City College Plymouth was proud to celebrate its students and apprentices at their annual Student Awards on Thursday 29 June.
Hosted at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, the award ceremony is the College’s celebration of the successes and hard work students and apprentices have achieved over the past academic year.
Award winners, their families, College staff and esteemed employer guests were treated to a performance from the College’s dance students as well as an entertaining and engaging address from special guest speaker, Baroness Floella Benjamin. The pioneering actor, writer and campaigner, praised those students and apprentices who had overcome challenges and adversity to earn their well-deserved awards. She also highlighted the College’s commitment to celebrating diversity and fostering inclusivity, issues which Baroness Benjamin has campaigned on for over 25 years.
Students receiving recognition in each of the College’s 36 curriculum areas, spanned a cross-section of abilities and backgrounds representative of Plymouth’s vibrant population.
The ages of the award recipients crossed generations, from Tourism Student of the Year, Ryan Collins, 16, who is also taking his maths and English GCSEs at the College, to self proclaimed “positive pensioner”, Anthony Miller. The 71-year-old had double the reasons to celebrate, as he had recently secured his place at university following successful completion of his Access to Higher Education in Humanities course at City College Plymouth. Positive proof that you are never too old to start learning.
Eight of the curriculum award winners were also specially selected to receive additional merits by the College’s employer partners. These top Plymouth employers work closely with the College to create real-life learning experiences, develop training and curriculum programmes, and contribute to the College’s state-of-the-art facilities.
This year’s recipients of the employer sponsored awards were: Lewis Bonner, Digital Innovation Award sponsored by C-learning; Isabelle Rickett, Employability Award sponsored by Portcullis Legals; Emilia Dawes, Leadership Award sponsored by Plymouth Argyle Football Club; Liam Harvey, Peer Support Award sponsored by University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust; Miles Roser, Perseverance Award sponsored by Bailey Partnership; Kai Aye, Student Voice Award sponsored by Babcock; Cameron Harris, Sustainability Award sponsored by YGS Landscapes; Ellis Falconer, Volunteering Award sponsored by Redrok Events.
Awards were also presented to Cameron Harris by the Students’ Union and Gbenga Omole-Great by the Board of Governors in recognition for their positive contributions to college life.
The final award of the evening went to Rose Hamlett who received the Chief Executive’s Award. Rose was recognised as an advocate for her fellow students on the Student Council and for her commitment to promoting sustainability. Passionate about environmentalism, she delivered training sessions for the College’s staff and Executive Leadership Team on the issue earlier this year.
“I was immensely proud to celebrate our exceptional students and apprentices at this year’s awards,” said City College’s Chief Executive, Jackie Grubb.
“Their stories of success, personal growth and exceptional accomplishments make what we do as both educators and employers worthwhile. I hope that all of our students and apprentices, not just tonight’s award winners, can take this feeling of pride in their achievements with them as they take their first steps towards their future careers.”
