What is the Keighley College Coffee Morning project?

In November 2017, Keighley College was approached by Shaun O’Hare from the Keighley Big Local Charity. Shaun asked if we would join the Big Local in facilitating a coffee morning for the parents of Autistic children within the local community on a monthly basis.

We were incredibly excited by this idea and felt it would be a great opportunity for our foundation learners to become involved in a community project, learn basic skills and grow in confidence.

How do our students get involved?

Our learners contribute to the coffee morning by baking delicious buns and biscuits. They then assist with setting the tables, meeting and greeting the attendants and serving refreshments throughout the morning.

We have had three coffee mornings so far. These have been very well attended and we have received some great feedback. The project has provided the parents with a place to socialise and share their experiences and it has given our learners the opportunity to learn new and practical skills and build on their communication skills with others outside of the college. 

Upcoming Coffee Mornings

Our next coffee morning event is taking place on Friday 2nd March at Keighley College. if you’d like to attend or find out more about the event, please contact admin@keighleybiglocal.org.uk.

Hi everyone, I’m Chummy, the Keighley College dog.

I’m so excited to announce that I have been assigned the role as special and cuddly dog at Keighley College.

I work three days a week, but I’m pretty flexible. This means I can meet as many of you as possible and get a chance to spend time with whoever wants to spend time with me! My days will mostly be spent supporting the wellbeing of staff and students.

If you want to find me, you can find me in the atrium with my lovely colleagues – Rob and Tracy. I also spend quite a bit of time in the library, with MORE4U and Foundation Studies students. I love to get stuck into a good book! If you see me, please come and give me a stroke, I am very friendly and sweet and there’s nothing I enjoy more than strokes and cuddles!

If you would like me to visit your class, please let us know. Unfortunately, I am not allowed to go into the workshops on the ground floor since I cannot comply with health & safety requirements for wearing safety boots – they are simply too big for my little paws!

This week I have had the pleasure of greeting students at the breakfast club. I also went along to training on British Values with a group of staff and now have a better understanding of democracy, rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect. My pug brain is brimming!

Next week, the college is promoting democracy by hosting a vote on whether 16 year olds should be able to vote in a general election. What do you think? Are you old enough at 16 to vote? Please make sure you get involved.

Part of my job at the college is to write a blog with all my doggy thoughts and feelings and college updates and lots of photos of me at college. If you see me in your class or at one of your events, or if you are lucky enough to spend some quality time with me, please take a photograph of me and email it to Shekina.popper@keighleycollege.ac.uk. 

Please keep checking my blog for more updates and photographs of me and my experiences.

Love from Chummy, the Keighley College Dog x

The final piece in the rebrand of Keighley College is currently being put in place by partner company, Metalcraft UK. New exterior signage is being fitted to two of the three elevations with a third coming once faulty rendering is replaced. The illuminated stainless steel signage marks an important change in the way Keighley College has been working, with the campus now having a local management team who are focused on the needs of the local community.

The college has a proud and long history dating back to the Keighley Mechanics Institute which opened in 1825, making it one of the oldest in country.

Keighley College is working with a number of local employers to raise the profile of textile manufacturing as a career option. The College opened it’s new Textile Academy in April and will be offering Fashion and Textile Apprenticeships from September. A number of videos have been made shoeing examples of the work that goes on in textiles and the environment in a modern textile factory.

To see the video of Specialised Cover in Shipley click here

To find out more contact our apprenticeship team:

@ apprenticeships@keighleycollege.ac.uk
T 01535 685 035

28 Students and staff completed the Keighley College Library’s Reading Challenge, reading a total of 252 books overall! All participants were rewarded with a certificate at a presentation held in the library.

Many congratulations to them all.

Keighley College is growing its offer and investing in new facilities such as our new science laboratory and we are delighted to announce a whole range of new courses and apprenticeships for 2017. These include:

• Access to HE – Business
• Access to HE – Health
• Brickwork
• Games Design
• Foundation degree in Health & Care
• Part Time Child Care
• Science
• Travel & Tourism
• Motor Cycle Engineering
• Textiles

Call 01535 685 000 or mail enquiries@keighleycollege.ac.uk to find out more

Keighley College has also added to its apprenticeship offer, with new courses in Facilities Management, Fashion and Textiles, Teaching Assistants, Sport, Business & Administration and many more.

Call 01535 685 035 or mail apprenticeships@keighleycollege.ac.uk to find out more

Join us as we host the first Keighley Business Club event of 2017, with special guest speaker Kris Hopkins MP.

Enjoy this free event with a buffet dinner and networking opportunities. All businesses are welcome, of any size, from Keighley, the Aire Valley, and beyond.

Kris Hopkins, member of Parliament for Keighley & Ilkley, will be giving a presentation on his current projects, with an emphasis on the economic vitality of Keighley and West Yorkshire.

This event is free to attend but please RSVP by registering here.

The Keighley Business Club was founded in 2016 and is powered by Keighley BID. We aim to connect businesses across Keighley and West Yorkshire, promoting collaboration and providing a forum for the sharing of ideas.

A small group of students have been learning the art of becoming entrepreneurs with the help of local business Small Office Supplies. Taking advantage of a vacant retail until on campus in the College Atrium – these young business people have opened their own store ‘Triangle’ starting with Mother’s Day promotions of cards and gifts. The store is open to the public and not limited to the students on site.

With some help and training from Helen Avison of Small Office Supplies, they have been learning the art of how to become a retailer. Helen commented, “the enthusiasm these young people have shown has been terrific and it has been a pleasure to work with them. It is really encouraging to see that we have such talent in our local education facilities and we are looking forward to encouraging them further. This is a not for profit initiative and all about helping students understand the workings of business – albeit in a ‘Small’ way!”

Chris Stott – Keighley College Head of Business Engagement added, “It is such an amazing opportunity for our students to get some real insight and experience of business as part of their work experience. This has been a really successful project for them to work on.”

The students had workshop training at Small Office Supplies to learn about pricing, promotions, merchandising and general retail management. They then went on to create their own brand logo, signs and posters. The ‘Triangle’ store will be offering stationery supplies for the students on an on-going basis, plus developing promotions for the Easter period and Father’s Day.