News Archives - 2009

A string of superb team performances has seen Totton College’s sports students achieve fantastic results in Basketball and Football.

Totton College hosted its annual awards evening with its highest attendance and more awards and more sponsors than ever before. Those attending included former College Principal, Ken Johnston and College Patron, Maldwin Drummond. The Chair of Governors, Mike Hawker, opened the evening and introduced dazzling performances from the College’s Performing Arts Department.

The recently completed Cove (Centre of Vocational Excellence) building at Totton College has moved a step closer to being greener by installing solar power. The use of panels on the Cove building roof is the latest in a number of eco friendly initiatives taken up at the college such as recycling, bikes used for travelling to and from the college and energy efficient lighting and computers.

Mark Bramwell Principal of Totton College recently presented an award at the New Forest Business Partnership Brilliance in Business presentation evening held at Careys Manor. Mark and the Hon Ralph Montague who was also in attendance congratulated Paul Mincham and Charlotte Lowcock of Double H Nurseries for their business’s achievement.

Students from Totton College have been provided with information regarding HIV and other sexually transmitted Diseases on World Aids Day at Totton College.

Terminal Operators and Controllers from DP World Southampton’s container terminal have recently completed their ITQ level 2 training through Totton College. This was an innovative joint approach between DP World Southampton and Totton College to up skill the workforce in new technologies. The learning was arranged on site using college laptops to train the learners.

Carol Simpson-Grant a Totton College adult student has successfully obtained support from the Helena Kennedy Foundation. Since 1998, the Helena Kennedy Foundation has been running a bursary scheme to provide much needed financial support to disadvantaged students, who have successfully completed a further education course and wish to progress onto higher education.

A party of students and teachers from Totton College returned recently from a life-changing trip to Kenya. During the summer holidays they spent two weeks volunteering teaching English in Schools and working with destitute children in the orphanages and slums of Nakuru.

Mark Bramwell, Principal of Totton College, has been elected as Chair of the Sixth Form Colleges nationally. He has served on the National Council of the Sixth Form Colleges, representing the South and West Region. The Sixth Form Colleges’ Forum represents all 94 Sixth Form Colleges in England. He was recently invited to the Royal Garden Party at Buckingham Palace for his ‘Services to Further Education’.

Totton College and Unity 101 Radio have combined forces on an innovative and exciting project to bring Totton College Radio beyond the College and across the whole of Hampshire. The award winning Media Department at the College have thrown themselves into the project, which includes major investment into the College recording studio facilities and captures the imagination of students.

Totton College has matched last year's record GCE A-Level pass rate at 98%. The high pass rate at 66% was also the same as last year. The number of courses achieving a 100% pass rate increased to 30. The pass rate for Applied A-Levels increased by 4% to 100%. The College continued its record of a 100% pass rate at the BTEC National Diploma for a fourth year. However the number of BTEC students increased by a third and the students receiving three Distinctions increased by 100%. Overall the number of students on all Advanced programmes increased by 14% in the year.

The second annual Multi-Media 48-Hour Film Challenge ended Friday 10 July 2009 with seven contributions from Totton College students.

With the College year coming to an end, the annual Sports Presentation Awards celebrate effort and achievement across all competitive sports.

The first Totton College Multi-Media Awards took place on the afternoon of July 1st at Harbour Lights Cinema in Ocean Village, Southampton.

Roger Jarvis and Stephanie May, two ex Totton College students are holding an Art exhibition at Hanger Farm Arts Centre, Totton from June – July 2009.

The combined efforts of two departments at Totton College have resulted in a cheque for £1000 being donated to the Teenage Cancer Trust for the local appeal to create and equip a specialist teenage cancer ward at Southampton General Hospital.

AS-Level Textiles students attended the Graduate Fashion Week Education Day in Earl's Court, London on Thursday 11th June. There were over 50 universities and students were able to speak to university course leaders as well as graduates to find out about Fashion...

Totton College has won a national award for it’s A-Level Photography course. The Good Schools Guide A-Level Award for Boys taking Photography is based on the data underlying their post-16 performance table results for the three years 2006, 2007 and 2008 combined. The aim of the award is to highlight excellent teaching in individual subjects.

Four Totton College students studying Travel & Tourism volunteered to go to the House of Commons to usher at the Sixth Form College Forums new Prospectus launch. The day saw them carry out their duties of customer service, information and showing the dignitaries the facilities on the day.

Totton College student Claire Pugh 19, from Dibden Purlieu has successfully gained a place at the prestigious London College of Fashion to study a BA Honours Degree in Jewellery. Claire is currently studying on the BTEC Foundation Diploma course in Art and Design after completing her A level studies. Claire said ‘I would never have dreamt that I would end up studying at such an internationally renowned college, in the centre of London. Thanks to the support I received during my time at Totton, this dream has now been realised’.

Totton College students have teamed up with Kenyan Adventure to travel to Nakuru for two weeks in August. Once there they will be working with the Nakuru orphanage school; teaching, football coaching, tree planting and building new facilities. Students will have a truly authentic experience, staying with local families within walking distance of the projects. Despite its fabulous natural beauty and developed tourist industry, Kenya remains decimated by poverty, over half of Kenyans live on less that 60p per day. The projects the students are working on are designed to create more opportunity and to enhance standards of living.

For the sixth year running Totton College has fielded a team in the challenging and prestigious Engineering Education Scheme. Lower sixth students and budding engineers selected this year were; Alun Hughes, Tom Rogers, Laura Court and Jacob Dunning.

Totton College strives to minimise its environmental impact at all times. Last week our GCSE Citizenship group took this further by launching a project to inform students at Totton about hazards and solutions to environmental concerns. They have sprung many posters around the college and have presented slideshows in the refectory this Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

Ten Politics and Law students recently visited the Houses of Parliament and were able to meet and question the Member of Parliament for New Forest East, Dr Julian Lewis. The AS and A2 students started their day with an introduction to the work of Parliament and participated in an interesting law-making exercise, designed to encourage students to consider how they would deal with anti-social behaviour.

Totton College students studying the Uniformed Public Services course recently enjoyed an event filled day held by the Royal Marines at Browndown Camp, Lee-on-Solent. The event is designed to give students a flavour of what can be expected if you volunteered for service as a Royal Marine. To start the day students were given a briefing from Captain Harrison RM, then the Royal Marine display team; made up of selected marines from various Commandos most of which have seen active service in Afghanistan, took charge of their respective student groups for the rest of the day. Also present on the day were Rear Admiral Alabaster who was there to see the students put through their paces.

A group of A2 Travel and Tourism students from Totton College had to organise a trip for a group of students to somewhere of their choice for their Event Management portfolio of their A Level. To help them decide they produced a market research questionnaire where they asked their customers what sort of trip they would like to go on and where to.

Totton College has launched its new GOALS Programme at Southampton Football Club. The College is working closely with the Club to provide new education and training opportunities for 16-18 year olds. This exciting full time programme has taken six months planning and preparation. Sport, football in particular, is being used to motivate young people in 22 week courses at the Club.

Students from Totton College are celebrating their heat win in the International performing arts initiative known as the ‘Global rock Challenge’. Students from across the college pooled their resources to ensure that a stunning dance and drama performance was backed up by great music and a professional set – all designed by the Foundation Arts Students at Totton College.

On Wednesday 25th February a team of 10 AS Computing students took part in an IT and Communications Challenge Day organised by the Army, at Baker Barracks, Thorney Island, Emsworth.

27 Media and Film students from Totton College have returned from a week in Los Angeles. The annual event saw the students live in Southern California for a week where they experienced movie studios, beach, mountain and desert life and the Academy Awards on Oscar Sunday!

Students and staff were visibly shocked as members of the Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service worked to cut College Students free from a mangled car in the car park on Monday. However this was not the scene of a major incident but was all part of a crash demonstration and extrication designed to show students what can happen if they drive recklessly and become involved in an accident.

Totton students celebrated yet another record year after the average point score per student increased again for the fourth consecutive, successful year. The average Point Score measures student’s success at AS, A level and level 3 key skills and allows comparisons to be made between institutions. This criterion is particularly important to universities and therefore to students as it forms the basis of the University entrance criteria.

Totton College Economics students were recently privileged to visit the Houses of Parliament and to meet the Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling during a visit to Downing Street, London. The visit arranged through Totton College’s Business Department enabled A2 and AS level students to ask the Chancellor directly questions regarding the economy. Originally it was feared that they would not get to meet the Chancellor as he was due to travel to Davos on official business, however thanks to a last minute cancellation the meeting went ahead.

Totton College Media Production students Joe Batten, Jacob Drewett, Laura Thomas, Ryan Cooper and Georgina Ditton have been shortlisted for the final round of the Preloader Film Festival.

June Crump has been presented with an award for her outstanding contribution to achieving the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Aimhigher mission. June, who is Student Service Manager at Totton College, was among several nominees attending an award ceremony hosted by Unity Radio celebrating its third Anniversary at the Novotel, Southampton.

Craftsman Marc Bucci, a former Totton College student who is now serving in the Army with the Royal Electrical & Mechanical Engineers, came back to College to pass on his experiences to students studying Uniformed Public Services courses.