Harrow College has once again seen an increase in the number of students successfully progressing into Higher Education, with 81% of students who applied for a Higher Education course in 2015 successfully securing a place at University, including Russell Group Universities.

The diversity of higher education subjects chosen, from Aerospace Engineering and Medical Biochemistry to Fine Art and Computer Science, reflects the calibre of Harrow College students and ensures that the next generation of personnel driving the UK economy will take with them many happy memories of their time at the College, whilst they continue their studies around the country.

The statistics released this week come as Harrow College already looks ahead to supporting the next crop of Higher Education hopefuls. A successful HE Fair took place last week in the college's brand new Enterprise Centre with over 35 eager Universities all keen to attract Harrow College students.

Speaking of the 2015 Higher Education progression statistics, Lee Janaway, Director of Student Experience at Harrow College said "We are extremely proud of what our students have achieved and hope this information can be used to inspire and motivate both current and potential students. The college continues to achieve great things and this is down to the fantastic dedication of our students and staff."

The success of Harrow College comes at a time of much activity, change and development. High profile visits including the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have seen Harrow College become a familiar name in recent weeks thanks to extensive newspaper and TV coverage. Facilities have been greatly developed over the past year, with the College having just opened two new buildings including the flagship Enterprise Centre, as well as the refurbishment and modernisation of a number of specialist services including new look Science Labs and a Media Editing Suite.

The courses on offer also continue to evolve including the opening of Careers Colleges specialising in Digital & Creative and Professional & Business Services. Courses like these will provide students with a new path into employment as well as Higher Education.

Harrow College has an Open Day taking place on Wednesday 4th November from 4pm-8pm at their Harrow on the Hill campus where visitors can meet tutors and discuss courses. For more information, contact Harrow College on 020 8909 6000 or click here

Harrow College will be opening its doors to the public on Wednesday 4th November 2015 for an open evening at the Harrow on the Hill campus. The event is a great opportunity for prospective students and their parents to come and find out more about the many study options available for 2016/17.

Harrow College is one of the largest colleges in North West London and caters for students at all educational levels. Courses include A-Levels, BTEC, Apprenticeships, Traineeships, TechBac and Foundation Learning.

The courses on offer continue to evolve with the College recently introducing Careers Colleges to its curriculum, specialising in Digital & Creative and Professional & Business Services. Courses like these will provide students with a new path into employment as well as Higher Education.

Subjects are wide ranging to suit all interests and match many career paths. These include Science, IT, Business, Health and Beauty, Sport, Health and Social Care with Childcare, Art and Design, Creative Media, Construction, Humanities, Maths and English for Speaker of a Foreign Language (ESOL).

Teaching staff from all subject areas will be on hand to provide further information about courses and will be happy to answer questions. Current students will also be present to offer a student's perspective on life at the FE College.

The event will also provide the first opportunity for the public to see the brand new Enterprise Centre which will be hosting the open evening. The flagship building opened in September 2015 and has already had a high profile visit from the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

The open evening comes at an exciting time for the College. Facilities have been greatly developed over the past year with the College having just opened two new buildings, as well as the recent refurbishment and modernisation of a number of specialist services, including new look Science Labs and a Media Editing Suite. The College also recorded its highest Higher Education progression score in 2015 with 81% of those applying successfully securing a place at university.

The Open Evening will take place from 4pm-8pm. Limited parking will be available. For more information, click here or call 020 8909 6000.

Harrow College welcomed over 35 universities and other Higher Education (HE) providers through its doors last week for an annual HE Fair.

The brand new Enterprise Centre played host to various universities from across the UK who were all attending the event keen to appeal to Harrow College students who are considering their HE options for 2016.

Students had the opportunity to speak with university representatives and discuss various HE related issues including course content, entry requirements, career options and employment routes.

The colleges own careers team were also on hand offering information about services available throughout the year to all students including UCAS support, gap years, employment opportunities and more.

The event comes at a time where Harrow College is celebrating its HE success. In 2015, of all HE applications, 81% successfully secured a university place, which included Russell Group universities. This calibre of student achievement is a proud milestone for the college and one that universities were keen to engage with during the HE Fair.

For more information about the careers service at Harrow College, click here.

A Harrow College student determined to pursue a career goal has achieved his "dream" start by securing an apprenticeship with a local fitness centre.

Chandler Hutchinson, 19, completed a Sports Diploma at Harrow College at the end of last term. He progressed through the levels over a 3 year period which including passing his GCSE English as well as accommodating a part-time Fitness Instructor course. Chandlers intention was clear – he'd set his sights on achieving his career goal of working as a gym coach / personal fitness trainer.

During the final year of his studies, Chandler started looking at his career options and how he could best pursue his career ambitions. He sought advice from his course tutors and the Harrow College careers team as well as doing his own research.

With support from his tutors including Shelley Mitchinson, Sports Course Leader at Harrow College, Chandler was introduced to the Willesden Sports Centre. Following a series of meetings and an interview process, local Harrow resident Chandler was offered an apprenticeship with the sports centre.

Chandler will remain as a full time employed member of staff for the 10 month programme. Whilst working and gaining valuable experience, the sports centre is also supporting Chandler with additional qualifications. They have funded a Lifeguard qualification which Chandler has passed as well as a First Aid course. Chandler is now studying toward attaining a Level 3 BTEC qualification in Leisure and Fitness whilst working at Willesden Sports Centre.

Chandlers long term ambition is to progress up the career ladder to one day becoming a Site Operations Manager which would include the management and planning of everything within a fitness centre just like Willesden Sport Centre, from the swimming pool and different classes, through to the gym and personal training schedules.

Speaking about his apprenticeship, Chandler said "My sports course at Harrow College was really enjoyable but also challenging. With the support of my teachers, who pushed me to fulfil my potential, not only did I pass my course but I also successfully secured a dream start to my career".

To learn more about Apprenticeships at Harrow College, click here

Harrow College will be exhibiting at the Skills Show 2015. The event, London's biggest jobs and careers event for young people, will give Harrow College the opportunity showcase its services and facilities and to promote the many courses it has to offer, with a special focus on Apprenticeships.

The Skills London 2015 show will take place at the ExCel London Exhibition and Convention Centre on 13-14 November 2015. Harrow College will be at stand 921 so come and say hello!

The event will be open to 15- to 24-year-olds and will offer over 180 exhibitors including employers, colleges training providers and advisors. There will also be skilled demos bringing the world of work to life, as well as information, advice and guidance to students who are looking to progress their education and careers.

In 2014, Skills London attracted 32,490 visitors and featured over 45,000 job opportunities, including Apprenticeships, 196 exhibitors including top name employers, colleges, training providers and advisers (see video below).

To pre-register for free entry click here.

As part of a Harrow College project, students have spent eight weeks creating an exciting and meaningful #HarrowEXPO event. The project aims to enable students to showcase their curriculum area and provide a clear sense of purpose and direction in all aspects of their study and future choice of career.

Hosted by students Leila Garrab, Emmanuel Verinca and Romikumar Prakashbabu Patel, the EXPO topic was selected to raise awareness of knife crime through IT to an audience of over 100 fellow students and parents.

External organisations were also in attendance at the event including The Ben Kinsella Trust, Street Doctors and Digital Works Consulting.

Students provided an educational and informative event through a series of talks, videos, musical performances and presentations of websites that had been designed by students as part of the project.

Lawrence De'Ath, Senior Partner for Product and Technology at Digital Works Consulting said: "Harrow College made a bold choice for a project topic and this really engaged the students. The web design competition was excellent and students showed great promise for progress in their studies. The winner made good choices for the topic and the audience - a bold design with social connections. The demand for skills in this area is huge, the students have some great opportunities ahead of them."

Student particpation in the event was high including performances by Harrow College students, singer Bobby Milenovski and pianist Emmanuel Verinca.

Career Colleges student and pianist Emmanuel Verinca said: "This was my first time playing piano in front of students at the College but they were really supportive. This project has helped me to feel more educated about knife crime and it was good to feel that we informed students whilst developing our IT skills."

Fellow student Romikumar Prakashbabu Patel added: "It was a good experience to be involved in the #HarrowEXPO event and to have a chance to show our work to parents and visitors. We displayed the websites that we've been working on to inform our peers about knife crime. I'm thankful to have had this opportunity to learn more about such an important topic that is relevant to young people."

Following the event, first aid training was provided for students in haemorrhage control and unconsciousness by Street Doctors.

Alistair of Street Doctors' North London team said: "Working with the young people from Harrow College was an inspiration. They were very engaged and motivated throughout all of the sessions. The Pro Anti-Shank Event that we attended showcases the young people's awareness to knife crime and their commitment to breaking the cycle of violence. It was great fun to visit Harrow College and teach the young people who made us feel welcome - we can't thank them enough."

Further photos of the IT EXPO can be viewed here.

The #HarrowEXPO will continue across other curriculum areas with further updates to follow.

The OCR Level 2 IT course is now accepting applications for September 2016. Apply today.

Learners from Harrow College's LLDD departments (Learners with Learning Difficulties/Disabilities) have delivered a very creative, colourful and inspiring Fete as part of the Harrow College Expo.The Fete, called Good Foundations Expo, took place at Spring House - the Colleges specialist LLDD facility which opened in September 2015.

Students from all learner groups came together to showcase their business enterprise skills and creative work. Stalls were set up where passionate learners had the opportunity to sell their work. Items being exhibited included pottery items, handmade cards, decorated chairs, paintings and lots of homemade food and drink treats.

Interactive sessions were also set up where visitors could take part in a personality profile questionnaire to discover more about themselves. A henna expert also ensured people left with wonderful art work printed on their hands.

Visitors came from all over. Existing students and staff from across the college came along and couldn't resist buying some of the goodies on offer. Proud parents dropped by during the morning event to see their children at work. Local schools Kingsley and Shaftesbury brought groups of their students to the event.

The event also gave Harrow College an opportunity to provide details of new courses on offer for the new intake of students in September 2016. Terry Knight, Curriculum Manager for Entry and LLDD at Harrow College said "We have a very diverse range of students in the section and it was wonderful to see them coming together for the Expo. We will be running new courses in 2016 for students with PMLD and SLD and some learners on a Link from Kingsley School were able to join in too. The event was for the students as much as for the guests so I am really pleased at the level of participation all round".

Student Ajini Goldwyn, 19, from the Independent Learning Course had her own stand at the Fete selling her homemade bead designs along with her friends. She said "I've really enjoyed selling my beads and have met lots of people today. I hope to set up my own website and then one day make my idea into a business".

ICT students (Information & Communications Technology) concluded a business inspired project by holding an Expo celebration event called 'Digi Design'.

Over the past few weeks, BTEC level 3 students have been working on two projects. The first centred on raising funds for the Teenage Cancer Trust. The students designed t-shirts to be worn specifically at a pre-organised charity bowling event. The winning design and logo (chosen by Teenage Cancer Trust) was then professionally printed onto t-shirts ready for sale. Students put their ICT skills to use creating Excel spreadsheets to help calculate production costs and track sales. The successful bowling event was attended by over 150 students and t-shirt sales resulted in profits of over £150 donated to the charity.

Learners were also tasked with designing interactive commercial websites based on specific client briefs. Websites included a food and drink business, a travel and tourism site and a stop smoking website amongst many more.

Industry experts from organisations such as Capgemini and UrbanMedia were invited to attend the Expo event. During the day, they judged the spreadsheets and the website designs. Students had the chance to present their work whilst the judges watched and listened on with interest, looking out for key factors such as ease of use, design and functionality.

The day concluded with a buzzing presentation ceremony where the audience, made up of students and staff, were entertained with live performances, music and snacks. The judges then awarded prizes to the winning students which marked a fantastic end to a lively day and weeks of hard work.

Sultan Soukani, Curriculum Manager for ICT said "By presenting our students with real life scenarios, not only do they learn the fundamentals of the curriculum but they do so in a way which is relevant, interactive and enjoyable. Feedback from students today has been very positive".

Science and Maths was the centre of attention at the Weald Campus last week as the two subjects combined to deliver their Expo celebrations. Students showed exactly why the two subjects can be so much fun, fascinating and imperative to our daily lives in so many ways.

The Science and Maths takeover saw exhibitions taking place across the campus. Science students donned labs coats as they gave demonstrations to fascinated onlookers including heart dissections, urine tests and lung and DNA model exhibits. Chemistry students had their safety goggles on as they did a number of live experiments including exothermic reactions which saw sparks fly and volcanoes erupt – literally! Others took to the field and fired rockets high into the air using water pressure. Earth science, protein synthesis, rotten bread experiments, the processes that support life in our atmosphere and robotics were just a few of the others which kept visitors, including local primary school children, intrigued throughout the afternoon.

Maths students were there to show visitors the importance of mathematics. Using science as a focus topic, they presented plans of how they would set about designing and building a new pharmacy and other business buildings. They explained the role that maths would play including the formulation of business plans, forecasting sales and calculating profit and loss.

Michael Worgs, Curriculum Manager for Science at Harrow College, was delighted with the Expo event. He said "The students were really keen to showcase the subjects they study. They put a lot of work into today's event and feedback from visitors has been fantastic. It was great that we've had the opportunity to welcome guests through our college doors to see the great work our students do to progress with their education".

Students at Harrow College came together and combined their knowledge of construction and engineering to design an Eco-house – a seven week long building project as part of the departments Expo celebrations.

Blended teams consisting of student plumbers, electricians and carpenters on City & Guilds courses embarked on the project which put sustainability and renewable resource at the heart of the build - a key focus of the construction industry which will continue to have significance in building projects of the future.

Each team worked on all aspects of the build. Both theory and practical elements were applied during the progression of the project. Topics including the choice and use of specific materials, the costing of the build and health and safety were all addressed.

As the weeks progressed, passionate young learners and proud course tutors saw the Eco House take shape. Working together as a team helped the students develop teamwork, communication and presentation skills. The successful application of these skills ultimately ensured the students achieved their building project objectives. From idea conception seven weeks ago to a final presentation event, students unveiled their Eco House in a packed room filled with students, parents and VIP visitors.

One of the guests at the Expo event was Matthew Simmons, Head of Construction and Engineering at City & Guilds. He commented "combining different trades to look at a sustainable project is a clear and unique approach to attracting people into the industry. The topic of sustainability is key topic for the sector and events like todays Expo are fantastic for encouraging growth in the sector".

One of the students involved in the build was Stephen Graves, 19. He said "The project was a great opportunity to learn new skills and grow in confidence. Working in mixed groups gave us valuable experience of different trades within the sector. I hope to one day become a self-employed carpenter".

The Eco House will now continue to be built and developed by the learners to further enhance their learning experience and provide opportunity for assessment.

‪ESOL students have held their Expo event sharing stories of personal journeys to the UK, course work displays, international music, traditional dance, food from around the world and lots more. The celebratory event took place at Harrow College's new Enterprise Centre as part of the wider Harrow Expo. ‬‬

Foundation and Entry level students took the Expo opportunity to showcase the progress they have made on their respective courses via project presentations, colourful and creative displays and the use of new technology including an app which brought still images to life. Topics included food and diet, healthcare, inspirational business leaders, live art work demonstrations and student success stories.

The group, largely made up of international students, also passionately presented stories of their journeys from abroad using photographs, drawings and illustrations to visualise life back at their home countries, the travel routes made to reach the UK and what being British now represented to them. They also made videos on topics such as the dangers of radicalisation, dangers of online dating, and social evils such as drugs, alcohol and racism.

The packed event brought together staff and students from the entire ESOL department along with a number of visitors from within the college and outside. Guests were treated to international cuisine whilst students danced to music from their home countries. The wonderful celebratory atmosphere made this an Expo event to remember.

Reflecting on the event, Mumtaz Van-Der-Vord, Head of ESOL at Harrow College said "students have really embraced the Expo and should be really proud. The event itself shows the high standard of talent amongst our students and has given them a chance to shine. We now look forward to learners going on to complete their studies with us and progressing on to successful careers".

A cold and windy Tuesday evening was brightened up to the highest level when Hair, Beauty & Make-Up students from Harrow College wowed a packed audience with a Winter Wonderland themed fashion show as well as free beauty treatments as part of their student Expo celebrations.

The event, at the new Enterprise Centre, brought together current students from various Hair, Beauty and Make-Up courses at the college. Nail bars offered visitor's mini manicures including hand massages, nail filing and nail design. A separate dark room was set up especially for the evening where guests were invited inside to relax as students performed Indian head massages. This soothing treatment ensured an air of calm could set in before the highlight of the evening commenced.

With the area now packed with standing room only, the much anticipated fashion show commenced. Music played aloud as student models took to the cat walk parading in fantastic costumed designed by their fellow peers. Hair styles were on point whilst face make-up was creatively designed with every little detail carefully choreographed. The models took a well-deserved standing ovation as they waved to the crowds (scroll to bottom of page to view video).

The event ended with the projection of a special video produced by media students which captured a day in the life of the Hair & Beauty department at Harrow College. With a few laugh out loud moments included, the video showcased the quality facilities on offer to students that support them as they pursue their career ambitions.

Speaking of the event, Coron Zammito, Curriculum Manager for Hair & Beauty at Harrow College said "everybody has been really excited about today's Expo and we're pleased so many people were able to attend and see the high standard of work our students produce. With their continuing hard work and our support, we're confident that many will go on to have successful careers in the industry".

A team of four maths students from Harrow College recently attended Merchant Taylors' School in Northwood to compete against other schools and colleges in the Middlesex heat of the Senior Team Maths Challenge (STMC) - jointly organised by the UK Mathematics Trust (UKMT) and the Further Maths Support Programme.

The STMC is a UK-wide challenge testing mathematical, communication and teamwork skills, with students competing against other schools and colleges from their region.

The competition consisted of three parts: a group round, a cross number (similar to a crossword) and a "shuttle", where the answer from one question is needed to answer the following question. The team from Harrow College consisted of a sister and brother, Xiao and Hao Chen, as well as Viktoria Noel and Daregoba Darego.

The four students practised hard in advance of the event which, as expected, involved very tough competition. Although the team did not progress into the next round, both the practice sessions and the event itself were valuable activities for the students who tested their wits amongst some of the UK's brightest young mathematicians.

Maths Lecturer and team mentor Kathy Fry from Harrow College said "We have entered this competition every year since 2008 and it is always a worthwhile experience for the team, stretching them mathematically and showing them that Maths can be fun and is not just a subject you learn in order to pass exams."

Well done to the team from Harrow College!

A team of A-Level Economics students from Harrow College visited the Bank of England recently to put their monetary knowledge to the test.

On Wednesday 18 November, a team of five students - Maleeka Imam, Ahman Kacker, Abdus Samad, Francis Vincent and Endrit Ramadani, entered Bank of England HQ in central London as a shadow Monetary Policy Committee. Their challenge was to present a country-wide interest rate recommendation to the Bank of England for the month of November.

The team studied the competition brief and put together their plan. Their recommendations were then confidently presented to a panel of Bank of England resident economists.

The Harrow team were competing with six other schools in this heat. The competition was tough as expected but the team did themselves and Harrow College proud by putting together a very professional presentation. Although the team did not go through, it was a magnificent effort and will encourage a new team to take on the challenge next year.

Speaking about the competition, Harrow College Economics Lecturer Panos Nicolaides said "the brief was very difficult and required many considerations. The Harrow College team did an extremely good job of putting together a well thought out plan and presented very well. The experience has been invaluable and feedback from the Bank of England panel was very positive. The students really enjoyed the day".

The importance of staying safe has been the focus this week at Harrow College. Staying Safe Week is an annual week of events that highlights safety and the measures which students should be taking to ensure they stay safe – both inside and outside of college.

Fairs have taken place at both the Weald and Harrow on the Hill campus, providing students with lots of information relating to different safety topics including drinking safely, hate crime, bullying, sexual health, counselling and cybercrime. Representatives from the Metropolitan Police transport Safety Team were present to talk about staying safe while you travel such as keeping your valuables out of sight when on a bus or the tube, keeping your mobiles phones and tablets safe, and recognising licensed and unlicensed taxis.

The Harrow College Student Union took the opportunity to launch a campaign which saw lots of students signing their names to the anti-bullying pledge, aimed at encouraging students to say an absolute no to bullying and to not accept it in anyway.

Students from the colleges Skills Centre also attended Harrow Arts Centre where they watched a 'Safe Drive, Stay Alive' performance organised through Harrow Council. This was a thought provoking and emotional session involving representatives from all of the emergency services explaining what they do in the event of a car accident. Students also heard from those directly affected as a result of a car accident and the impact it has had on their lives.

Other events have included a live interactive session called 'Trap Queen' which saw a group of young women describe their experiences of being involved in gangs and how they turned their lives around. The week concluded with a talk called "Cyberspace – the new Battleground" by a local IT expert who spoke about the rise of internet crime and the steps we should all take to stay safe online.

The events this week were organised with the help of students and Harrow College Enrichment Coordinator Sandie Petrie. She said "Keeping our students safe is of upmost paramount. The annual Staying Safe Week brings safety to the forefront and allows us to engage with students in different ways. This week we've had fairs, talks, performances, interactive sessions and more which has raised awareness of safety issues and will hopefully help our student stay safe".

As the Harrow College Expo season of events and activities continued, it was the turn of Media and Art students to showcase their creative talents. Focussing on the local community as their inspiration, the young learners presented lots of different projects to mark their Expo celebrations.

BTEC Level 3 Creative Media students produced short documentaries celebrating the diversity and regeneration of the borough. The videos explored various aspects of community life including business, landmarks, the community and individuals. The students worked with various employers from around Harrow, many of whom were in attendance to watch the final documentary screenings.

Art students produced a wide variety of work including ceramic creations, 2D designs and architectural work. BTEC Level 2 Art and Design learners explored places in Harrow that best represented the borough to them. They then designed, planned and produced clay craftwork that captured the Harrow environment. Another group produced 2D décor based on cultural diversity of the local area.

BTEC Level 3 Art and Design students were commissioned to re-design a playground for Belmont School. Meanwhile second year architecture students put forward ideas of developing temporary use of empty buildings in Harrow Weald. They presented their ideas for Corporate Director of Environment and Enterprise at Harrow Council, Tobias Goevert, using smartphones and tablets to superimpose their drawings over photographs. BTEC L3 architecture, interior and product design learners were commissioned to design large scale contemporary festive decorations that celebrated and represented the multi ethnic communities of the borough.

Year 1 fashion students worked with St Lukes Hospice making 'Hybrid Garments' for their charity shop. They joined two unwanted garments to make a new hybrid one. During the project students learned about draping, how to use sewing machines and completed seam samples before cutting and joining their final pieces.

Owen Price Curriculum Manager for Art, Design and Media said "Art and Media students worked hard to produce a fantastic body of work that celebrated all facets of life in Harrow. I was particularly impressed with the readiness and skills learners displayed when talking with real employers. The outcomes were of high quality and the future opportunities our students have with the same employers are also very exciting".

Sports students at Harrow College have enjoyed an action packed start to life at the college with various activities taking place as part of their Expo celebration.

The Harrow College Expo has been celebrating and showcasing student life at the college. The Expo has given students from each department an opportunity to provide an insight to their peers and guests into what they do on their course and what their aspirations are for the year ahead.

During the first 6 weeks of term, sports students had a change to normal timetable activity which saw learning being taken out of the classroom. Students attended a SWAT police training day in conjunction with the Met Police. They also took to the heights with a rock climbing and high ropes experiences at the XC Centre in Hemel Hemstead.

The sports department at Harrow College shares a close affiliation with Sky Sports. Students were taken to Sky studios to watch the filming of hit TV show Fantasy Football Club as well as going back stage and meeting the shows stars. A visit to the Sky Careers Lab was another valuable day out for the young learners who got an insight from Sky experts into careers within the sports and media sectors.

Back at college, students took part is dodgeball sessions putting their fitness, coordination and team skill to full use. An army day took place where stamina was tested alongside problem solving skills. Learners also set up a mobile health clinic within the grounds Lowlands Park where they offered members of the public with free health advice and information as well as live fitness demonstrations.

To mark the end of their Expo, the department held a presentation event in the college lecture theatre this week, reflecting back on a busy 6 weeks. Student representatives spoke passionately about their experiences and their determination to excel in their sports courses. The session included the first screening of a video which showed some fantastic highlights from the various Expo activities the students had taken part in.

Speaking about the Expo events, Shelley Mitchinson, Sports Course Leader said "We decided to take learning away from the classroom for the Sports Expo. The activities we did were not only great fun but also enabled the students to use their skills and strengths in a number of new ways. Students have completed the Expo feeling very positive and we all now look forward to another successful year here at Harrow College".

To learn more about Sports and Fitness courses at Harrow College, click here.

Three Harrow College students have won the highly respected Jack Petchey Achievement Award for their efforts and dedication during the first term of this academic year.

The scheme is a reward and recognition initiative which enables youth organisations like Harrow College to celebrate the achievements of their young people.

The Jack Petchey Foundation was launched in 1999 by Jack Petchey CBE, himself an East End entrepreneur. He is now 90 years old and his is a real 'rags to riches' story. He worked long and hard, overcoming adversity and going on to become a multi-millionaire through his various business ventures, which have spanned from motor car dealing and garages to property, travel and investment. On their website, a quote from Jack Petchey regarding his awards programme reads "We do it because we want to help young people raise their aspirations, believe in themselves and make a contribution to their society".

As well as their awards, each student winner also receives a grant of £200 which is to be used for the benefit of a group.

Below are the winners with detail of why they won:

Prachi Shah:  Prachi is a 2nd year BTEC Level 3 Applied Science student. She is also a student ambassador. In the role she regularly assists the chemistry technician preparing the science labs. She very generously dedicates her time to this, often coming in on her days off to help. She can service equipment such as pH meters, burettes and make-up solutions. At busy times in the prep room, Prachi's assistance, along with her positive attitude, willingness and reliability is invaluable.

Nerice Campbell-Forde:  Nerice developed the idea of producing a presentation on mental health to support young people. This was due to a recent media report which stated that young people, particularly at the beginning of the academic year, tend to suffer from emotional problems due to changes in their lives. Nerice developed the idea of an app where learners can communicate with each other and share their emotional problems and tips on how to deal with them. Nerice and her peers are going to develop this into a national app with the help of funding from the Prince's Trust if her application is successful.

Charlie Moon:  Charlie has given up a full time job to accommodate his Functional Skills studies. This has had a financial impact to Charlie and his family however he believes in himself and is determined achieve the education and skills required to establish a career as a plumber. Charlie deserves recognition for outstanding dedication to his college work and attitude for selflessly helping others who require a little extra help from a fellow peer.

Learners from the Harrow College Art and Design department took part in an annual Winter Fair which took place inside St Ann's shopping centre, Harrow.

BTEC level 3 learners from the Year 1 Architecture course, together with Year 2 Art and Design Diploma learners, produced a series of Christmas themed 3D ceramic tea light holders, decorative lights, lanterns, picture frames, and bags.

One of the learners involved in the event was Ibrahim Said who designed a creative logo for the event and produced fliers and a poster as promotional material.

Many of the learners demonstrated fantastic entrepreneurial skills by promoting items and selling them to shoppers. Learners spoke to each buyer, discussing how the items were created and designed individually, much to the interest of St Ann's shoppers and passers-by.

Owen Price, Curriculum Manager for Art, Design and Media, said "It was a fun day at St Ann's shopping centre with a fantastic Christmas atmosphere. The learners had worked hard to create a range of quality items for sale and certainly generated a lot of interest. The lecturing team and I were particularly impressed with the entrepreneurial skills on display. Learners were very excited to engage with shoppers and proud to sell and promote their artwork. We hope to expand the Winter Fair next year and really look forward to seeing more of our talent from Harrow College on display".

Harrow College’s new Enterprise Centre building has now been completed by leading construction and infrastructure company Morgan Sindall plc.

The four-storey business enterprise unit radically improves the teaching space at Harrow College with state-of-the-art classrooms and open-plan areas for learning, and will help meet the growing demand for college places in the area. The building was developed with innovation and sustainability at the project’s core and has achieved a Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) rating of Excellent.

It comprises full automatic air conditioning, with heat recovery ventilation, solar control glazing, and low energy LED internal and external lighting. It also includes photovoltaic panels which generate electricity by converting solar energy.

Morgan Sindall’s project team also delivered external landscaping which was designed and implemented with the aid of a specialist in animal habitats, to provide shelter for local bat, bird and insect species.

Judith Abbott, Director of Finance and Resources at Harrow College said: “We are delighted with the new Enterprise Centre which has been designed and built to a high standard. The building has a real ‘wow factor’ and the BREEAM rating reflects the College’s strategic objective to be a leading sustainable college.

"Our students now have a first class learning environment, and the facility will also benefit the wider Harrow community serving as a business and innovation hub. It has been a pleasure working with Morgan Sindall’s highly professional staff to bring our vision of an outstanding flagship building to life.”

Neil Franklin, area director of Morgan Sindall, said: “We are incredibly proud to have delivered this truly innovative and sustainable building for Harrow College.

“Throughout the duration of the project, Morgan Sindall has been dedicated to creating a centre of excellence which will broaden the educational offering in the area and lead the way for other sustainable construction projects.

“Our team has a great depth of experience in delivering high-quality education schemes across the country and we are pleased to add this ambitious and forward-thinking project to that roster of projects."