Creating an environment in which students can thrive as individuals has allowed Northampton College students to fulfill their potential and achieve grades that many thought were previously beyond them.
Treating every student as an individual, with bespoke learning experiences based on their own particular circumstances, has been a key factor in Northampton College being recognised as one of the top five colleges in the country and this approach has reaped its rewards in this year’s GCSE results.
Moldovan teenager Nicoleta Neculita was living in Italy but decided to embark on a new life in England with her boyfriend. Realising her existing qualifications would not be recognised in this country, she enrolled at Northampton College to sit her GCSE maths and English.
Soon after, she fell pregnant but, thanks to the support she was offered by her teachers, was able to successfully manage all those external factors and excel in her studies, achieving a grade 7 in English and 8 in maths.
She said: “It has been a big change for me but I’m proud of what I have managed to achieve. My baby is now three-weeks-old and I have the qualifications I need to continue my studies here in England, where I hope to go to university. The teachers were very helpful.”
Before joining Northampton College last September, Niamh Turner, 17, had been homeschooled and had not taken any GCSEs.
As well as achieving a Distinction in her Level 2 Illustration and Graphics course, Niamh has also passed her GCSE Mathematics Foundation course and achieved a grade 9 in GCSE English.
She said: “I was so happy to get my GCSE results. I was hoping to do well in my GCSE English but I didn’t expect to do as well as I did.
“The support I had from my tutors at Northampton College was great. My English teacher, in particular, did everything they could to help me achieve a high grade. They answered any questions I had and gave me additional work in lessons and helped me with my exam strategy.”
Niamh will begin the Level 3 Illustration course at Northampton College in September and hopes to go on to study comics and concept art at university so she can build a career in either character design or visual development art.
Jason Lancaster, the new Principal of Northampton College, said: “Treating every single one of our students as individuals is extremely important to us. We recognise that a one size fits all approach to learning simply doesn’t work in a college environment and we are committed to creating a bespoke programme that gives everyone the best possible chance of achieving their potential.
“I’m delighted to see so many of our students achieve exceptional results. For some that will be top grades, for others it will be progressing to the level they require to make the next steps in either their learning or their employment.
“We’re here to help students make that leap from college to career, and the personalised approach we take to learning is big factor in ensuring we achieve that.”
