Employer Thank You Event
Andover College (Part of Sparsholt College Group) has hosted its second Employer Thank You Event on their Sparsholt Campus to celebrate local employers from a variety of different industries who support our students with apprenticeships and work placements.
The event’s guest speaker was TV Gardener and Author, David Domoney. David gave an uplifting and enthusiastic talk about horticulture and also how we should nurture young people into vibrant careers and help them along the way to develop their skills and talents. Whilst Leader of Hampshire County Council Cllr Adams King, also spoke to guests about the importance of the connection between education and employers.
There were five special recognition awards presented at the event.
The Industry Insight Award was presented to Crawfords Ltd, not only has this organisation been a visible presence within the SCG but they have also hosted several work experience placements for learners again from varying levels of study. The feedback they provide on learner performance is notably personalised and precise and has allowed our staff to specifically work with learners to further develop their employability skills.
The Apprentice Employer of the Year Award was presented to Dorset Council, a business SCG have been working with since December 2022. They have a fantastic ethos for developing their staff and continually offering apprenticeship opportunities to local individuals with enthusiasm for the outdoors.
The Employer Mentor Award was presented to Purple Oak Support as over the last academic year, a host of Andover College Health T Level and Foundation T Level students have been given opportunity to work with Purple Oak across several service departments to gain industry experience in a challenging but rewarding area within the health and social care sector.
The Supporting Special Educational Needs- Employer of the Year was presented to The Andover Mind Garden, located at Leckford which been designed for people to come together in nature, providing much needed respite and therapy for mental ill-health. The team have worked closely with the SCG’s Foundation staff to offer a huge range of work opportunities for learners including our more complex young people with severe learning difficulties.
Finally, the Collaborative Partner Award winner was announced as Richard Brooks, Business Development Manager from East Surrey College. This award is a particularly special award as it goes to the member of staff outside of SCG who has had most impact on SCG and from whom SCG think other colleges across the region have learned from the most. Richard has brought immersive technologies to colleges across the region, electric vehicles, emergency services and innovative retrofit training.
Suzanne Grant, Deputy Principal and CEO said “This is a particularly special year for Sparsholt College Group. It’s the year that our Sparsholt Campus will be turning a magnificent 125 years of age and our Andover Campus youngster that it is, will be turning 50 years old. It’s also the year that Ofsted came to visit us and recognised our delivery of educational needs, our leadership, and the attitudes and behaviours of our students to be outstanding. We also became one of the few in the Country to be recognised by as Strong in the delivery of skills needs, achieving that judgement in record breaking time. That’s really what this event is about. That strong judgement is as much about the employers we work with as it is about us.”
After the awards were presented, the employers were then able to take part in three activities. These included a tractor trailer ride around our beautiful campus, taking in views of our Equine Centre and Farm. A tour of our Animal Health and Welfare Research Centre, the home of the respected National Zoo Academy and discovering our Horticulture department and grounds.
Find out more about supporting our students by emailing enquiries@sparsholt.ac.uk
