Telford College is a

further education college Further education (often abbreviated FE) in the United Kingdom and Ireland is additional education to that received at secondary school that is distinct from the higher education (HE) offered in universities and other academic institutions. It ...

Telford Telford () is a town in the Telford and Wrekin borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Shropshire, England. The wider borough covers the town, its suburbs and surrounding towns and villages. The town is close to the county's eastern b ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. It operates from one main site and many in-company training sites and community-based courses spread out across

and the whole of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. During 2017 the college improved its Ofsted rating to Grade 3.

History

The college was founded in 1892 by Charles Walker as the Centre for Art and Science Classes and was originally based in Oakengates, Shropshire. From 1913 until the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

it was based in the former Coffee House and Recreation Centre in Market Street which was since demolished by the Telford Development Corporation. The college moved to a new site, built in 1926, down Hartsbridge Road becoming the ''Walker Technical College''. In the 1960s it opened a larger campus on Haybridge Road in Wellington which became the part of the new town of

. On 1 January 1983 the college was renamed ''Telford College of Arts and Technology'' commonly abbreviated as ''TCAT'' (pronounced ). The Bridge Centre (literacy and numeracy department) opened in 1990 followed by a new Learning Resource Centre and the Haybridge Restaurant in 1997. On 12 November 2004 W Block (Charles Walker Building) Centre of Vocational Excellence was officially opened by Mr Michael Beasley CBE. On 31 October 2005 E Block and S Block (sports and hairdressing) were officially opened by

the Princess Royal Princess Royal is a title customarily (but not automatically) awarded by British monarchs to their eldest daughters. Although purely honorary, it is the highest honour that may be given to a female member of the royal family. There have been ...

. In 2006 it received very good grades after an

OFSTED The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament. Ofsted's role is to make sure that organisations providing education, training ...

inspection. In 2008 the college celebrated its Queen's Anniversary Prize with a visit to

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...

to meet

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

and the

Duke of Edinburgh Duke of Edinburgh, named after the capital city of Scotland, Edinburgh, is a substantive title that has been created four times since 1726 for members of the British royal family. It does not include any territorial landholdings and does not pr ...

. On 16 October 2012 the Construction Centre, converted from the old sports hall, was officially opened by Tony Gray CEO of the Southwater Event Group. In May 2013 the Discovery and Oakdene Centres opened. In January 2014 the Orange Tree Restaurant, purchased by the college and converted from the Telford and Wrekin Council's Social Education Centre within the campus, opened for the teaching of catering courses and is open to the public once a week. In September 2014 the Automotive Engineering centre opened. The official opening was performed on 7 November 2014 by British touring car champion

Matt Neal Matthew Stephen Phillip Neal (born 20 December 1966) is a British motor racing driver. Neal is a triple BTCC Champion having won the British Touring Car Championship in 2005, 2006 and 2011. Neal is also a record 6 time BTCC Independents Champio ...

. On 17 October 2015 the college's Willow Tree Centre was officially opened by Councillor Paul Watling, cabinet member for children, young people and families in the Telford and Wrekin Council. In September 2017 the college merged with New College, Telford forming Telford College unveiling the current logo beforehand. The college continued to use two existing campuses until September 2018, with New College keeping its separate identity until then, when all students were moved to the existing Haybridge Road campus with a further £2 million investment in a new facility.

Student numbers

It has over 16,000

student A student is a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution, or more generally, a person who takes a special interest in a subject. In the United Kingdom and most The Commonwealth, commonwealth countries, a "student" attends ...

s: 1200 full-time, 15,000 part-time. Students at present include school leavers, individuals taking a second chance at education, employees of multi-national companies and overseas students.

Course provision

The college offers a wide range of vocational courses including

NVQ National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) are practical work-based awards in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland that are achieved through training and assessment. The regulatory framework supporting NVQs was withdrawn in 2015 and replaced by th ...

profession A profession is a field of Work (human activity), work that has been successfully professionalized. It can be defined as a disciplined group of individuals, professionals, who adhere to ethical standards and who hold themselves out as, and are ...

al, preparatory degree and tailor-made programmes. Since its merger with New College Telford, it has offered 22 A-level qualifications and became the second largest A-level provider in Shropshire after Shrewsbury Sixth Form College.

Gallery

File:TCATOakengatesMarch2010.jpg, The old Oakengates Site (now closed) on Hartsbridge Road in March 2010. The building has since been sold. File:Walker Institute building, Oakengates, November 2018.jpg, Old Oakengates site in 2018 following conversion into apartments.

References

External links

Telford College website

Telford College Superdome sports Website

Telford College Activ8 young persons 14-16yrs Website

Orange Tree at Telford College restaurant website
{{Authority control Education in Telford and Wrekin Further education colleges in Shropshire Learning and Skills Beacons Wellington, Shropshire