Top colleges reach the final of AoC Beacon Awards

The finalists for this year’s AoC Beacon Awards were announced at a glamorous gala dinner in Birmingham tonight. More than 300 staff from the further education packed out the ICC venue to witness the colleges that were nominated in eight different categories for their contribution to the further education sector. The Beacon Awards were launched over 20 years ago to recognise the fantastic work that colleges do each day, training more than two million people, including over 600,000 16 to 18-year-olds. For the first time this year, the finalists of the Tes FE Awards were also announced at the gala dinner, with the winners of all the awards to be announced at the Tes FE Awards ceremony in London next March. The shortlist for the 2018/19 Awards is as follows: British Council International Award National Star College (CheltenhamGlasgow Kelvin College (Scotland)Grimsby Institute of Further & Higher EducationSouthern Regional College (N Ireland) The Careers and Enterprise Company Careers Education and Guidance Award North West Regional College (N Ireland)Sunderland College Edge Award for Excellence in the Practical Delivery of Technical and Professional LearningWiltshire CollegeGrimsby Institute of Further & Higher EducationEKC Group (East Kent)Skills and Education Group Award for Social Mobility and Widening ParticipationBirkenhead Sixth Form CollegeBridgwater & Taunton CollegeAbingdon & Witney College AoC Mental Health and Wellbeing AwardMiddlesbrough CollegeWeston CollegeReaseheath College (Cheshire)Cardiff & Vale College (Wales) Effective use of Technology in Further Education Award (Jisc)Grimsby Institute of Further & Higher EducationPreston's CollegeBolton College City and Guilds College Engagement with Employers AwardWeston CollegeCity of Glasgow College (Scotland)Havering College of Further & Higher EducationBelfast Metropolitan College (Northern Ireland) RCU Support for Learners AwardBarking & Dagenham CollegeNational Star College (Cheltenham)Activate Learning (Oxford/Reading) Carole Stott MBE, Chair of the AoC Charitable Trust, said: “The Beacon Awards were created to highlight the great work that goes on in colleges every day. “Colleges put in a fantastic effort to transform the lives of more than two million people each day and are deeply embedded within their communities. These finalists have done exceptionally well to get this far, and we wish them the best of luck for the final in February.” To find out more about the Tes FE Awards, click here.