Record Year for Reaseheath College

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One of the country’s most successful specialist colleges, Reaseheath College in Nantwich, Cheshire, has notched up another record year of student enrolments and achievements.

The college’s annual awards ceremony, held over two days last week, celebrated the success of  1371 Further Education students who had achieved industry recognised qualifications and skills.

Torrence Summerfield, Becky Harper, Jess Fallows, Amy Champ, James Latter L3 Ext Dip Agriculture top students

Top Level 3 Extended Diploma in Agriculture students Torrence Summerfield, Becky Harper, Jess Fallows, Amy Champ and James Latter

The students, from across the UK and abroad, are preparing for careers in agriculture, environmental conservation, animal or equine management, agricultural engineering, motor vehicle, business, food manufacture, floristry, horticulture, forestry, construction, public services or in leisure industries such as sport and outdoor adventure.

Sharing congratulations with a capacity audience, Principal Meredydd David emphasised that 97% of Reaseheath’s students achieve their qualification and that 90% progress into employment or onto higher level courses.

A recent independent economic impact assessment had shown that Reaseheath contributed £85 million to the regional economy last year and that parents and students receive a 17% return on their investment in education – a £7 return for every pound invested.

Jack Williams, top student, Level 3 Diploma Countryside Management

Jack Williams, top student, Level 3 Diploma Countryside Management

Fantastic opportunities lay ahead for Reaseheath students as the importance of the industries they were about to enter had been recognised by the government. An agriculture and technology strategy had been launched, supported by £80million of investment.

To stay abreast with these opportunities, Reaseheath was investing £8million to develop a national centre for horticulture, environmental management and sustainability which would open in September 2015.

This year, the college had opened a new hall of residence for 150 students, a new sport fitness centre and a National Academy for Food Engineering in partnership with industry. This brought the total investment on world class facilities over eight years to £45 million. There were plans to invest a further £30 million over the next five years.

Guest speakers were Dr Pete Waterman from Cheshire & Warrington Local Enterprise Partnership and John Myers, Head of Employer and Delivery Services, and Jane Cowell, Director of Young People’s Funding, both from the Education Funding Agency.

Five outstanding students received special cross college awards

Twm-Tegid Brunton, a Level 3 Diploma in Forestry and Arboriculture student, was chosen as the student making the best contribution to college life. An outstanding student ambassador, he had voluntarily attended over 40 college information events and had gone out of his way to support the student services team. A  member of the North West Welsh Opera Choir, he had also sung at the student ball.

Katie Gibson, who had completed Level 3 Diploma in Professional Bakery, were selected for making the best all round contribution to the college. She had made an outstanding input into RAG (Raising and Giving) activities and had added responsibilities as press officer for the student magazine.

Rachel Bowles, a Foundation Degree in Animal Management undergraduate, was singled out for personal qualities. The Student Association sustainability representative, Rachel was also chair of Reaseheath’s Conservation Society as well as helping to lead charity fundraising.

Student Association President Sam Norfolk, a Foundation Degree in Adventure Sports graduate, was recognised for contributing most to Reaseheath’s sporting activities. As captain of Reaseheath’s Men’s football team, he had played 11 competitive matches and organised additional charity matches and sporting projects.

Lucy Culwick, a Level 3 Extended Diploma in Agriculture student, was awarded the Beacon Trophy celebrating excellence. Diagnosed as having a  hole in her heart during her course, Lucy had undergone open heart surgery and had recuperated for just six weeks before returning to college. She had caught up with her studies, involved herself with college life and was now going to study for a Degree in Agriculture.

 

You can see the full role of honour and more photographs from the day here.

 

Dealerships join Reaseheath College to enhance student experience

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Reaseheath College agriculture students operated £1million-worth of technical machinery during the first silaging operation of the season.

The cutting edge machinery and equipment was loaned to the Cheshire college by local agricultural machinery dealerships who are supporting efforts to give Reaseheath students practical experience in precision farming.

students mowing

Reaseheath students mowing, using a blue New Holland T6 supplied by Malpas Tractors and a CLAAS Arion 530 and CLAAS mower from Morris Corfield

First year agriculture students got the chance to operate the machinery and a carefully selected group of 30 joined the full time harvesting team under supervision, enabling the harvest of first cut grass silage over 200 acres to be carried out more efficiently. The students were involved in all parts of the operation, from mowing and raking to ferrying to the silage clamp.

Harvesting of 62 acres was completed over two days with the use of three mowers. The grass was wilted for 24 hours, half of the ideal time, and then collected as rain was predicted. Average volume was 21 tonnes fresh weight per hectare (8.5 tonnes/acre) with an estimated D Value 68, Dry Matter 24%, protein 16% and ME 10-11. Ecosyl 100 silage additive was used to aid fermentation.

silaging – harvester in action

The silage will be used in conjunction with maize silage, wholecrop wheat and lucerne haylage to feed the Reaseheath Holstein milking herd from the end of June this year.

Said Farm Manager Mark Yearsley: “This was a great opportunity to give the first year students hands-on experience of the silaging process using top of the range machinery. The weather was against them but they carried out the whole operation from preparing the clamps to sealing them when finished very safely and competently.

“Some students will go on to work on farms and some will be employed by contractors. They now have the foundation and confidence to become quality staff.”

Dealerships who loaned machinery included RVW Pugh Ltd., of Holmes Chapel, which delivered a top of the range Fendt 716 tractor, Massey Ferguson tractor and a Vicon mower conditioner. Speaking for all his colleagues, Area Sales Manager Bob Cooper said: “We were delighted to help Reaseheath on this project. These students are the next generation of farmers and they will be our future customers.  It was only fitting that they should be able to see first hand the enormous technological advances which are being made within the industry.”

Dealerships which loaned machinery for the silaging operation were:

You can find out more about our Agriculture courses here.

 

National endorsement for Horticulture Department

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Reaseheath’s Horticultural Department received national recognition as it became officially accredited by the Institute of Horticulture (IOH).  The IOH is the professional body for the industry and has recently been granted a Royal Charter by The Queen, which recognises the importance of the horticulture in society.

The IOH’s endorsement of the department highlights the high standard of horticultural education and facilities on offer at Reaseheath, and the knowledge and skills students take with them into the industry. The department, which is already an Royal Horticultural Society Approved Centre, will be further enhancing its student experience in September 2015 with the opening of its new home in the National Centre for Food Futures and the Environment.

Speaking about the accreditation, Head of Department Steve Roach said: “The IOH Accreditation is a fitting endorsement to the skills, knowledge and professionalism of the Hortic team.  Reaseheath College is investing millions in new facilities to promote Horticulture in its widest sense and to prepare people for the ever increasing  demands of the industries that we serve. This accreditation is just a start in an exciting journey to take Horticulture to an aspirational level”.

Programme Leader for Horticulture, Sarah Hopkinson said: “The IOH accreditation is an excellent endorsement of the high quality training and education we deliver within the Department of Horticulture”.

“The Accreditation comes at an exciting time in the development of Horticulture at Reaseheath College and should contribute significantly to increased recruitment and effective stakeholder engagement to support our future growth and ambition”.

The Institute of Horticulture organises the prestigious Young Horticulturist of the Year competition, which all our horticulture students have the opportunity to compete in each year.

You can find out more about Horticulture at Reaseheath here.

 

Careers in focus: Emily Cooke, BSc (Hons) Equine Science, 2012

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BSC Equine Science 2009 Emily CookeClass of 2012 BSc (Hons) Equine Science  graduate Emily Cooke has been catching up with Reaseheath’s new Alumni Officer Katie Burt; filling her in on what she has been up to since leaving Reaseheath.
Here’s how they got on:

Hi Emily, great to hear from you – can you describe your current job role and responsibilities?

Since May 2013 I have been working as a rider at Paul Schockemöhle Pferdehaltung GmbH based in Neustadt-Glewe, north-east Germany (just over an hour from Hamburg and couple of hours from Berlin).  I work alongside over 25 riders at Schockemöhle’s and we’re all allocated our own specific list of horses to work with on a day-to-day basis. We work with and ride all of our allocated horses each day, which is approximately eighteen green horses (mares, geldings, and stallions) per rider. This process ensures all the horses are sufficiently exercised, ‘broken in’ and trained up to a professional showing standard.

 Your job sounds great Emily, can you tell me a little bit more about life as a rider?

It is crucial for each rider to take sole responsibility for our own allocated horses, ensuring they get the highest quality of care. It is our responsibility to consult vets, dentists and blacksmiths when necessary. Furthermore, it is our duty to ensure all treatments allocated to the horses are completed (injections, medication etc.).

 We have an important role to play as riders; at least once a week one of the senior representatives from Schockemöhle comes to our yard to check our progress and determine our horses’ proceeding careers; show jumping, breeding, sales etc.

 Wow, that’s impressive – so you have to do all this on your own?

Well, generally speaking yes, but we do have some support; every rider has around one or two grooms working for them, which is a great help. Along with this, we have two trainers who are always in the arenas to help us.

As you mentioned, you’ve been a rider since May 2013, what were you doing before this?

After graduating from Reaseheath, I went to work on a farm in Canada for four months (June 2009-October 2009) to ‘break in’ Welsh hunter ponies. This was fantastic work experience.  However, after the first couple of months, I realised that this role was a little too isolating for me. I worked a lot on my own and the farm location was somewhat in the ‘middle of nowhere’. As result, I headed back to the UK in search of my next venture.

I proceeded to spend some time back in the UK working as Sales Representative and did some office temping, whilst continuing to search for my ideal role within the equestrian industry…

How did you find job searching?

It is a bit of a lengthy process and can be rather disheartening at times. Regardless of the challenges faced, I continued to persevere and after some serious dedication to the job search I came across an advert online for a job as a rider at Paul Schockemöhle’s Gestüt Lewitz. I applied immediately and never looked back!

Do you find your job challenging?

I love my job as a rider, however sometimes it can be a very challenging environment to work in. The equestrian industry is generally a very competitive, on our yard alone we have thirteen riders and all are very talented. Everyone wants to train and produce the best horses. The trainers on site are very honest and can be quite brutal, if your work is below standard, they tell you. Many people come and go in a matter of months. The day starts at 7am; we feed the horses, muck out, lay clean straw and sweep before 8am. With roughly 130 stables on our yard, it’s quite a tough job with only around twenty-five people working – and that’s all before breakfast!

 What’s next for you?

 I’m always looking for continuing professional development and new riding opportunities. There is nothing more important to me than growing professionally and personally.  Initially moving forward, I would like to return to the UK for some time and complete my British Horse Society exams. Then, I’m off to Australia to work with Andrew McLean for three months at the Australian Equine Behaviour Centre (AEBC). I applied and was accepted on AEBC’s Working Pupil Program, a prestigious dedicated step-by-step training scheme, designed to support specific training goals for riders.

After Australia, I am considering an MSc in Equine Behaviour, otherwise I will continue working with horses around the world.

What advice would you give to our current students  looking to move into your industry?

Don’t be afraid to try something new. Have faith in yourself and your ability. Going abroad was the scariest and most rewarding decision I’ve ever made. I fully recommend it! I didn’t even know how to say ‘Hello’ in German, when I got on that plane…

Remember – if it doesn’t work out, you can always go home!