We’re proud to shine a spotlight on North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College, a member of the WorldSkills UK Centre of Excellence, and its exciting initiative, ‘Power Up Your Potential’.
As a valued member of the Centre of Excellence, run in partnership with specialist awarding organisation NCFE, the college launched ‘Power Up Your Potential’ to inspire ambition and unlock opportunity for every learner. The initiative builds on the college’s commitment to developing not only technical expertise, but also the wider skills learners need to succeed.
Simon Lomax, Vice Principal, North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College, explains:
“We wanted a skills guarantee for every learner so they could say, ‘I haven’t just attained a qualification, I’ve gained recognition for the wider skills I developed at college that will help me succeed in life.’ That’s exactly what ‘Power Up Your Potential’ is about. It inspires ambition, recognising those wider skills, and helping learners realise what they’re capable of achieving.”
The initiative was partly shaped by conversations with employers, who emphasised the importance of helping learners develop wider attributes, such as communication and creative skills, that are essential in the workplace. In response, North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College established five themes for ‘Power Up Your Potential’: Self and Success, People and Communication, Workplace and Digital Readiness, Citizenship and Sustainability, and Thinking, Creativity and Innovation. Each theme includes a list of important attributes designed to support students’ personal development, enhance their employability skills, and prepare them to succeed in their training, the workplace, and wider society.
Employer feedback also influenced some of the specific attributes within the themes. For example, ‘answering the telephone’ was included under ‘People and Communication’. Simon explains that employers were frustrated that many young people were unfamiliar with answering the phone in a professional manner. In response, the college created opportunities for learners to gain practical experience by spending time with the college’s reception team, answering calls and greeting visitors.
The structure of ‘Power Up Your Potential’ also draws heavily on the college’s engagement and ongoing success with WorldSkills UK Competitions, using competition methodology to engage learners in the initiative. Learners are entered for gold, silver and bronze medals to recognise their achievements in meeting the attributes. The employers have remained involved, providing sponsorship for the awards demonstrating the vital role they play in supporting learners develop work-ready skills. As part of the college’s partnership with Coventry University, students who receive recognition across the five themes also receive endorsement for seamless progression to university high education programmes, facilitating progression based on more than academic achievement.
Although in its early stages, the initiative has already delivered a huge impact across the college with 20,000 praise notes handed out. These recognise learners who had achieved one or more of the attributes listed under the five themes. The ceremony to recognise those learners who have achieved gold and silver will be held later this year. Vital to this success has been the engagement of teaching staff. The college has ensured that teaching resources have been made available to support them in how to embed the themes and attributes into the wider curriculum.
Simon concludes that the college’s membership of the WorldSkills UK Centre of Excellence has been a key factor in the creation and success of ‘Power Up Your Potential’. He explains that the two are closely connected, with the Centre of Excellence encouraging the college to examine its curriculum more closely to understand what excellence looks like and how it can be developed for all learners. This thinking has directly shaped the development of ‘Power Up Your Potential’.
