical theatre where they train, talked about their study and work placement experiences in various medical settings and establishments.

Included was a demonstration of Swansea University Simulation suite (SUSIM), which is an immersive learning centre that uses technology to enhance training. For example, it can set a specific street background to a training scenario by providing sound, visuals and even scent, to simulate a real-life environment, adding for example, the pressure of the sound of traffic and heightened public reaction in an emergency situation. 

Dr Susan Ford, Coleg Sir Gâr A-level lecturer, is leading the initiative with Swansea University and she was thrilled to see the first event of this pilot programme, come to life. She said:

The visit also introduced our students to several former Coleg Sir Gâr A-level students who were part of a group of ODP degree students currently studying at the university who provided a valuable insight to studying this type of degree course.

Students at Coleg Sir Gâr’s Gelli Aur agricultural campus are proudly sporting a brand-new rugby kit which has been funded by the college’s Student Union Participatory Budget and has been supported by three agriculturally-focussed mental health charities.

The participatory budget is an annual, formal process where students submit a bid for review and if successful, they present it to learner reps at their campus Learner Voice Conference where its success relies on student votes. 

This is the first time that students at Gelli Aur have had their own professional kit to support their extra-curricular sporting activities. 

Three mental health charity representatives attended an informal launch of the kit where they saw their logos on display on the shirt.

The college asked Farming Community Network (FCN), Tir Dewi and DPJ Foundation if the college could spread the word about mental health in agriculture by displaying their logos.

Through the college’s Learner Voice initiative, the need for the kit was identified from students at Gelli Aur saying they wanted to promote their agricultural identity whilst playing rugby.

The college’s Student Union participatory budget allows an allocation of funds to each of its seven campuses every year and students are encouraged to explore what would improve their campus wellbeing. 

Gelli Aur’s rugby team is independent of the college’s well established rugby academy, which is based in Llanelli, but some of the players do attend training or games when they are able.

The agricultural team is coached by Philip Thomas of the college Wellbeing Team with Kayleigh Brading, Active wellbeing coordinator arranging the friendly fixtures against other Coleg Sir Gâr campuses, or local schools.

Harri Brown, an agricultural student and rugby team member at Gelli Aur campus said:

The kit was designed by agricultural student Mila Summers and includes a cow pattern design on the sleeves and shorts with black and white socks representing the campus dairy herd. 

Jamie Davies, wellbeing manager at Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion said:

“The college Participatory Event is now in its third year, with all seven of our campuses’ mental health and wellbeing benefiting greatly through this process, funded by our Student Union.

Ryan Rix, a Carmarthen School of Art graduate from Coleg Sir Gâr is currently competing on ITV’s M&S: Dress the Nation showcasing his designs that focus on adaptability and accessibility. 

Since graduating in 2023 with a degree in Fashion Design, Ryan has been growing his own business, showcasing collections, and refining his craft. His mission is to design accessible fashion, inspired by his experience of being born without a left forearm. Having struggled to find comfortable clothing growing up, Ryan is determined to create designs that empower people to feel confident and not concealed by their clothing.

Ryan prioritises accessibility in his designs, incorporating features such as jackets with zippers on the sleeves, which can be left on or removed for ease of use. He also frequently replaces traditional buttons with alternatives like Velcro and poppers, ensuring that people with disabilities can dress themselves independently. 

Ryan will carry these values and techniques with him as he competes on Dress the Nation, showcasing his commitment to accessible and inclusive fashion. The competition offers a life-changing opportunity, with the winner securing a coveted design role at M&S and having their own bespoke collection featured in selected stores. 

Ryan said on his Instagram:

See Ryan on M&S: Dress the Nation on ITV1 every Tuesday at 8pm.

Coleg Sir Gâr is this year piloting a new initiative for A-level science students who are thinking of studying degrees in the varying areas that support the medical and health sector. 

The aim of the initiative, called the Medical Field Programme, is to give students with an interest in healthcare and medicine, practical experience and knowledge about the degree courses available to them.

In partnership with Swansea University, the college and university will be delivering bespoke taster sessions, allowing students to explore careers in both health and medical fields that they may have been unaware of such as biochemistry, healthcare sciences, audiology, rehab engineering, radiography, medical genetics, pharmacology, osteopathy, psychology and more. 

The project is free and will comprise of four sessions, held during student’s tutorial time and will therefore not encroach on any teaching sessions. Each session will include a talk by a specialist in their field, followed by a workshop on that career path. Students will be given the opportunity to use the university’s state of the art facilities and take part in practical activities, offering them hands-on opportunities to explore the chemical, clinical skills required for this type of career. There will also be plenty of bespoke support on the UCAS application process and university life.

Coleg Sir Gâr A-level lecturer Dr Susan Ford, is leading the initiative with Swansea University. She said:

“We are really excited to be launching this new, bespoke Medical Field Programme with our partner university.

“So often students start their A levels with no idea of the career path they wish to pursue. They often want to do something science based, but unless family members are working in this area, they have no idea about the wealth of science jobs available to them in the medical field. We hope to use this programme to highlight career roles that surround the medical profession such as geneticist, healthcare scientist, sleep scientist. There are so many “behind the scenes jobs” that support our national health and private medical systems open to them.

“Subject choice at A-level can be crucial, as often students don’t realise the entry requirements to apply for these types of courses. Students assume biology is essential, however it is chemistry A-level that is usually specified, for this type of degree course. Therefore, we also hope to engage with year 11 students from our feeder comprehensive schools.

“This bespoke programme with Coleg Sir Gâr is open to all students who meet the current A-level entry requirements at the college which are six GCSEs at grades A* to C.

“Give it a go, come and study sciences with us and we’ll show you a range of opportunities that exist in this exciting field of work.”

Feature image: A-level lecturer Dr Susan Ford, is leading the initiative with Swansea University.

Coleg Sir Gâr’s Rugby Academy is currently on tour in South Africa, home to the current Rugby World Cup champions. 

Around 30 students and five lecturers are touring Cape Town where they will be playing three competitive rugby matches as well as touring other cultural and educational attractions.

This tour has been made possible thanks to local sponsors Adam Jones of Vaughan Construction Ltd who is the principal sponsor, TAD Builders Ltd who is a partnership tour sponsor, the Bridge Llangennech and Cadog Homecare Ltd who are the rugby academy’s principal sponsors and partnership sponsors for the tour.  

The 11-day tour will include amongst other visits, three rugby matches, a visit to Table Mountain, Cheetah Outreach, Stellenbosch University, Robben Island, a dinner at traditional South African world-famous Gold restaurant and players will also be training alongside the France U20s Team and watching Wales play New Zealand in the U20s World Championship.

They will also be on the field, playing against some of the most infamous teams in South Africa, such as Masiphumelele RFC (Masi RFC) and False Bay RFC who have developed a number of Springbok internationals. 

Euros Evans, Coleg Sir Gâr Sports Academy head said:

“Our Sports Academy ethos is to strive for excellence and since South Africa is the home of the current Rugby World Cup Champions there is no better place at the moment, to develop our rugby.”

Rob Kirk, Coleg Sir Gâr sports science lecturer and tour manager said:

“We would like to thank Vaughan Construction Ltd, TAD Builders Ltd, the Bridge Llangennech and Cadog Homecare Ltd, for their support that has allowed us to tour with a bespoke kit, maintaining our professional image and supporting our ethos to ‘strive for excellence’.”

Coleg Sir Gâr agricultural engineering students have won Institution of Agricultural Engineers (IAgrE) student awards which were presented at the New Holland plant in Basildon.

18-year-old Hywel Bowen from Llandeilo, won the safety award and James Turner, 19, from Pembrokeshire won the product award.

The IAgrE Safety Award has been developed to encourage and recognise innovation in safe design or operation of equipment or processes by students of subjects related to the application of engineering to the land-based sector.

Hywel’s hydraulic slurry chute won the award by identifying a safety issue which was working at height, providing protection from rotating PTO shafts and reducing exposure to slurry gases, all of which are dangerous hazards on a farm.

Judges noted that Hywel had clearly analysed the HSE’s Fatal Industry Statistics and identified some relevant regulations.

James Turner designed and manufactured a rear-mounted bale spike loader aimed at the smallholder market who don’t own a front loader tractor.

This product, which allows for more manoeuvrability on smaller yards, works especially well with two-wheel drive tractors, reducing wear on the front axle with a rear-mounted loader.

The day was concluded with a tour of the plant and product demonstrations including the methane powered New Holland tractor and a Case IH Puma 260 CVXDrive tractor with latest precision technology.

Coleg Sir Gâr agricultural engineering lecturer Rhys James said:

“Both were enthusiastic and showed dedication and commitment towards both the course as a whole and the project unit.

“The work ethic from both Hywel and James was encouraging to see for other students, showing them that hard work leads to success.”

A music technology student at Coleg Sir Gâr has released her debut single with a follow-up EP expected in May.

Francesca Scott, 17, from Carmarthen, is a blossoming talent in folk and acoustic music with skills in writing, vocals, piano and classical guitar.

Summertime, the name of the single, is a song written, performed and mixed by Francesca who produced the piece as part of her college final major project where her tutor Pasha Alpturer encouraged her to release her work.

Francesca decided to study music technology as well as performance as she enjoyed the two disciplines and wanted to keep her future options open.

The single Summertime is already available on Bandcamp, Spotify Apple Music and Amazon and the EP called Talk to you Later, will also join these major platforms on May 15.

The college’s facilities were key in helping her produce the single and EP using mixing decks and Logic Pro.

Francesca Scott said:

“I’m very excited, it’s the first release I’ve done.

“The song is a gentle flow of nostalgic memories spent on the beach in the summer with friends.

“My tutor Pasha has been amazing in helping and encouraging me to release it and thanks also to Gareth Jenkins for his help in mastering the track.”

Francesca has secured a place at Salford University in September to study music production.

Her single was also featured on the Adam Walton show on BBC Radio Wales.

You can listen to the Summertime track on Bandcamp here.

Coleg Ceredigion creative media students have taken part in an exclusive three-day audio workshop by a dubbing mixer who has worked on the likes of Gavin and Stacey, Bloodlands and Netflix’s The Diplomat.

Simon Jones, a professional dubbing mixer specialising in drama, bridged the gap between academic learning and real-world application in the sound industry in this immersive workshop.

His impressive career includes work on classics such as Hinterland, Gavin and Stacey as well as recent high-profile TV series The Pact and Bloodlands for BBC1, DI Ray for ITV, and Netflix’s The Diplomat.

His wealth of knowledge and expertise was obvious as he guided first and second-year level three creative media students through the intricacies of audio production over three days, from the initial concept to the final mix.

Sophia Bechraki, a media lecturer at Coleg Ceredigion, reflected on the impact of the workshop, she said:

“We are committed to providing students with real-world experiences and connections that can shape their careers and inspire their creative journeys

“Simon Jones’ workshop was a masterclass in sound production, blending his extensive industry experience with practical guidance.

“His dedication to sharing knowledge made it an inspiring and transformative experience for our students, opening their eyes to the vast possibilities within the world of audio.”

The workshop started with Simon sharing his personal journey in the sound industry, offering students a glimpse into the life of a freelancer and the dynamics of running a sound studio. 

He delved into the technical and creative intricacies of sound production and explored the significance of sound in drama, illustrating how audio enhances narrative and emotion.

Through examples from his own portfolio, Simon revealed the complexities of audio workflow and the transformative power of post-production technologies. 

Sophia Bechraki added:

“The heart of the workshop was hands-on experience where students were actively involved in practical sessions on Foley recording, track laying, and mixing, applying their learning in real-time. 

“The culmination of this enriching experience was a session where students presented their own work to Simon Jones and received personalised feedback and expert advice.

“This direct mentorship from a seasoned professional was a rare opportunity for students to refine their craft and gain confidence in their abilities.”

Learn more about Coleg Ceredigion’s Creative Media courses: www.ceredigion.ac.uk

Student Beci Harrison said:

“Not only are the landscapes breath-taking and everyone that we met were friendly. NorQuest College in Edmonton provided us with an enriching educational experience that was truly amazing, an unforgettable experience”

Anna Smaldon-Hill said:

“Alberta, Canada, in 10 days was a bit of a whirlwind. I was so enriched with new knowledge and experiences, both educationally and emotionally. It is a time in my life I won’t soon forget; it has made a firm impact on me, and I think I’ll take much of what I learned into my future career.”

Courtney Jones added:

“Exploring some of the stunning landscapes of Alberta was a truly amazing experience, and immersing myself in a different lifestyle and culture proved to be incredibly educational. Additionally, learning about the distinct healthcare system and the unique challenges it faces in Alberta was particularly enlightening.”

Lowri Jones said:

“The trip proved to be significantly transformative for me. Engaging with the First Nations community and witnessing the enduring lifestyles of these indigenous peoples deeply enriched my cultural understanding of some of the barriers that are faced when accessing healthcare services.”

Evie Pritchard chose Coleg Sir Gâr to navigate her through her A-level studies and as a result and due to her commitment to her work, she is now enjoying her first year studying at University of Cambridge.

At college, Evie studied psychology, government and politics, sociology and AS maths and as a Coleg Sir Gâr student, she was part of the Wales-wide Seren Academy, aimed at high achieving students.

Evie was recently welcomed back to college, where she was one of the recipients for the Principal’s Award for Academic Excellence recognising her excellent skills in social science and an advocate for social justice.

Now reading human, social and political sciences at University of Cambridge, Evie reflects on her college experience and how it helped her transition to one of the best universities in the UK.

Evie Pritchard said:

“I am wholly grateful for the opportunities I received within my A-level studies to explore my interests in social inequality and intersectionality, both inside and outside of the curriculum.

“Inside of the curriculum, the literature and discussion I engaged with during my studies allowed me to develop skills that have been highly valuable to my university experience thus far, as I got the chance to critically think about and discuss the content I was learning.

“I was also fortunate enough to be able to explore my interests outside of my curriculum in events such as an International Women’s Day debate and through my completion of the Seren award.

“I was challenged by the broad range of content I covered during my studies that looked at political ideology, sociological and psychological perspectives, as well as mathematics and statistics.

“Throughout my time studying A-levels, the academic and wellbeing support I received helped me massively in my transition into higher education.”

A Coleg Sir Gâr A-level student has secured an apprenticeship with one of the four largest international accounting and professional services companies where she will study to be an accountant and eventually gain chartered accountant status.

Olivia Williams is currently studying French, geography, biology and Welsh Bacc within the college’s Sir Gâr 6 A-level programme and upon completion, will be employed at KPMG in Bristol from September.

KPMG is one the Big 4, which are the four largest companies dealing with audit, tax, consulting and financial advisory services to major corporations. The company operates in 143 countries and collectively employs more than 270,000 partners and people, serving the needs of business, governments, public sector agencies, not-for-profits and the capital markets.

The 17-year-old, who is from Carmarthen, didn’t plan to work in financial services as when she started college, she had her sights set on a career in zoology, but she became doubtful about pursuing it as a career. After speaking to her mum, who thought she might have the personality and skills to pursue a business career, she looked at other options.

Olivia Williams said:

“At the interview, I think there were around 120 other candidates who were a mix of apprentices, graduates and interns.

“The whole process lasted six hours with two 50-minute assessments and overall the process was challenging.

“Starting off with the first assessment, which involved numerical and situational questions, I had to rank what I would most likely do or not do in that scenario. We then had a similar assessment using video responses with two minutes to prepare and two minutes to deliver.”

For the first two years, Olivia will be working towards her AAT (Association of Accounting Technicians), which is one of the most recognised industry qualifications in financial services and will then work towards an ACA qualification to gain chartered accountant status.

Olivia Williams added:

“I’m really proud of myself for achieving this, it was the only apprenticeship I had applied for and to be successful on my first application was surreal, especially as I’m not studying economics or maths which many of the other applicants would have had.

“I also didn’t have a specific company in mind but KPMG seemed like a company that actually cared about their people which made them really appealing.

“I’m really excited about Bristol, I love where I live now, but I feel that moving to Bristol will open up so many opportunities for me work-wise and will help me grow as an individual.”

Nina Theodoulou, A-level lecturer at Coleg Sir Gâr added:

“Olivia has done exceptionally well to gain an apprenticeship in auditing with KPMG.

“She completed the four rounds of the very competitive application process and will start her apprenticeship in September; we are very proud of Olivia and her success.”

Feature image: Olivia Williams 

Rachel Evans graduated from Coleg Sir Gâr with a first-class honours degree in applied computing and has worked for companies which include Facebook, Paramount Studios, Walmart, Apple, Tesla, Shell and British Airways.

She says that the computing sector is vast and that she wasn’t sure at first, which area to specialise in, but because the course offered experience in programming, networking, security and design she could try her hand at everything and eventually she chose programming which resulted in a career in software engineering.

Rachel didn’t come from a computing background and had studied A-levels at the college beforehand but she applied for the course as she knew the college had a friendly learning environment and had smaller classes with lots of tutor support.

She chose computing as it’s a fundamental part of society’s everyday life and the biggest appeal for her was the transferable skills gained from a degree such as problem solving and critical thinking.

Rachel Evans said:

“When I was enrolling on the course, I thought I’d be one of the weaker applicants which gave me anxiety and scepticism, however, the amount of support and encouragement that I got from the tutors was second to none.

“I even enrolled on the college’s Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) course in the evenings.”

Just before graduating, Rachel was offered a conditional job role with Hoowla, a conveyancing platform.

Sadly, the company faced a redundancy period and Rachel was affected but she didn’t lose hope and went on to complete numerous roles contributing to a variety of different products including the development of physical security software, fintech (finance­), conveyancing software and much more.

Currently, Rachel works for Kalibrate Technologies Ltd as a net developer where she is involved throughout the software development lifecycle from specification, development testing through to deployment, development of features to end of line support to clients as well as supporting junior members of her team.

Rachel Evans added:

“The hardest but most rewarding element of pursuing a career in development is that no two days are the same; problem solving takes up a significant chunk of every day but the degree gave me the building blocks for the skills required for a successful career.

“Pursuing a career in any IT related field is not the easiest, with such a broad range of specialist areas and everchanging evolvement in the tech world but it is very rewarding. Not only is it one of the highest paying job markets in the world but it allows you to transform your career into what you want to make of it. Training, flexibility, culture, travel are all examples of just some of the benefits that I have experienced along my career journey.

“I am grateful to have had the opportunity to join this course, because without it I would not be where I am today.”

Computing courses at Coleg Sir Gâr

A literacy teacher at Coleg Sir Gâr is taking part in a role reversal exercise with her students as part of the ‘Teach the Teacher’ programme.

Alex Huggett, who is a lecturer in the Skills Improvement team, teaches on the college’s GCSE English resit programme, which offers students a second chance to complete their qualification.

She is taking part in the programme, which was initially started at Solihull College, where lecturer Rachel Arnold discovered that engaging with students, within their own vocational subject areas, improved student performance and morale.

Trina Smith says that one of the best decisions she made was to apply for an access to higher education course as it gave her the confidence and skills to train for a new career as a mental health nurse.

She had been suffering for many years with complex post-traumatic stress disorder but after a year of EMDR therapy and at 36 years-old, she felt she could reignite her life.

With encouragement from her therapist and family, she applied for the access course at Coleg Sir Gâr and chose the health pathway as her dream was to work in mental health nursing.

She says that the course was challenging but interesting and taught in an adult and informative way.

“Every assignment I passed increased my self-worth,” she said. “I still struggled with my mental health but the college and lecturers were extremely supportive and always there when I needed them. The thought that I could pass this course with one GCSE to my name was beyond my expectations.”

Trina’s talents were finally emerging and flourishing and she gained distinction after distinction until by the end of the course she had earned 84 distinctions. During her studies, she also won awards for Carmarthenshire and Wales as well as the Keith Fletcher Memorial Prize. “For the first time in 36 years, I started to believe in myself and believe I could actually go to university,” she said.

She has now been working for seven years in her very dream job as a fully qualified mental health nurse on an older adult mental health assessment ward at Prince Philip Hospital, which she began when she left university at 40 years-old. 

Trina added:

“I would never have achieved any of this if I hadn’t gathered the courage to apply for and complete the access course; a course that gave me the opportunity to grow and learn as an adult and develop skills and knowledge I never imagined possible.

“I thought university was something completely out of reach but the access course made the goal an achievable one, which fulfilled my ambition to work in a career I very much aspired to.”

Visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion have collectively won nearly 50 Welsh medals at a Skills Competition Wales awards evening.

Skills Competition Wales aims to raise the profile of skills in Wales and offers students, trainees and apprentices an opportunity to challenge and raise their skills through regional and national competitions.

Some of these competitions can also lead to training and selection for Squad and Team UK to compete on an international stage.

Coleg Sir Gâr students impressively won 14 golds, four silvers and nine bronze medals and Coleg Ceredigion students from across Cardigan and Aberystwyth campuses won 10 gold medals, three silver medals and six bronze medals.

Gold medals were awarded in areas including carpentry, performing arts, joinery, restaurant service and patisserie and confectionery. Silver medals included joinery, restaurant service, inclusive skills and beauty therapy. Bronze included enterprise and motor vehicle inclusive skills.

This is the first year performing arts has been introduced as a category to the competitions and students at Coleg Ceredigion won the best in Wales with their gold medals.

Carl Lewis, lecturer in Performing Arts at Coleg Ceredigion said:

”I couldn’t be more proud of my fantastic students. Again, it demonstrates the excellent, industry standard, professional training that Coleg Ceredigion offers in Performing Arts and the standard and quality of the students that study here. This is a fantastic aculade to have been awarded, winning gold and therefore the best in Wales in the performing arts skills competition. To anyone thinking of entering onto an acting,singing,dancing,performance pathway, clearly there is only one place to be in West Wales and that is Coleg Ceredigion.”

The event, held at Coleg Sir Gâr’s forge theatre was one of many satellite-linked events which celebrated medal success across Wales.

Skills Competition Wales aims to raise the profile of skills in Wales and offers students, trainees and apprentices in Wales a chance to challenge, benchmark and raise their skills by taking part in competitions across a range of sectors.

Funded by the Welsh Government and run by a dedicated network of colleges, work-based learning providers and employer-led organisations, it consists of a series of local skills competitions, aligned to WorldSkills and the needs of the Welsh economy.

The competitions are free to enter and typically run between January and March each year.

Visit: inspiringskills.gov.wales/skills-competition-wales

A project, funded by Carmarthenshire County Council LEADER programme is underway to help farming communities become more efficient by using the latest agricultural technologies. 

The Innovation and Technology project is based at Coleg Sir Gâr’s agricultural campus in Gelli Aur and is home to project officer Rhys Jones who runs with the project with the college’s external funding officer, Nia Lloyd.

The idea of the initiative is to help farmers with tailored support by researching and sourcing innovative ways of supporting their work using technology.

Technology can help in many ways to alleviate the work of a farm, such as monitoring cattle health, checking mountain flocks with drones and using sensors for gates which sends the farmer a text alert when left open.

The project is creating networks with many agricultural and technology specialists such as Lely (robotics), Techion, Vantage Trimble (autosteer and GPS technology) and KRM Ltd, who trialled their KRM Bogballe spreader at Gelli Aur campus before the college invested in the machinery.

Rhys Jones, project technician said

“We are encouraging the farming community to talk with us to discuss how we can provide solutions through research, technology and through our industry networks to address general and tailored issues affecting farms.

“There are also Welsh Government grants available through Farming Connect to support the project.

“The innovation really is impressive using technology to analyse problems such as worming issues where technology can microscopically identify eggs in individual animals and herds.  

“There are also livestock ear tags that alert the farm when an animal is in heat as well as a range of robotics such as feeders, milking parlours and slurry collectors. 

“We really want to help farmers be proactive by introducing technology to provide an extra pair of hands.”

Addressing the problem of network signal in some rural areas, the Innovation and Technology project is also working with Carmarthenshire Country Council trialling 10 farms with a large range wide area network (LoRaWAN) and IOT sensors to help address WiFi and technology barriers.

The Innovation and Technology in the land-based sector project is funded through the LEADER Programme which is funded through the Rural Development Plan for Wales (2014-2020).

The LEADER programme is designed to get local people, businesses and communities involved in delivering sustainable, yet innovative solutions to address some of the economic, social and environmental challenges facing rural areas.

In Carmarthenshire, the LEADER programme is being managed by the Grŵp Cefn Gwlad Local Action Group (LAG), which has developed a strategy which will provide the framework for LEADER activity within the county.

To find out more about the project contact rhys.jones@colegsirgar.ac.uk or 07500 786372.

Feature image: Rhys Jones is driving technology forward to help the land-based sector as part of the Innovation and Technology project based at Coleg Sir Gâr’s Gelli Aur campus.

A member of staff from Coleg Sir Gâr’s Carmarthen School of Art is hoping to raise awareness of breast cancer by sharing her own experience of the disease and to raise funds for Prince Philip Hospital’s Peony Breast Care Unit where she describes her care as ‘phenomenal’.

Amelia Kilvington, head of section at the college’s art school, was 40 when she discovered a small lump in her breast and following a biopsy, she discovered she had stage one multi-focal estrogen sensitive breast cancer cells. 

The discovery was made during the pandemic which made the experience a harder and lonelier journey with her family not being able to be there through her treatments during Covid.

After numerous scans, tests and two surgeries, Amelia received a pioneering genetic cell test which discovered that her cells would respond well to chemotherapy and started one of seven sessions in January this year (2021).

Nearly 20 days into her chemotherapy, she started losing her shoulder length hair and started wearing scarves, beanie hats and hats but when summer arrived, she bravely embraced the natural look.

Amelia, from Kidwelly, said:

“People are not always aware of the incredible work of the Peony Breast Care Unit and the chemotherapy day unit at Prince Philip Hospital.

“The treatment I had there was first rate and second to none, they treat thousands of women and some men every year and they are really interested in getting and tailoring the best treatment for every individual.

“The care has been outstandingly amazing and I cannot stress that enough, especially when we were going through lockdown as well.”

She praises Dr Saira Khawaja, the lead consultant for breast cancer at the hospital and her team, for the pioneering work they do.

Amelia said that work kept her motivated and gave her a sense of purpose and she arranged meetings and commitments around her treatment sessions.

She also worked on improving and supplementing her health and kept her balanced outlook using mindfulness.

Amelia Kilvington now wants to raise funds for the unit she received her care from and is encouraging fundraising activities at Coleg Ceredigion and Coleg Sir Gâr, where she works, for Wear it Pink which runs from October 18 to October 22 during Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

She is also offering sessions to staff and students to talk about her experience and raise awareness of breast cancer.

For anyone interested in supporting Amelia, she can be contacted on amelia.kilvington@colegsirgar.ac.uk.

Feature image: Amelia Kilvington

In what has been an unprecedented time for education across Wales, learners at Coleg Sir Gâr have built on their previous GCSE and AS level studies to achieve an excellent set of A-level results.

For A level qualifications, the College celebrates 36% of learners attaining A*-A grades, whilst 13% of entries achieved the top A* grades. This is an outstanding achievement and a testament to the hard work of all students and staff throughout the last two years. Notable subject performances included Mathematics, Computing, Chemistry, Biology, Physics, Further Mathematics, Geography, Government and Politics, Sociology and Modern Foreign Languages. Overall, 88% of learners achieved grades A*- C and 100% achieved grades A – E. This improves on the performance of the previous years and we would like to congratulate everyone on their success.

Some outstanding individual performances have led to learners going to study a range of disciplines  including, Medicine, Dentistry, Engineering, Law, Veterinary Science, Finance and Economics, Languages, Journalism, Art and Architecture, all at top Russell Group and high performing universities.

Head of A-levels and Access, Mrs Orla Williams, stated:

‘We are delighted at the improved success of our students and this reflects the hard work and effort of both students and staff over the last two years of study at the college. On behalf of all staff at the college we wish our learners every success as they go to the very best universities across the United Kingdom and into employment.’

Dr Andrew Cornish, Principal at Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion stated:

‘It is great to see our students performing consistently well and to a high standard.  These A Level results along with an equally strong performance in the Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification and the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) will see our learners continue to progress to Higher Education, both locally at University of Wales Trinity Saint David, and throughout the United Kingdom to pursue their chosen careers.

Equally impressive is the high grades achieved on our vocational programmes. These results, coupled with tremendous success in national and international skills competitions, will enable our vocational learners to progress to University, Apprenticeships, Higher Level Apprenticeships and future employment.

Overall, this excellent performance reflects the progression of students from the strong foundations laid in partner schools in Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and beyond. On behalf of the college, I wish them the very best for the future.’

Three Coleg Sir Gâr lecturers have received recognition for their dedication to teaching from Pearson National Teachers Awards.

Louise Fensome, lecturer in public services, Vicky Davies, performing arts and music technology lecturer and Lowri Bugg, performing arts and digital media lecturer all received a certificate of excellence for the Further Education Lecturer of the Year award.

The Pearson National Teaching Awards recognise and celebrate excellence in education and raises the profile of the teaching professional by highlighting the positive impact that teachers have in nurturing pupils, supporting parents and the wider community.

With a vision of becoming the centre of excellence for post-compulsory educational research in Wales, Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion are developing an inspiring and innovative teaching and learning culture, underpinned by staff research.

Louise delivers a level one introductory course in public services as well as a BTEC First and a BTEC level two in preparation for public services and has been teaching for 10 years.

She has a unique ability to engage lower level learners and support them through a journey that builds confidence, instils self-belief and progress.

Being flexible in her approach ensures that every learner has the opportunity to thrive and her experience allows her to pick-up on the most subtle of cues from learners which allows her to address any issues that may be affecting their progress.

She spends time fostering supportive relationships with parents, carers and external support agencies in a collaborative approach to ensure the best for her learners.

During her time at the college, Louise has worked with learners who have experienced emotional and psychological trauma and has used education to turn lives around which is a reflection of her non-judgmental, empathetic and kind nature.

In a new peer mentor role, Louise will share her experiences in supporting vulnerable learners and learners living in challenging environments.

Vicky Davies delivers a level two extended certificate in performing arts and is course leader for music technology where she teaches on the level three course.

It’s been a challenging year for delivering practical courses due to remote learning but Vicky ensured that all learners’ home situations were taken into consideration and recorded backing tracks for performing arts students to practice singing and ensured they could also record and upload their own work for assessment.

Vicky’s strength is her ability to track and monitor learners, meeting them one-to-one to set targets for them to aim high, not only in their main qualification but in literacy and numeracy.

She ensures that every student’s progress is tracked and introduces interventions to support their learning which includes building up positive relationships with learners and their home support network.

As part of the college’s Teaching and Learning team, Vicky is wholeheartedly committed to the development of teaching and learning in order to ensure that she is able to give her learners the best experience and stretch her own abilities at the same time.

Outside of the classroom, Vicky has been part of the college’s FE Action Research Programme which drives a culture of curiosity and research and has been exploring the role of enrichment in a time of online learning.

Leading the choir and working with performing arts and music technology students, Vicky has helped learners to create a series of online performances that have allowed her to offer enrichment opportunities whilst also sharing their work with the wider college community.

Lowri is course leader for a level two extended certificate in performing arts and for a level one course in digital media.

She has demonstrated a unique ability to nurture and keep lower-level learners engaged and supported through an unpredictable lockdown year.

Lowri communicates in a way that inspires confidence and self-belief in her students through her nurturing and approachable manner.

It is obvious to all staff and students that Lowri cares about each and every learner, and that she wants them to believe in their ability to achieve.

During each online class, whilst delivering the lesson, Lowri also has a google chat function open for any learner to send her a private message if they do not feel comfortable to post publicly.

Lowri’s background is in performing arts and media and she is constantly reflecting on her teaching, marrying it up with the needs and abilities of her learners.

She is known by her colleagues as “The Musical Theatre Queen” due to her knowledge of musicals and quest to disseminate her passion in this area to her peers and students.

She finds ways to motivate and engage learners, encouraging them to find their own areas of interest and supports them in their chosen path, whether it be dance, acting, singing, animation, cinematography or poster-making.

Lowri has one-to-one meetings with learners every week to check up on their progress and wellbeing and works effortlessly with other departments in the college to create a network of support if she feels they may be at risk of falling behind.

She has been approached on several occasions this year by students who are transitioning, and she has dealt with these situations in a kind, caring, supportive, non-judgemental and empathic way proving trust in her students to approach her on such an emotive subject.

Feature image: The Pearson trio (front, from left) Vicky Davies, Louise Fensome and Lowri Bugg with their managers who nominated them (back, from left) Claire MacKerras and Kim Nicholas

Agricultural engineering students at Coleg Sir Gâr have been discovering some cutting-edge technology presented by industry representatives from KRM and T Alun Jones & Son.

The aspiring engineers took part in a demonstration given by Chris Wear of KRM and Eirian Isaac of T Alun Jones & Son who were on campus to present the brand new KRM Bogballe M35W precision fertiliser spreader.

T Alun Jones & Son, the main New Holland dealer in the area supplied the brand-new New Holland T6 180 tractor presented at the college’s Gelli Aur campus.

The tractor and spreader are fully set-up for satnav and Teejet ISOBUS guidance technologies.

This event was organised as part of the college’s Innovation and Technology project and students were thrilled to be able to explore their technologies with specialist guidance.

The project works with the farming community raising awareness of new and available technologies to help farm efficiencies.

Rhys Jones, Innovation and Technology project technician and part-time agriculture lecturer said:

“The demonstrations helped students become accustomed to sector-leading technology available to the agricultural sector, which is now more than ever important with the whole of Wales having been designated a status of completely nitrogen vulnerable zone with new legislation passed in March of this year.

“It was wonderful to see students so captivated and fascinated in seeing and learning about this new machinery.”

KRM and Coleg Sir Gâr will be forging closer links in the future and the company have released the new equipment to the college for a short learning period.

Coleg Sir Gâr was created in 1985 and became a corporate institution in 1993. In 2013 it became Coleg Sir Gar Ltd, a company within the University of Wales: Trinity Saint David Group, and part of a regional Dual Sector University. The College has an annual turnover of over £35m and employs around 800 staff.

The College is based in South West Wales and has five main campuses at Llanelli (Graig), Carmarthen (Pibwrlwyd and Jobs Well), Ammanford and Llandeilo (Gelli Aur). The College is also home to Carmarthen School of Art which has its origins dating back to 1854.

The foundation course at Coleg Sir Gâr is aimed at those returning to education, those who may require some additional support with study or their personal life and to those who have not yet decided on a vocational pathway.

It has given many people that extra support to get them further in life including James Doward who didn’t get the best grades at school but since then he has worked his way up the educational ladder and has now been offered a conditional offer from Cardiff University.

We asked James about his experience:

The foundation course equipped me with a lot of things that helped me look to the future, for example the staff and tutors helped me with building my confidence with coursework and attending college as I did not have the best grades and attendance in school.

Not having good grades and having tutors that are always willing to help are the reasons why I chose the foundation course. 

Over the four years that I have been in college I have enjoyed every moment of it as it’s truly been one of the best experiences of my life.

I do recommend that people go to college as the course provides challenges that don’t result in stress and they really make the coursework enjoyable and interesting. As I said before my confidence has grown a lot and I have met and become friends with a lot of people in my course and outside of my course.

The course I want to study at university is computer games design and development which will take four years and is mainly about making games for platforms like PCs, consoles and mobiles. Cardiff Metropolitan was for me, the best fit for the type of work I wanted to do and so I’m pleased to have been given a conditional offer.

My experience over the four years that I have been in college have been some of the best times of my life, from the friends I have made and the help and support I had from the tutors, they have all helped me achieve my goals such as having the ability and opportunity to go to university and maybe one day become a games developer. 

After the foundation course, James proved that he had the ability to climb his way up to level two and then to level three where on successful completion, he was able to apply to study at university. 

Visit: Coleg Sir Gâr

Coleg Ceredigion’s furniture department once again exhibited their work at Cardigan’s Corn Exchange gallery at the Guildhall for their end of year exhibition.

Entitled Furniture Show 2021, the exhibition is always an opportunity for the furniture students to showcase the skills that they’ve learned during their time at the college and features various pieces of work including tables, cabinets, a range of furniture as well as restoration projects.

Work on display included pieces created by the level two and level three students as well as those who left the college last year, who unfortunately missed out on the opportunity to display their work at last year’s planned exhibition, which was cancelled due to Covid19.

According to lecture Chloe Reynolds:

“We are pleased to present the work of our hardworking students in what has been for us all a very challenging year.

“Our students have remained positive and still managed to produce some excellent results despite the restrictions.

“Having to abandon plans for last year’s exhibition was disappointing, as it is one of the highlights of the year for the students to be able to share their work with the public, so it’s great to be able to return to the Guildhall this year.”

This year though Chloe Reynolds has photographed all the pieces to create a lasting archive of work.

These images will be available to view online as part of a virtual exhibition in collaboration with Carmarthen School of Art.

The exhibition will be available on the Coleg Ceredigion website from June 25 at 1pm until the end of the summer.

At Coleg Ceredigion we work hard to ensure that your time spent with us is exciting, fun and most importantly, provides you with the knowledge, opportunities and transferrable life skills that enable you to progress to higher levels of learning or employment.

Spanning the regions of Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion, the College offers a wide range of Further Education, Higher Education, Work Based Learning and commercial courses from Entry level through to Degree level, in a range of academic and vocational disciplines.

The College is part of a dual sector partnership with the University of Wales Trinity Saint David and provides bilingual progression pathways for those learners who want to stay locally to study, as well as working with local schools to provide vocational provision for 14-16 year old pupils on a weekly basis.

Coleg Sir Gâr is preparing to launch its brand-new A-level programme called Sir Gâr 6 and is inviting the public to find out more at its Sir Gâr 6 virtual open evening in June.

The programme, which represents a college sixth form, includes More Able and Talented (MAT) groups and provides 32 A-level courses at the college’s Graig campus in Llanelli, many of which are not offered as GCSE subjects.

As part of the Seren network, MAT students take part in academically-led sessions working with PhD students in subjects such as how genetics plays a part in patient treatment.

With an already impressive set of continuous A-level results and a highly supportive learning environment, the college’s Sir Gâr 6 is regarded as a high achieving post-16 academic centre for Carmarthenshire.

In 2020 this A-level programme was rated excellent in terms of Value Added, which is when a student achieves a grade that is more than expected, and rated in the top 10% across the UK. It also achieved a 100% pass rate of A* to E grades in 2021.

The ethos of the Sir Gâr 6 team is that every student deserves an excellent education, therefore staff provide challenges as well as support to ensure that every student achieves their very best.

Learners receive top-class tuition and outstanding experiences where positive relationships between families and teachers are built to provide care and support and to develop personal and academic resilience.

The college also offers practical support such as providing all chemistry, maths, computing and physics students with additional maths lessons which are built into weekly timetables.

Opportunities are also provided to improve GCSE grades and these sessions are also built into learner timetables.

During the first few weeks of starting college, there is flexibility to change A-level subjects which can be arranged with staff.

Standard entry requirements for A-levels at Sir Gâr 6 are six GCSEs at grades A* – C, including maths and English although specific entry requirements for each subject, will be detailed with the individual course details.

Orla Williams who heads A-level and Access courses at Coleg Sir Gâr said:

“At Sir Gâr 6 we will build on your talent with bespoke tutorial groups for our More Able and Talented (MAT) learners, Sports Academy students, Skills Challenge Certificate (SCC) groups and Welsh speaking learners.

“Our pastoral teams work with you to help you succeed in your subjects and encourage you to take advantage of the many enrichment opportunities available such as the Ambassador Scholarship Programme, Duke of Edinburgh, and international study through the Turing Scheme and Operation Wallacea.

“We look forward to helping you choose the subjects that best suit you at our open evening.”

Dr Andrew Cornish, Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion principal added:

“Achieving excellence and inspiring learners is at the very heart of Sir Gâr 6.

“These fundamental principles are driven by committed, knowledgeable and experienced staff who do their very best to ensure that all learners reach their full potential.

“Coleg Sir Gâr is a caring institution, helping to shape and support learners to strive for what they want to be and what they want to achieve in their lives.

Coleg Sir Gâr awarded Welsh Government funding for an agricultural project set to transform the future of slurry management in Wales

Coleg Sir Gâr is the only further education college in Wales to be awarded SMART Expertise funding.

Part funded by the European Regional development fund, SMART Expertise offers financial support to innovative collaborative projects that require a range of expertise to solve industry problems.

The brand-new Tywi Farm Nutrient Partnership will build on the success achieved by the college’s existing slurry management project, Prosiectslyri Project, which developed a dewatering and purification slurry management system in partnership with Power & Water.

Coleg Sir Gâr’s Agriculture Research Centre will be the leading partner of the project and based at its Gelli Aur campus which is the agricultural hub of the college.

This new project will work with existing partners and a significant number of new partners who will co-fund the research and development to adopt innovative processes and precision agriculture techniques using the very latest technology to utilise treated slurry.

New legislation, the water directive and higher expectations mean that environmental standards need to improve and new management techniques need to be implemented.

John Owen, project manager at Coleg Sir Gâr said:

“We are delighted to launch this new and exciting project and to develop the work already undertaken by Prosiectslyri Project.

“I am also thrilled that we are the first further education college to have also been successful in receiving SMART Expertise funding.

“This project will offer a testbed to create proven nutrient management solutions, bringing a range of expertise in a collaborative project to drive forward innovative environmental solutions.

“The aim will be to better utilise farm nutrients by developing and commercialising appropriate sustainable farming nutrient management practices using new and advanced technology.”

There are currently around 1,609 dairy herds in Wales which could all potentially benefit from the outcomes of this project as well as the environment impact.

The Education Minister, Kirsty Williams, said:

“I’m really pleased to support this project by Coleg Sir Gâr, which will bring benefits to the college, local farmers and to the environment.

“Our SMART support is helping create new innovations across a range of sectors, including agriculture, so congratulations to Coleg Sir Gâr for becoming the first FE college to benefit from SMART expertise funding.”

Visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk 

Coleg Sir Gâr is celebrating a 20-year partnership with the Scarlets who together, have developed international rugby players such as Gareth Davies and Samson Lee.

The college rugby academy was launched in the summer of 2000 and its main aim was to ensure that young players received support to become players and people of quality.

International players who have benefited from the college and Scarlets academies include Adam Jones, Aled Davies, Lou Reed, Gavin Evans, Scott Williams, Rob McCusker, Samson Lee, Adam Warren, Gareth Davies and Josh Adams.

From the current Scarlets squad, 18 are former Coleg Sir Gâr students and academy players.

In total, Coleg Sir Gâr’s rugby academy has produced 38 players for the Scarlets first team, 11 senior Welsh internationals and 13 Wales sevens players including current captain Luke Treharne.

Coleg Sir Gâr was the first education and training centre in its region to be given the Scarlets Academy Centre of Excellence status. The club also developed a process of accreditation for other schools and colleges in the region based on Coleg Sir Gâr’s model.

Coleg Sir Gâr’s academy ethos at the college is achieved by providing the best resources and professional support which includes dedicated embedded academy sessions within student timetables.

Players can also access professional support such as sports analysis, nutrition and specialist coaching.

Wales 7s captain Luke Treharne is also a former Scarlets academy player who received straight A grades at college and progressed to become a doctor alongside his rugby career.

Luke Treharne said:

“Having played rugby and studied around the world, I still look back on my time at Coleg Sir Gâr as some of my happiest memories.

“Everything, from the experience playing rugby to the standard of teaching and the people I met along the way was fantastic.”

Behind the sporting talent are highly experienced college coaches including Euros Evans, Lee Tregoning, Matthew Williams as well as Scarlets conditioning coach Josh Rowlands and Scarlets physiotherapist Owain Binding.

Today, the rugby academy recognises the importance of ensuring young players have a secondary career to support them at the end of their professional playing career.

Jon Daniels, director of Scarlets rugby said:

“Since its inception in August 2000 the Coleg Sir Gâr and Scarlets Academy relationship has been, and still is, a blueprint which many try to emulate.

“With a focus on the holistic development of the individual, the partnership has developed numerous players and coaches who have gone on to have successful careers both in rugby and in other fields.

“For us, the partnership with Coleg Sir Gâr has been a key strategic pillar in our renowned development pathway and we hope as we enter the third decade of the partnership it will continue to go from strength to strength.”

Euros Evans, director of Coleg Sir Gâr’s rugby academy said:

“Selecting future Scarlets players at the age of 16 is a very difficult task, we also work closely with the Scarlets Academy to support the players who have just missed out on Scarlets Academy selection.

“The college’s academy provides these players with the support and guidance they need to achieve their full potential.

“The latest example of this is current Welsh international Josh Adams, who was selected by the Scarlets Academy after two successful years with us.”

Visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

Sarah Jane Perry was encouraged to study a HNC in construction management and technology by her manager, who had recently completed the degree course at Coleg Sir Gâr.

As a mature student, she was apprehensive but with small classes and supportive peers and staff, Sarah Jane was on the right path.

“I had made a career change and the subject was still relatively new to me and I feared that may not be taken seriously as a woman in the industry,” said Sarah Jane.

“The classes were intimate, making it easy to build relationships with my peers and lecturers and the content has strengthened my understanding of practices in the workplace.”

During the course, Sarah Jane was expecting her first child but decided to stay on to complete her degree as she didn’t want to delay gaining her qualification. 

Helen Jeffrey, lecturer in construction management said:

“Sarah Jane was managing childcare of her new baby  alongside completing her academic work and we felt it was only right that we should support her as much as possible.

“As we use Google classroom, every session was available for Sarah Jane to access remotely and we kept in regular contact to go over any content. I let Sarah Jane know my timetable so she could call in for a face to face meeting when I was free if she needed to.

“More recently, as we changed to online delivery due to the Covid-19 lockdown, Sarah Jane has been able to join us for lessons as normal – or as childcare has allowed!

“We also record the sessions and post videos on Google classroom for her to watch when she has time.”   

Sarah Jane Perry added:

“I’ve just completed the penultimate year of my BSc, had my first baby and my tutor has supported me throughout the whole process.”

Visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

A Coleg Sir Gâr counselling degree student who undertook a career change has achieved 100 percent attendance despite giving birth to her daughter, Astrid.

Jennifer Cavill-Frysol was already qualified with a joint honours degree as well as an MA in Celtic studies, but working in administration roles, she was feeling unfulfilled.

“I remember being told off by an employer for spending too much time talking to and helping clients,” said Jennifer. “That planted a seed in my mind.”

She completed an introduction to counselling course and from that, Jennifer knew she wanted to move towards a supportive career role.

Jennifer added:

“My experience on the course so far has been so positive.

“Our tutor really is wonderful, both a talented tutor and caring and concerned with our growth academically and emotionally.

“The students in my class are from varied backgrounds and careers and this makes the course even more colourful.”

With the onset of Covid-19, Jennifer says that her now online classes are giving her structure to the week and that what she’s learnt on the course is also helping her support herself and her family during challenging times.

Jennifer achieved 100 percent attendance on her course, despite expecting her daughter’s birth.

“I guess I had it in my mind that I was going to end up having a couple of weeks off after I had Astrid and I wanted a buffer of attendance so I wouldn’t be short – I guess I overachieved,” she said.

Undertaking a BA honours degree in counselling at the college’s Ammanford campus, Jennifer describes the course as fostering a supportive atmosphere.

Visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

Coleg Sir Gâr was created in 1985 and became a corporate institution in 1993. In 2013 it became Coleg Sir Gar Ltd, a company within the University of Wales: Trinity Saint David Group, and part of a regional Dual Sector University. The College has an annual turnover of over £35m and employs around 800 staff.

The College is based in South West Wales and has five main campuses at Llanelli (Graig), Carmarthen (Pibwrlwyd and Jobs Well), Ammanford and Llandeilo (Gelli Aur). The College is also home to Carmarthen School of Art which has its origins dating back to 1854.

The level of support for carers at Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion is one of the driving forces of the colleges’ learner support teams.

As a group of highly skilled, nurturing and experienced staff who support students over seven campuses, supporting Carers Week was paramount to this caring team who put in place a week’s worth of celebrations.

Carers Week is an annual campaign to raise awareness of caring, highlight the challenges unpaid carers face and recognise the contribution they make to families and communities throughout the UK. 

Both colleges provide support for many students and staff who have caring responsibilities in addition to their studies and employment.

Carers Week at the colleges included an online celebration which included self portraits of staff and students expressing thoughts such as loneliness and appreciation, a quiz to highlight what a caring role involves, a video montage of staff and students clapping for carers.

 A significant amount of resource was also supplied including Investors in Carers Scheme, County Carers Information Service, information for young adult carers, carer statistics including the 25 percent of students who don’t inform their colleges of their circumstances, advice for carers during Covid19 and resources designed to support the colleges learner support tutorial programme.

Matthew Morgan, learner support mentor coordinator at Coleg Sir Gâr said:

Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion have taken pride in achieving the Investors in Carers Bronze Award and have already taken steps towards the silver award with allocated care leads being provided across all campuses.

The colleges also run a young carers group which student Charlie Kinchington heads, he said:

Young carers from local schools have, in recent times, been welcomed into college where Carmarthenshire Young Adult Carers (YAC) offered support and information, to show that they will be supported as students.

Lecturer Suzanne Mountfield-Rees added:

Visit: Coleg Sir Gar and Coleg Ceredigion

Five groups of entrepreneurial students from across Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire have won a competition which aims to nurture West Wales’ young business talent in the regions’ thriving industries.

In its inaugural year, the Regional Enterprise Competition challenged students from Coleg Sir Gâr, Coleg Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire College to pitch a business idea to a group of judges, as individuals or in groups in one of five categories – Tourism, Food, Retail, Care or the Creative Industries. The sectors were chosen as they represent the most prevalent industries across Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion.

The competition was organised by Big Ideas Wales, Enterprise Hub, Coleg Sir Gar, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire College. Big Ideas Wales is part of the Business Wales service and funded by the European Regional Development Fund through the Welsh Government.

The Welsh Government is committed to developing an entrepreneurial culture in Wales, to inspire young people aged between 5 and 25 to develop entrepreneurial skills and start a business. Big Ideas Wales raises aspirations and supports young people’s ambitions for business.

Students from Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion were named winners in three categories, firstly picking up the retail award for an online shopping site called Clover Yard which aims to champion independent clothing brands.

Another group of students from the college were named winners of the care award for their business idea The Opal Project, environmentally friendly bracelets made from hemp and personalised with calming lavender smells, photos or opal crystals, with the aim of helping those suffering with mental health problems feel calm.

Coleg Sir Gâr student Davey Hampton picked up the top prize for the tourism category for an online service called Mobility, which provides the mobility accessibility information of businesses in Carmarthenshire for the public to check before visiting somewhere.

Coleg Ceredigion student Amy Chapman was named winner of the creative industries category for her business idea Resinate, which recycles the resin waste product formed when manufacturing surf boards into vibrant art and jewellery, meaning it won’t end up in landfill.

Finally, students from Pembrokeshire College picked up the food award for their business Small World, a café which specialises in serving the popular Malaysian drink bubble tea. The idea behind the business is to bring flavours from around the world to Pembrokeshire.

The winning students beat nearly 30 applicants to the top prize, taking home £150 each. To reach the final, each entrant submitted a written or video pitch bringing their business idea to life. As part of the competition process, every student was also offered the opportunity to attend business planning workshops to learn a variety of skills to help them develop their business ideas.

Held at Yr Egin in Carmarthen, the competition final included a talk from Marc Griffiths, a Big Ideas Wales role model and owner of StiwdioBox, a bilingual audio service aimed at motivating audiences through the use of the latest media technologies.

Becky Pask, entrepreneurship and employability co-ordinator at Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion, said:

“This competition aims to nurture our entrepreneurs and offer them not only financial support but continued business support to help them flourish. I was thrilled with all the business ideas we received, their passion and drive is infectious. I would like to thank all our partners and sponsors for their continued support. Working in collaboration is central to transforming and developing economic development in the region and across Wales.”

Each category in the Regional Enterprise Competition was sponsored by different businesses across Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire. These were StiwdioBox in the Creative Industries category, Quay West Caravan Sales for the Tourism category, Carmarthenshire County Council for the Care category, St Catherine’s Walk in the Retail category, and the Food category was sponsored by Food Centre Wales.

A project has been launched in Carmarthenshire which will inspire and support aspiring entrepreneurs living in rural areas within the county.

Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion launched the Springboard project, a rural enterprise initiative funded by Welsh Government to help people access tailored skills, knowledge and experience to start their own business.

The Springboard project will be travelling across the county delivering 10 roadshows for anyone who has a business idea. Led by Coleg Sir Gar, the project works in partnership with some of the county’s successful businesses including Wrights Emporium and Coal Town Coffee. Launched at Coal Town Coffee in Ammanford, the £100k project is tailored to tackle the challenges faced by those in rural areas to access entrepreneurship training as well as higher level fully-funded skills tailored to each individual.

The first roadshow starts at Wright’s Emporium on Tuesday January 21 and workshops will include opportunities to learn from entrepreneurs in the food, drink, construction and retail sectors who will explain the challenges faced in opening small businesses in rural areas. 

Simon Wright who runs Wright’s Food Emporium in Llanarthne is leading the workshops. The restaurateur, food writer, broadcaster and consultant has run award-winning businesses in Carmarthenshire for 30 years. He is a former editor of the AA Restaurant Guide, he has presented food programmes for BBC TV, radio and Channel 4 and is the author of two books about the restaurant trade, food and farming.

ColegauCymru announced the £300k funding for the further education sector from the Welsh Government’s EU Transition Fund. Funding will support three distinct projects that address the varied and changing needs of communities in Wales and each project will enable all colleges in Wales to learn and share from the pilots and offer new routes into re-skilling, training and continuation in vocational education.

Andrew Cornish, Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion principal said:

“Colleges are working closely with the Welsh Government and Regional Skills Partnerships to drive high levels of skills development though bespoke, high level and new training programmes which aim to support learners engaged on the Springboard project.

“This will ensure that the future workforce of Wales has the skills to impact directly on businesses, their local regions and the economy of Wales.

“Coleg Sir Gâr will be placing itself at the heart of our communities to offer flexible solutions in its approach to education, training and entrepreneurship.”

Kirsty Williams, Minister for Education, said:

“Supporting our rural economy is very important to me, so I’m pleased to see the Welsh Government’s £50 million EU Transition Fund being used to tap into the talent we have in our smallercommunities across Wales. 

“This programme is an example of how our Welsh colleges can support our fledgling small businesses and entrepreneurs of today to become the industry titans of tomorrow.”  

Upcoming workshops >>

To find out more, contact the project team on 01554 748370 or Stuart.Mathias@colegsirgar.ac.uk.

Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion have received a royal commendation for their innovative approach to staff development and training with a Princess Royal Training Award.

The award is presented for institutions and companies that implement outstanding training and development programs and the college is one of 47 other businesses including worldwide renowned healthcare giants Glaxo Smithcline, construction conglomerate Bouygues, steel giants TATA, the Coop, Royal Navy and Wilko, to receive an award this year.

The colleges have been recognised for their sector-leading Teaching, Learning and Staff Development Strategy, which empowers teaching staff to take ownership of their personal and professional development leading to changes in practice that has real impact in the classroom. Driven by a self-evaluation of current practice, a programme of staff action research and the personal interests of individual staff, the strategy and approach has led to greater motivation amongst staff, inspiring improvements in professional practice and the raising of standards in teaching and learning.

Furthermore, an Excellence Pathways programme has been developed which aims to celebrate success in teaching and learning and to share expertise through a learning development and mentoring team, which ensures that best practice is shared in an annual interactive conference.

Implementation of the programme has resulted in self and peer assessments which has helped provide tailored training and a programme that stretches and challenges staff, supported by appointed mentors.

With teaching as its primary workforce, Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion, which are two brands within one college, aim to provide meaningful and motivational training to its 420 teaching staff across two counties.

The Princess Royal Training Awards are delivered by the City & Guilds Group, to highlight the value of training and employee development and celebrate examples of best practice. Applications are assessed against three Hallmarks of Excellence by the Princess Royal Training Awards Commission, which comprised of HRH The Princess Royal and seven leading figures in the business and training community.

Amanda Daniels, assistant principal for curriculum and quality at the colleges has been the driving force behind the initiative. She said:

“Many institutions fulfil the annual requirement of 30 hours continuous professional development by providing large scale compulsory training events and whilst this is time efficient, it’s not always effective due to its lack of personalisation.

“Our model empowers all teachers to reflect on their teaching, aided by an online self-assessment and evaluation tool to enable them to access individualised training.”

An online interactive repository has been built by the colleges to provide staff with an innovative solution to provide support and development across its seven campuses. The use of online classrooms to create digital learning communities over the two counties has also been shared as excellent practice with other further and higher education providers.

Amanda Daniels added:

“This model is part of an institutional journey to change culture rather than an end destination and its ethos has already seen an improvement in learner outcomes.”

Learner surveys indicate that 90% of all students rate teaching and learning as good and excellent.

The initiative is supported by teaching and learning manager Bryony Evett-Hackfort, whose modern approach to learning with an open-minded philosophy, is supporting individuals’ curiosity and research. She added:

“We believe in the importance of close to practice research and the incredible and exciting impact that a culture of curiosity can have on our staff and learners.” 

Dr Andrew Cornish, CEO and Principal of Coleg Sir Gar and Coleg Ceredigion stated:

“Our purpose as an institution is to inspire learners, to fulfil their potential and achieve excellence.

“To do this, I believe we must strive for excellence in teaching and learning – it is at the very heart of what we do.

“The first step is inspiring our staff to be the very best they can be and I am delighted and so proud that this college has been recognised for the work it does to enable staff to reach the highest levels of practice.

“The staff are the college’s greatest asset and I am so pleased for them that this award also recognises the impact of the changes that they have made in their practice to benefit learners.”

Chris Jones, Chief Executive of the City & Guilds Group said:

“The work that HR and L&D teams do to train, upskill and reskill teams is critical; helping individuals to reach their potential and find meaningful employment, while supporting businesses in developing the skills for success, and ultimately producing the productive workforce we so urgently need. The organisations we recognise today all provide compelling evidence that proves the value that comes from investing in people.”

Visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

A collaborative project between Coleg Sir Gâr and Power & Water has drawn interest from Lesley Griffiths, Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs.

The minister recently visited project staff at Coleg Sir Gâr’s Gelli Aur campus, where they’re working to reduce the environmental impact of farm waste.

With new agricultural regulations soon to be implemented in Wales, the minister was keen to learn about developments within Prosiectslyri Project, a ground-breaking initiative to address slurry management.

The project, funded by Welsh Government and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, has developed a specialist dewatering and purification system in response to the increasing volumes of slurry and deteriorating water quality in rivers.

This specialist partnership between Coleg Sir Gâr and Swansea-based company Power & Water brings together agricultural and scientific expertise resulting in a slurry management solution using Soneco® which is a method of sono-electrochemistry which reduces water content of nutrients by 80% and increases nutrient concentration allowing the by-product to be recycled as fertiliser.

Prosiectslyri Project has made significant developments and is achieving its project goals but there is room for further investigation. 

Project staff are interested in exploring solutions to destroy pathogenic bacteria to reduce disease in cattle from pasture spread. They are also keen to investigate reducing capital expenditure by introducing constructed wetlands as well as looking at better destruction of weed seed in the current separation process through composting and using heat treatment and bio-digesters.

As a result of the project, Power & Water are developing farm-based treatment units based on herd size.

John Owen, project manager said:

“We were thrilled to welcome the minister as we feel we’re developing a tangible environmental solution for farms of all sizes.

“Our long-term vision would be for us to create a centre for best environmental practice here at Gelli Aur.”

Gareth Morgan, Power & Water CEO added:

“Power & Water are overwhelmed with the performance of this collaborative project which has massive environmental benefits for Wales and the rest of the World.

“The outputs would not have been achieved without this partnership and the support of suppliers and stakeholders.”

Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs, Lesley Griffiths, said: 

“I was pleased to visit Gelli Aur to hear more about the slurry project which aims to tackle the very real issue of agricultural pollution head on. 

“I have proposed regulations to be introduced across the whole of Wales in January to help tackle the issue. 

“The project complements the aims of the proposed regulations and it has the potential to contribute significantly to the protection of water quality whilst helping the industry to address the challenges it faces in reducing pollution.”

World Skills Kazan took place in Russia last month (August) attracting 1,300 Competitors from more than 60 countries.

A Coleg Sir Gâr apprentice has achieved global recognition as she won a bronze medal for hairdressing at World Skills, Kazan, 2019.

Phoebe McLavy, 20, from Carmarthen, travelled to Russia to compete in the global skills Olympics as part of Team UK, representing Great Britain within her skills sector.

Training to be selected for World Skills Team UK and being part of the squad is an intensive and rigorous process which prepares participants for world-class competition.

Phoebe’s medal was one of four medals won by Team UK this year.

She has been supported by college tutor Adrienne Chick, her employer Morgan Edward salon in Carmarthen, World Skills UK and the Welsh Government funded project, Inspiring Skills Excellence in Wales.

Following the competition and award ceremony, Phoebe told World Skills UK:

“It feels amazing and it’s been a long journey it feels wonderful to say that I have this medal to represent all the hard work that’s gone into this success.”

Edward Rees, owner at Morgan Edward has supported Phoebe through her competition journey and providing training at his salon. He said:

“Phoebe is a highly qualified and talented member of the World Skills UK squad and as a salon we have committed time and energy into her development and now have an asset in Phoebe and I would urge other employers to guide their staff down this exciting career path.”

Sarah Hopkins, director of recruitment and progression at Coleg Sir Gâr said:

“The college is delighted at Phoebe’s success, she’s worked tremendously hard.

“We think she is an inspiration to her skills sector as well as to others aspiring to be the best they can be.

“She’s a true role model.”

But Phoebe’s achievements do not stop there Apprenticeship Awards Cymru where Apprentices are recognised with awards for three different levels of achievement, Phobe is a finalist as Foundation Apprentice of the Year and will know whether she has won at the Awards ceremony International Convention Centre Cardiff on October 24^th.

All good wishes go to Phoebe both at future World skills competitions but also the Apprenticeship Awards.

To find out more about courses and learning opportunities at Coleg Sir Gâr go to colegsirgar.ac.uk

Coleg Sir Gâr’s rugby squad has returned from London as the Rosslyn Park National School Sevens plate winners.

The U18s team finished the tournament beating Dean Close School Boys U18s with a winning score of 26-7.

Coleg Sir Gâr was the only Welsh squad to make it to day two of the tournament where they played nine games in total, competing against colleges such as Hurstpierpoint, Bishop Burton and Warwick School Boys who they beat 32-19 in the semi-final.

Euros Evans, director of rugby at Coleg Sir Gâr said:

“Rosslyn Park is the pinnacle of schoolboy rugby sevens and to come away with a trophy is just reward for all the hard work the players have put in during the year.

“The whole teamed pulled together with captain Sam Williams leading from the front and Liam Cox giving a consistent performance throughout.”

Following three years of development, on August 1st 2013 Coleg Sir Gar was formally dissolved as a Further Education Institution and a new entity created, Coleg Sir Gar, a limited company with charitable status.

This new entity was designated for the purpose of delivering further and higher education. Simultaneously, in conjunction with the University of Wales Trinity Saint David a new Group structure was created with Coleg Sir Gar entering the group as a wholly owned subsidiary. In doing so a sustainable future is ensured for the college and more importantly greater opportunities for our learners.

Coleg Sir Gar as based across 5 campuses across Carmarthenshire many purpose built to suit the studies delivered at that centre.
Tel: 01554748179
Web: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk
Email: admissions@colegsirgar.ac.uk

A Coleg Sir Gâr student from Llanelli has won a gold award for his fitness instructing skills at a Welsh competition final.

Ben Thomas, 21, competed in a WorldSkills UK, Skills Competition Wales event, which tested his skills against participants from seven other colleges. With strict judging standards, Ben, who is studying a level two fitness instructor course at Coleg Sir Gâr, carried out the competition brief professionally, planning a strength based resistance session as well as planning and delivering a group circuit session for mixed abilities including cardiovascular and muscle endurance activities.

Thrilled to win gold, Ben Thomas said:

“I’ve been inspired by my personal trainer Zac Hearne, who helped me lose three stone.

“I’ve got a background of anxiety and working with my personal trainer and seeing such results really improved my mental health and I hope that in future, I’ll be able to inspire clients in the same way. “To be able to represent the college in a discipline I have so much passion for is a privilege.”

Skills Competitions Wales is supported by Welsh Government.

Shaping new talent

Our professionally fitted Welsh Fitness Suite is a free facility that is open to students, staff and partner school staff. It has been designed specifically to accommodate those who regularly use the gym and for novices who want to start their fitness journey. The suite includes free weights, running and rowing machines and cross trainers, as well as resistance training machines. All you need to develop your fitness and tone your muscles.

For further information and book your induction session please contact: Jonathan.garcia@colegsirgar.ac.uk Tel: 01554 748147

5×30 Programme

The health and well-being of our learners is a high priority at Coleg Sir Gar. The 5×30 programme has been designed to provide a wide range of activities to get our students more active. The important aspect of the programme is that it is designed by you, the students, so the activities are the things that you want to do. Whether it is dodge ball, Couch to 5k, Welsh fitness sessions in our Fitness Suite, street dance, table tennis or yoga – the choice is yours and the 5×30 team will work hard to try to accommodate your suggestions. 5×30 is about having fun, it does not need to be competitive, you don’t even need to wear special kit and it’s all free.

Whichever campus you are on the 5×30 team are keen to hear what activities you would like to take part in.  Ask your tutor for more information or contact the 5×30 team by emailing natalie.allen@colegsirgar.ac.uk

A Coleg Sir Gâr fashion graduate is travelling to India to teach garment technology skills such as pattern cutting, grading and product development to a workforce employed by an ethical and sustainable company to help fight the challenges of unethical trading.

Nicola Ridd-Davies from Swansea is creative director of Visible Clothing, a fair trade factory in Dharmashala, India, employing 35 workers. She is also self-employed and runs her own business, The Little Stitchery, teaching pattern cutting and dressmaking and providing technical design support to British designers.

Nicola, a fashion graduate and former garment technologist and pattern cutter for Welsh brand TOAST, is passionate about fair trade.

“I’m helping to broaden the technical skills of the workforce to bridge the gap between design and production,” she said. “Their construction skills are absolutely fantastic and there is a lot of potential there, so it would be great to help them be more sustainable as a business and increase their client base and product ranges.”

Workers at the factory receive fair salaries in a comfortable, happy environment, where careers and skills growth is nurtured and each person is encouraged to contribute ideas for the progression of the company.

Paula Phillips, head of Coleg Sir Gâr’s Carmarthen School of Art said:

“We’re thrilled that Nicola is doing so well and is supporting fair trade in her work.

“She was an exceptional degree student who later returned to work with us in the fashion department and we all wish her the very best in India.”

Within Wales Coleg Sir Gar continue to be the lead college for success and participation in Skills Competitions. Managing on behalf of the Welsh Government the Skills Competitions Wales.

Public services students at Coleg Sir Gâr have won the RAF Recruiting Challenge, beating nine other establishments including four military colleges.

The event was held at RAF Wittering and around 100 students from across the UK took part in a series of physical and mental challenges designed for those studying defence and public services.
The competition, devised by Squadron Leader Tamzin Keenlyside, included a warm-up with Wittering’s physical education instructors, a one and a half mile run and a fitness and drill test before learning about professions within the Royal Air Force and learning about military aviation.

Royal Air Force Wittering is home to the RAF A4 Force, the deployable engineering and logistics squadrons which support UK air operations across the world. The students met trainee pilots from 16 Squadron, drivers from 2 Mechanical Transport Squadron and technicians from 5131 Bomb Disposal Squadron.

RAF Police dogs, drill training, a presentation on an RAF trade, a turn on the digital shooting range and an RAF knowledge test made up the rest of the day.

Glyn Price, Coleg Sir Gâr public services lecturer said:

“I was delighted when it was announced that our team had won, it’s absolutely amazing and I couldn’t be any prouder of the guys, watching them grow and bond as a team has been fantastic.”

Group Captain William Dole is the in charge of RAF Recruiting & Selection. He added:

“Competition through sport is a fundamental component of life in the RAF and teamwork is the very platform on which we operate and achieve. These qualities have been evident in every activity and event today and the teams have achieved an excellent level of accomplishment.”

To find out more about Coleg Sir Gar within the Welsh Country website visit: welshcountry.co.uk/coleg-sir-gar

 To find out more about Coleg Sir Gar visit their website: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk/en/about-coleg-sir-gar

Simon Nehan – a seasoned British top actor with an impressive repertoire for TV and stage work joins Coleg Sir Gâr creative industries team.

From treading the boards on Broadway to the red carpet on Leicester Square, Simon Thomas, known in the acting business as Simon Nehan, is looking forward to his future teaching role following recent filming on Netflix’s The Crown. His career has taken him as far as Madrid, Budapest, Paris and New York and as a former Coedcae pupil armed with years of experience, Simon is keen to inspire local students sharing his experiences of working with actors such as Zac Effron, Eddie Marsan and Oscar-winning Eddie Redmayne.

Simon’s many acting roles have included Merlin and Made in Dagenham but the role he is most proud of is in the BBC’s adaptation of Birdsong, a two-part British TV drama based on Sebastian Faulks’s war novel.

“Watching good actors at work is always a great learning curve,” said Simon. “It was a big production by the BBC with great writing, great performers and a great production team, plus it involved 10 weeks of filming in Budapest.”

Comparing theatre work to television, some roles are more demanding than others and Simon says that stage work is the most demanding.

“I was offered a part in Sarah Kane’s Blasted which was a highly controversial and graphic play which in its first production, drew fierce criticism from the press as well as theatre protests,” he said. “It uses themes of ethnic cleansing, torture, rape and genocide based on the 1990s Bosnian war, so to recreate scenes like this was mentally challenging.”

Simon’s other work includes Casualty, Holby City and even a panto with Katie Price and he says he’s been lucky finding work but not all auditions are set in stone.

“You need to be driven and realise that not every audition will go your way,” he said. “There is an element of luck involved but you need to work at it and you need to be on time; you can lose a part because your eyes aren’t the right colour but don’t lose the part because someone has done more work than you on the script.”

Always drawn to the idea of teaching, Simon feels he has the experience to share with a new generation of aspiring performers and can relate to students as he also studied a BTEC diploma before attending Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff.

“Acting is a craft,” he added. “Getting students to ask the right questions before approaching a role and encouraging them to take risks and express themselves is vital. I tell the students I’m one of them, I’m from Llanelli, I’m a steelworker’s son and if I can do it, so can they.”

To find out more about Coleg Sir Gar within the Welsh Country website visit: welshcountry.co.uk/coleg-sir-gar

To find out more about Coleg Sir Gar visit their website: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk/en/about-coleg-sir-gar

Slurry management is a ground-breaking Carmarthenshire-based project and is developing a system which has launched a working prototype designed to benefit all farms of any size.

Prosiectslyri Project is a Welsh Government funded project run in partnership with Coleg Sir Gâr and Swansea-based company, Power and Water.

The project is developing a cost-effective slurry dewatering and water purification system in response to the increasing volumes of slurry and deteriorating water quality in rivers due to the intensification of dairy farming.

Due to significant interest from the industry, the project held its first open day on August 31 at Coleg Sir Gâr’s agricultural campus in Gelli Aur where the processing unit has been installed using the expertise of Power & Water, which specialises in sono-electrochemical water treatment. If successful, the system will be a world’s first in agriculture.

Project staff are resolute that the system should be suitable for every farm, regardless of size.

“If this process isn’t suitable for all farmers, it won’t make a difference to water quality,” said project manager John Owen. “Technology hasn’t really moved forward within the industry to manage the amount of slurry we’re producing and although this technology has always existed, it has never been applied to the agricultural industry until now.”

The event, which was co-hosted by Farming Connect, attracted around 300 delegates consisting of farmers and industry representatives who were given insights into the science, analysis and effects of nutrient management.

Industry experts gave presentations about slurry storage and management, Welsh Water and Natural Resources Wales explained their role in the process including how contaminated water affects the environment and their ability to protect public health and wildlife.

Project manager John Owen added:

“This project will continually undergo independent analysis by Natural Resources Wales and processed water will comply to licence regulations for discharge consent, based on low continual volumes rather than a batch treatment approach and emissions will be monitored to process the system’s current output which is around 3,000 litres of slurry per hour.”

The system uses Soneco® (sono-electrochemistry) to break down contaminants and nutrients, then separates them from the water. The remaining water is treated using the Soneco® advanced oxidation process to reduce any remaining ammonia, which is broken down to nitrogen and hydrogen.

The processing unit reduces water content of the nutrients by 80% but increases the nutrient concentration, resulting in the requirement of a new nutrient management plan.  The equipment will be categorised by herd size, ensuring a cost effective and robust solution to any size farm.

Gareth Morgan, Power and Water CEO said: “We are pleased with the outcomes achieved to date and will continue our joint efforts to ensure that that the treated water from the slurry is of good quality for re-use or discharge, and that the nutrient value of the solids is retained or improved for a variety of re-use applications.”

Further work could be carried out on improved biosecurity, destruction of pathogens and possibly weed seeds.

Prosiectslyri Project has received funding through the Welsh Government’s Rural Communities Rural Development Programme 2014-2020, which is funded by the European Agricultural Fund for rural Development and the Welsh Government

To find out more about Coleg Sir Gar within the Welsh Country website visit welshcountry.co.uk/coleg-sir-gar

 To find out more about Coleg Sir Gar visit their website www.colegsirgar.ac.uk/en/about-coleg-sir-gar

Coleg Sir Gar Fashion yes Coleg Sir Gar and Fashion a phrase that is fast becoming recognised in the industry, further enhanced by a recent graduate’s successful fashion career.

Former Coleg Sir Gar fashion graduate Justine Allen is currently working at Primark’s head office as a buying and merchandising training manager where she is supporting the integration of new system software.

But during her time studying at Coleg Sir Gar Justine demonstrated her fashion brilliance being included in the prestigious Vogue Graduate Fashion Week. As shown in the image below.

Following graduation, Justine gained employment with Peacocks in Cardiff, here she tells us how her career has developed.

I am currently working on the Primark/Oracle project at our head office to support the integration of new systems software into the business.

My role in the project is to write the training material, which will be delivered to the buying and merchandising community once the new systems go live.

After five years of working in buying, life on the project is very different but I am really enjoying seeing a completely different side to the business and working on one of the biggest Oracle systems projects in Europe.

I split my time between our head offices in Reading and Dublin as we have different teams from the project in both places so lots of travel at times but it’s great being able to network with so many people.

What did you do following graduation?

My first job was at Peacocks head office in Cardiff where I was an assistant buyer on ladies clothing and I spent a year learning the ins and outs of the buying role.

I applied for an assistant buyer job for children’s wear at Primark and got the job. I moved to Reading and I’ve been there for the last four and half years.

I absolutely loved being in such a creative role and being so involved with the product you see in store. I worked my way up in Primark over the next few years and finally ended up on the ladies denim buying team.

At this time a vacancy came up on the Oracle project so I applied as I think it is really important to understand other aspects of the business and as this project is so high profile I wanted to get involved.

You never know what doors will open if you are open to new experiences and I have found already that I have developed skills and knowledge I didn’t have a year ago.

What advice would you give others starting out or studying?

I really felt that I had the tools I needed for employment after my degree at Carmarthen School or Art as the course was so varied, I gained lots of different skills that I have been able to apply to my jobs in fashion.

My main piece of advice would be not to give up or get disheartened if you don’t succeed at securing jobs at first. I applied for so many buying jobs when I graduated and either had no response or an email saying I wasn’t what they were looking for. It is tough being knocked back but when I finally got an interview for the assistant buyer role at Peacocks I knew I had to give everything I had.

My feedback after the interview was that my positivity about the role really shone through so it’s really important to have that attitude when you work in the fashion industry.

Try to gain work experience if you can as it does put you in a better place when it comes to interviews and will give you an idea of whether the role you are doing in work experience is really for you.

I have met a lot of students who want to work in buying but decided that it’s not right for them after a few weeks; likewise I have met lots of students who came to Primark for a placement and are now employed there in buying roles after graduation.

You can find more about Vogue’s Graduate Fashion week especially the year Justine was involved at www.vogue.co.uk/gallery/graduate-fashion-week-judging-panel

To find out more about Coleg Sir Gar within the Welsh Country website visit: welshcountry.co.uk/coleg-sir-gar

 To find out more about Coleg Sir Gar visit their website: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

New principal and chief executive officer is the news that Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion has at the start of this new academic year. Dr Andrew Cornish has been appointed by a board of directors, following the announcement of current principal Barry Liles’ retirement in August.

As the current deputy principal for both Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion, Dr Andrew Cornish is preparing to take the helm as the new principal at both colleges, bringing a familiar face to staff and students when he officially takes over the role this September.

Dr Cornish began his education at Maesteg Comprehensive School where he studied A-levels before progressing to study an honours degree in physics at University of Liverpool and then a PhD in physics at Cardiff University. He is a member of the Institute of Physics (CPhys MinstP) and has worked as a peer assessor for Estyn for nearly 20 years, assessing the standards of other further education colleges in Wales. He is also the former chair of the pan Wales curriculum and standards group for further education.

Following his doctorate he began working at Coleg Sir Gâr as a physics lecturer, and subsequently has undertaken various managerial and leadership roles including faculty manager for A-levels, access and sport and later as assistant principal, with the responsibility of teaching, learning and quality across the college. He is also the driving force behind significant new projects at the college’s Graig campus, including the development of the atrium, the 3G pitch and the performance and innovation centre, which is set to open in September. Over the last year, his focus has been on creating a new curriculum at Coleg Ceredigion, ensuring that the integration of the two colleges continues to progress smoothly.

Dr Andrew Cornish’s aim, as the new principal, is to achieve a highly skilled, confident, sustainable workforce for Wales, creating ambitious and capable learners equipped with the employability skills and academic abilities to achieve in high quality jobs.

“Developing a curriculum that aligns itself to the needs of employers is a vital and crucial part of our work,” he said. “We will continue to develop our strong links with employers, schools in Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and the University of Wales Trinity Saint David, to build upon the already established dual sector university partnership.”

As a committed learner of the Welsh language, Dr Cornish is very passionate about opportunities for Welsh medium learning, shared by his two sons who are currently studying at university primarily through the medium of Welsh, along with his family who are all Welsh speakers.

“Mae’r iaith Gymraeg yn bwsig iawn yn Sir Gâr ac yng Ngheredigion hefyd, I think that being able to speak Welsh offers additional employability opportunities,” he said. “Ultimately, that is what we’re preparing our students for as well as ensuring they progress in their learning, including into university education.”

With nearly 25 years experience in education, Dr Cornish has a profound understanding of the real challenges that lie ahead in the sector. His ethos ‘an education for all’ and his passion to improve teaching and learning as core business values, stands him in good stead to lead two substantial organisations confidently into the future.

Dr Andrew Cornish added:

“I am very privileged and proud to be the next new principal of Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion and I will work tirelessly to ensure the college provides an excellent experience for all our learners and partners.”

To find out more about Coleg Sir Gar within the Welsh Country website visit: welshcountry.co.uk/coleg-sir-gar

 To find out more about Coleg Sir Gar visit their website: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

An innovative new motorsport academy is inspiring young people into the diverse range of fields available within the motorsport industry, such as rallying and autograss at Coleg Sir Gar.

Run by Coleg Sir Gar ‘s Motor Vehicle Centre in Carmarthen, children aged between 13-15 have been learning a number of skills, including how to read and create their own rally Pacenotes, all within a 10 week course.

As part of the programme, youngsters met industry specialists such as GotBoost, who maintain and run Ginetta race cars.  They learnt how to prepare a car for racing, from wheel changes to data logging. They also learnt about co-driving from the MSA Academy, how to read pace notes and experienced a Darrian T9 GTR stage rally car. The group also practiced road rally navigation, motocross, how to run a stage rally event, how to get into motorsport, scrutineering, chassis set-up and tyre technology, rolling road and rally car preparation.

Alan James, Coleg Sir Gar motor vehicle lecturer, who runs the college’s Motorsport Academy, said:

“It’s an exciting experience for young people who want to get involved and learn about the different disciplines within motorsport.

“I’d like to show our enormous appreciation to all our industry specialists for their professional input and time dedicated to inspiring and sharing their experiences with members of the academy who were very keen to learn.”

The next motorsport academy for 13-15 year-olds at Coleg Sir Gar will take place in mid-October on a Tuesday evening from 4.30pm to 7.30pm.

Following three years of development, on August 1st 2013 Coleg Sir Gar was formally dissolved as a Further Education Institution and a new entity created, Coleg Sir Gar, a limited company with charitable status.

This new entity was designated for the purpose of delivering further and higher education. Simultaneously, in conjunction with the University of Wales Trinity Saint David a new Group structure was created with Coleg Sir Gar entering the group as a wholly owned subsidiary. In doing so a sustainable future is ensured for the college and more importantly greater opportunities for our learners.

In May 2013 Estyn arrived for a college wide inspection, generally good but in the areas of Partnerships, Literacy and Development and The Learning environment Coleg Sir Gar was deemed excellent. This helps in the colleges overall vision “To be Excellent”.

There has recently been a new building for Animal Science and Equine Studies at Pibwrlwyd. This is just one example of the broad and diverse teaching at Coleg Sir Gar
spanning from Entry Level to Graduate Qualifications. The 14-16 provision, in partnership with the Carmarthenshire Network of schools, apprenticeships working with business as part of work based learning provision.

Within Wales Coleg Sir Gar continue to be the lead college for success and participation in Skills Competitions. Managing on behalf of the Welsh Government the Skills Competitions Wales.

Coleg Sir Gar as based across 5 campuses across Carmarthenshire many purpose built to suit the studies delivered at that centre.

Contact Alan.james@colegsirgar.ac.uk or follow Coleg Sir Gar Motor Vehicle on Facebook.

For more information visit: ww.colegsirgar.ac.uk

Coleg Sir Gâr leads in the management of slurry with a new project will innovatively reduce farm waste and help safeguard the environment.

An innovative project is underway to address the agricultural industry’s impact on the environment by developing a dewatering and purification system to manage slurry.

Driving the project are Coleg Sir Gâr’s Gelli Aur agricultural campus and Power & Water, a Swansea based company specialising in electrochemical-based water treatments.

This Project has received funding through the Welsh Government’s Rural Communities Rural Development Programme 2014-2020, which is funded by the European Agricultural Fund for rural Development and the Welsh Government.  The project will apply innovative and proven concept technology to reduce air and water pollution to reduce the overall volume of slurry by up to 80%.  A de-watering and purification system is used to filter slurry, transforming the water to a suitable quality for recycling or discharging to a clean watercourse. The system will also utilise nutrients from the slurry to produce good quality fertiliser.

John Owen, farm manager at Coleg Sir Gâr, said:

“With the intensification of the dairy industry, slurry management is becoming an increasing issue for farmers and the environment.

“We aim to reduce significantly the risk of air and water pollution at the same time as maximising the recycling nutrient value. This development process will considerably reduce storage of slurry on farms as well as handling costs.

“Efficiently extracting nutrients from manures could save on the cost of commercial fertilisers and reduce serious environmental impact.  However poor manure management can cause pollutants, including nutrients, to enter the water cycle through run-off or drainage.”

The project also aims to design, develop and validate economically viable systems that will be made available commercially and used on farms.

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) states that the number of pollution incidents caused by dairy and beef farms across Wales has fluctuated between 85 and 120 for each of the last six years.

Wet winters and a significant downturn in the dairy market have added to the pressure on the environment and farmers; reducing their capacity to invest in slurry and silage store management and over 60% of the incidents involving pollution during the last three years took place within the milk field of Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire.

Notes

• According to the Natural Resources Wales (NRW) in its ‘Agricultural Pollution Issues – and the implications for natural resource management’ document (Summer 2016), agricultural pollution is the third most frequent reason for failing to achieve good status in Wales. It affects some 180 individual waterbodies.  The number of pollution incidents caused by dairy and beef farms across Wales has fluctuated between 85 and 120 for each of the last six (6) years.  Recent wet winters and a significant downturn in the dairy market have added to the pressure on the environment and farmers; reducing their capacity to invest in slurry and silage store management.
• Point of source pollution incidents (such as those caused by overflowing slurry stores) are concentrated in particularly parts of Wales.
• The ongoing agricultural pollution arising from both point and diffuse sources is having a serious detrimental effect on the Welsh environment and impacts on the ability to meet WFD targets under the River Basin Management This situation could lead to substantially extending the area currently covered by Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZ).

Watch out Julien MacDonald, there is a new Welsh designer, from Coleg Sir Gar, about to take the fashion world by storm.

Lian Cara Poulson is the winner of the Beacon Bursary and will receive a cash prize of £3000, free office space within the Beacon Centre for Enterprise in Dafen, Llanelli, and business mentoring support to help develop her business. The 23-year-old from Llandovery recently completed her degree at Coleg Sir Gar ’s Carmarthen School of Art and will establish her own fashion label Lian Cara. She impressed the judges with her blend of creative talent, commercial vision and professional business plan and presentation.

Lian was one of 10 new entrepreneurs to reach the final of the Beacon Bursary competition and pitch their proposals to a panel of judges including Carmarthenshire Council Leader Emlyn Dole, Angharad Harding, manager of Yr Atom in Carmarthen; Chris Jenkins from Gerald Thomas Accountants and last year’s Beacon Bursary winner Martin Goddard of Music HQ.

Second place went to Jennifer Collins, a 35-year-old mum from Burry Port, who wants to set up a school holiday club in the Llanelli area called Clwb Oasis. Her idea is to introduce a more formal activity schedule delivered over a longer day to allow parents to manage work life balance better during school holidays. Jennifer, who is studying a BA in Events Management in University of Wales Trinity Saint David, aims to develop a good brand locally before expanding the business model further afield.

Third place went to Danielle Ace for her online community and ecommerce business The Stitching Bee specialising in the stitching, yarning and crafting market. The online shop will sell a wide range of products associated to the market including creative well-being gift boxes, zenbroidery kits, and much more. Danielle, aged 30, from Llanelli, is currently studying Counselling and Psychotherapy in Swansea University having previously graduated in psychology and a foundation course with the British Association of Art Therapy.

The Beacon Bursary is an annual competition run by by Carmarthenshire County Council in partnership with Coleg Sir Gâr and University of Wales Trinity Saint David.

The award provides new businesses and entrepreneurs an opportunity to access finance, office space and a wealth of advice and support and which will provide the best opportunity for their new businesses to flourish.

The vision for The Beacon, Centre for Enterprise is to act as a leading light in nurturing and training both young enterprise skills and to develop entrepreneur business talent to enter the private sector across South West Wales.

Council Leader Emlyn Dole, who is responsible for Economic Development, said:

“I would like to congratulate Lian, a very worthy winner, and I am looking forward to seeing her business develop. I would also like to commend Jennifer and Danielle and all the other finalists; it was a very close call and we could see the potential in all the business ideas and we will do our best to help and support each and every one of them.

“As a council, we are committed to developing entrepreneurship within the county and this is reflected through important initiatives such as the Beacon Bursary.”

For more information about Coleg Sir Gar visit:  www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

Feature image: Beacon Bursary winner Lian Poulson.

Lecturer presented with Pearson Teaching Award Coleg Sir Gar lecturer Charlie Hammond, has won a silver award in the Pearson Teaching Awards’ category of outstanding use of technology.

Selected from thousands of nominations across the UK and Ireland, Charlie, who runs outdoor adventure courses at Coleg Sir Gar‘s Graig campus, is one of 56 winners who are being recognised for their innovative teaching methods.

Charlie will join fellow silver award winners at the UK final of the Pearson Teaching Awards held in London on October 22 where they will find out who has won just one of 11 Gold Plato Awards, the UK’s Oscars for Teachers.

Louis Dare, e-learning development manager at Coleg Sir Gâr said:

“Charlie has effectively adopted the use of ILT in the classroom using Google Classroom as a platform for assignments, learner files and course management.

“He’s highly proactive and experimental and has excelled in the project using student feedback as the core driver for progression.”

Rod Bristow, President of Pearson UK said:

“It’s an honour for us to support the Teaching Awards each year. Great teaching can have a huge impact on a child’s education so it’s vital for us to recognise and celebrate inspirational teachers, for their commitment to teaching and learning and for improving the life chances of the next generation.  All those receiving a silver trophy today should feel extremely proud of their achievement and I Iook forward to meeting them at the final ceremony later this year.”

This ceremony, entitled Britain’s Classroom Heroes, will be filmed and broadcast by the BBC as a showcase of excellence in education.

For more information about Coleg Sir Gar visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

Feature image: Coleg Sir Gar lecturer Charlie Hammond with his outdoor adventure students and staff with Barry Liles (far right), college principal.

Sculpture students at Coleg Sir Gar ’s Carmarthen School of Art are preparing to visit Alabama for the National Conference on Contemporary Cast Iron Art and Practices.The international conference is a biennial union of students, educators, academics, and professionals dedicated to exploring and advancing cast iron as an art medium.

Five Coleg Sir Gar degree students following a BA honours course in sculpture in Carmarthen will be travelling to Birmingham to compete in the student cupola competition at Sloss Furnaces – a former and significant iron-manufacturing site established in 1881 which played a large part in Birmingham’s economic development.

Students have a flat-pack furnace which they will take with them to compete at the US competition.

The art school has established links within the metal casting industry in the UK and USA and is well-known for its unique metal-casting facility in Carmarthen.

Degree student Ashleigh Harold said:

“I’m so excited to go over there and get involved with such an amazing event.

“We’ve had so much support from our tutors and friends both here and state side. Now we’re looking forward to melting iron and hopefully bringing home the trophy!”

About Coleg Sir Gar:

For more information please visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

Feature image: Sculpture students at Coleg Sir Gâr’s Carmarthen School of Art with their flat-pack furnace which they are taking to Alabama to complete in the student cupola competition at the National Conference on Contemporary Cast Iron Art and Practices

Coleg Sir Gar hosted a talk from a member of the House of Lords to give students an insight into the political and parliamentary process.

Lord Aberdare met with Coleg Sir Gar public services students, who as part of their course, learn about aspects of the legal system, the law-making process and government policies.

Public services lecturer, Carolann Healy, said:

“This was a fantastic opportunity for our students to interact with someone who knows the parliamentary system inside out, as it can sometimes seem far removed from their daily lives.”

Students were able to grasp a thorough understanding of issues such as how a bill becomes an act, the roles of the House of Lords in relation to the House of Parliament, how members are appointed and how government is positively influenced by members.

The visit was arranged through the Lord Speaker’s Peers in Schools programme, which has been running across the UK since 2007 and has so far involved around 75,000 young people.  This continuing outreach programme sends members of the House of Lords into schools/academies and colleges across the country to give talks in support of the citizenship curriculum.

About Coleg Sir Gar:

Coleg Sir Gar was created in 1985 and became a corporate institution in 1993. In 2013 it became Coleg Sir Gar Ltd, a company within the University of Wales: Trinity Saint David Group, and part of a regional Dual Sector University. The College has an annual turnover of over £30m and employs around 800 staff.

For more information please visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

A Coleg Sir Gar hospitality and leadership student has been perfecting her skills in fine dining and a service fit for royalty at The Ritz hotel in London.

Elizabeth Forkhuoh, a Coleg Sir Gar student from Llanelli, visited The Ritz as part of her training with WorldSkills where she is currently training in Squad UK, hoping to be selected to compete in the restaurant services category in Abu Dhabi this year.

Under the guidance of restaurant manager Luigi Cagnin, Elizabeth learned carving techniques using salmon, poultry, chateaubriand and Dover sole as well as discovering how dishes such as steak tartar are prepared in lavish Ritz style.

Elizabeth Forkuoh, who this year won a British Education Award, said:

“I was amazed how polite and well presented the staff were at all times and how impeccable the service was, I immediately felt like royalty when I arrived.

“We experienced a traditional afternoon tea in the spectacular Palm Court, surrounded by high mirrored walls, birdcage chandeliers and a soaring floral display.

“The deputy manager of Palm Court which serves 400 covers a day, also known as Ritz tea master Giandomenico Scanu, explained how he pairs different teas to the customer and food, similarly as does a wine sommelier.”

Elizabeth, who works part-time at the Stradey Park Hotel is studying an NVQ at Coleg Sir Gâr’s Pibwrlwyd campus in Carmarthen where she started her competition journey where she also completed qualifications in professional cookery and professional food and beverage skills with merit and distinction grades.

Coleg Sir Gâr was created in 1985 and became a corporate institution in 1993. In 2013 it became Coleg Sir Gar Ltd, a company within the University of Wales: Trinity Saint David Group, and part of a regional Dual Sector University. The College has an annual turnover of over £30m and employs around 800 staff.

For more information about coleg sir gar please visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

Feature image: Coleg Sir Gâr hospitality and leadership student Elizabeth Forkuoh at a training placement at The Ritz in London

Coleg Sir Gar has brand new Pottinger machinery installed at Gelli Aur campus to help agricultural engineering students study high-end technology onsite.

Using European funding, the agricultural engineering team tendered for new machinery and as a result, Tallis Amos Group in Narberth supplied a Servo 25 plough and Davies Implements Ltd supplied a Power Harrow combination seed drill to Coleg Sir Gar ‘s Gelli Aur campus.

Representatives from all organisations involved, including former students employed by Tallis Amos and Davies Implements, attended the Pottinger workshop. An insight into the extensive working knowledge of the machinery was given to both agricultural and engineering students by Barry Humphreys, territory service manager for Wales, North West and West of England and Clive Richardson, area service manager.

Geraint Evans, Coleg Sir Gâr’s Agricultural Engineering Team Leader said:

“We have a close working relationship with Pottinger as well as all the local dealers. Later on this year, we will be hosting trials on a new concept of companion cropping, simultaneously drilling maize and grass seed.

“The new machinery will further enhance the excellent teaching and learning experiences of our students. We are very aware of the need to supply engineers to work in such a fast growing technological and manufacturing industry.”

About Coleg Sir Gar

For more information please visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

A Coleg Sir Gâr student who is training in the UK Squad for WorldSkills Abu Dhabi 2017, has been shortlisted in the British Education Awards.

With a gold medal for restaurant services under her belt from last year’s national Skills Show and a string of other competition medals, Coleg Sir Gâr Student, Elizabeth Forkuoh from Llanelli is currently training to represent the UK in restaurant services and as a result of her success, has been shortlisted for an award in the vocational category.

Currently experiencing a placement at The Ritz London and with a recent offer of employment by a Michelin starred restaurant, Elizabeth’s skills are receiving nationwide recognition.  She is currently studying an NVQ level three diploma in hospitality supervision and leadership at Coleg Sir Gâr’s Pibwrlwyd campus following successful completion of qualifications in professional cookery, professional food and beverage and barista skills where she received mostly merit and distinction grades.

In 2016 Elizabeth won the VQ Intermediate Learner of the Year award organised by the Welsh Government, National Training Federation for Wales and CollegesWales.  She has also won competitions run by the British Culinary Federation, winning Best Front of House and the Institute of Hospitality’s Dining Experience, winning gold as part of a team of six.

Elizabeth has been supported through her competition journey by Linda Thomas, Coleg Sir Gâr lecturer and Sector Skills Champion for the Welsh Government as well as the Stradey Park Hotel in Llanelli where she is employed.

Coleg Sir Gâr lecturer Linda Thomas, said:

“We are immensely proud of Elizabeth’s achievements and her abilities to work at such a high level of skill in the area of restaurant service.

“Elizabeth is an asset to any establishment and she’s proved that by being offered employment by every restaurant she’s trained with, including Le Gavroche, Gleneagles Hotel and The French in Manchester.

“We hope she will enjoy the very prestigious awards ceremony being held at the Grand Connaught Rooms in London.”

Elizabeth, who has hopes of running her own Italian restaurant will be undertaking a degree in international hotel management in 2018 following her decision to postpone university to continue competing in skills competitions.

For more information about Coleg Sir Gar visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

Feature image: Elizabeth presented with VQ Award 2016.

Coleg Sir Gâr‘s Mary Richards will be braving the shave and losing her locks on January 13, as she undergoes the clippers in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support.

Normally more used to shearing sheep, this formidable woman will brave the barn and get sheared at 7.30pm on January 13 at her home at Llandre Farm. Coleg Sir Gâr’s Mary Richards will be braving the shave and losing her locks on January 13, as she undergoes the clippers in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support.

Inspired by her students to brave the shave, opting for a cancer charity was a natural choice as sadly, Mary lost her mother Morina, to breast cancer when she was a child.

Later in life, her best friend underwent a mastectomy as she battled the disease with phenomenal courage and grace.

Mary is also dedicating ‘brave the shave’ to the memory of a significant number of her students who have lost mums and dads to cancer.

Mary Richards said:

“I am shaving my head for those who had no choice for Macmillan Cancer Support because brave people close to me have been affected.

“We have a duty to live each day to the best of our ability and to do this in honour of the ones who have had their life’s thread cut short.”

Donations are being collected by Just Giving: justgiving.com/fundraising/Mary-Richards9

For more information about Coleg Sir Gâr please visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

Featured image: Mary Richards won the 2015 national CollegesWales Teacher of the Year Award and has a passionate drive for agriculture and teaching.

Children taking part in Coleg Sir Gâr’s Young Chefs Academy have been learning from a UK-renowned chef who earned a himself a Michelin star before reaching the age of 30.

Will Holland, head chef at Coast restaurant in Saundersfoot worked with a group of 13-15 year olds in the college’s training restaurant, Merlin’s, where they learned how to prepare and cook a muffin recipe which Will once featured on Great British Menu.

Linda Thomas, head of professional cookery and hospitality at Coleg Sir Gâr, said:

“We have worked with Will on many occasions and we thought it would be nice for our younger cohort in our new chefs’ academy, to gain from the experience.”

Will Holland, head chef at Coast restaurant, said: ‘It’s fantastic to see The Seren Academy in action and spend time with these school children to help drive their passion and possible career path.

“For this session I chose to make a dish I created from my time on the Great British Menu which was something fun that they could enjoy and more importantly could take home.”

Coleg Sir Gâr students have been working with the National Botanic Garden and the Llanarthne community to capture memories of a bygone era as part of the Garden’s £6.7m Heritage Lottery-funded Regency Restoration project.

As part of their Welsh Baccalaureate studies, computing and A-level photography students were invited to document the history brought in by local people to Llanarthne community centre to support the National Botanic Garden’s history archive. Throughout the second half of the 20^th century, generations of farming families lived and worked on the land which is now home to some of the world’s rarest plants on the garden’s 568 acre estate and the project is reaching out to those who were involved to capture memories from the 1950s onwards.

Elliot Muldoon, a Coleg Sir Gâr computing student, originally from Alabama, was tasked to document spoken memories by interviewing local residents.

“It’s great to be here and to be able to capture the past,” he said.

Local resident Mair Morgan, said:

“It’s nice that people are interested in local history as it can get lost over time. It’s the kind of thing you wish you’d have asked your mam and dad but often it’s too late.”

Rebecca Davies, Coleg Sir Gâr Welsh Baccalaureate and skills quality advisor, said:

“Supporting the community to capture memories of their lives in Llanarthne provided a fantastic opportunity for students allowing them to develop a wide range of skills. The experience has also supported them with their Welsh Baccalaureate study programme.”

Project manager at the Garden, Helen John said:

“We’ve had an amazing response, giving us a unique insight into the lives of the local community and those who live and grew up here and developed such an affection for the place.”

Visit: www.colegsirgar.ac.uk

Feature image: Coleg Sir Gâr Welsh Bac computing and A-level students working with the local community in Llanarthne, documenting historic memories to support National Botanic Garden’s new restoration project.

A land based  lecturer and recently appointed assistant curriculum head in land based studies at Coleg Sir Gar has won the Colleges Wales Teacher of the Year award.

The passion and enthusiasm of Mary Richards has been recognised with the Colleges Wales Teacher of the Year award 2015.
Since 1997, Ms Richards has been an eager and passionate member of the land based curriculum team. Not only does she share her enthusiasm for land based studies but she also has a particular aptitude in communicating with her learners. Ms Richards injects life into every classroom, regardless of abilities or age and has a unique ability to inspire every person with her lively delivery and desire to see everyone achieve.

Practicing by example, Ms Richards is highly regarded in the farming community as an established sheep farmer. She is also a former science teacher and head of year at Ysgol Gyfun Ddwyieithog Ystalafera.

Her ‘hands on’ energetic and team playing skills have gained respect from her peers as well as her levels of enthusiasm and work ethic which she instils into her students. Ms Richards has the ability to effectively communicate with a variety of learners whether they are school pupils, college or university level students and those training directly within the industry.

Ms Richards sees education as a holistic experience for the learner and believes that there are many vital parts in their journey, from pastoral support, relevant education, industrial and international visits, practical demonstrations, underpinning knowledge and the use of innovative technology. As a result of her belief in using technology in the land based sector, she won an award and met former Prime Minister Tony Blair as a result.

Being familiar with the farming community, she is also well known for delivering teaching in the Welsh language, before any official bilingual sessions were put in place at the college. She has, as a result, played an integral part in the development of Welsh language provision at Gelli Aur campus.

Mary Richards is highly respected by learners and staff for her exceptional and natural teaching ability.