Students from a Tees Valley college have been recognised for their successes and hard work at a glittering awards ceremony held last week (Wednesday 11th November).

Outstanding students were recognised for their achievements at Redcar & Cleveland College’s Celebration of Achievement event, with 18 being awarded accolades for being the top student in their subject area.

These winners went on to compete for the prestigious overall titles of Further Education, Higher Education and Work Based Learning Student of the Year.

Winner of the Further Education Student of the Year award was a student who has faced more than his fair share of challenges in life.

Twenty six year old Matthew Spencer arrived in the UK as a young child having been displaced from his country of birth, Zimbabwe, and during his time at school he struggled with health and immigration related issues.

Matthew enrolled on the BTEC National Diploma in Software Development for IT Practitioners at Redcar & Cleveland College as a way of catching up on the education he missed out on during his years at secondary school and since then he hasn’t looked back, excelling in every aspect of his course.

Talking about his reasons for nominating Matthew, his tutor Christopher Hart says that his outstanding attitude towards his studies and his willingness to help and encourage his peers make him a model student to work with: “Matthew has exceeded all previous performance standards by being the first student to achieve distinction grades in every single module on his course.

“Not only this but he has gone the extra mile to work with the other students on the course to help them achieve, involving everyone in the work and encouraging them to come forward with their own ideas.

“Matthew has now progressed on to a highly sought after course at Teesside University and I’m sure that he has a bright future ahead of him.”

After receiving his award, Matthew said he was stunned to receive the accolade: “I’m totally shocked to win the award, I really wasn’t expecting it.

“It’s really pleasing to be recognised for my hard work, but it is as much about the hard work of my tutors and my fellow students as the work that I have done.”

Winner of Higher Education Student of the Year was mature student Joan Foy who impressed her tutors with her performance throughout her time studying on the Early Years Sector Endorsed Foundation Degree. Joan’s tutor, Irene Walker, said of her: “From doubting her own ability at the start, Joan went on to exceed her own expectations. She constantly strived to extend her knowledge, skills and understanding to improve her own practice.

“She has a calm, warm, friendly personality, and is a pleasure to teach. She always shows concern for others, both students and teachers.“

The evening also saw the inaugural presentation of the Vicki Lawrence award, named after a student who tragically died in December 2008 shortly after successfully completing a course at the college and going on to study nursing at Teesside University.

Sponsored by the Sir William Turner Foundation, the award is to be presented annually to a student who has chosen to follow the same career path as Vicki, into nursing, and shows the same blend of academic achievement and personal enthusiasm as she did for the subject.

The award was presented by Vicki’s family to college student Jade Hind who won the award having shown incredible commitment and determination to achieve a Distinction in her BTEC National Diploma in Health and Social Care.

Speaking about her award, Jade said: “It’s incredibly humbling to be the first winner of this award and to have it presented to me by Vicki’s family.

“I really enjoyed my time at Redcar & Cleveland College and hope that I can go on and use the skills that I learnt here to complete my degree and build up a career in nursing.”

Talking about the reasons that the award came about, Peter Chester from the Sir William Turner Foundation, who also taught Vicki during her time at Redcar & Cleveland College, said: “Vicki was a bright, happy and hardworking student. She impressed everyone who taught her with her unfailing cheerfulness, her positive outlook, and her ability to get on with everyone, which for many was summed up in her smile.”

The award for Work Based Learning Student of the Year went to student Kyle Would.

Kyle joined the College on an e2e programme straight from school and has consistently shown a willingness to learn and accept responsibility. He progressed quickly onto a full-time joinery course and continued his full-time studies on the Intermediate Construction Award, gaining Modern Apprentice status as a result of a job offer.

He successfully achieved his Foundation Apprenticeship in June, and is now on an Advanced Modern Apprenticeship.

Principal of Redcar & Cleveland College, Gary Groom, said: “The students who are here tonight have been nominated from the thousands of students who have studied at the college in the last academic year for the fantastic achievements and commitment they have shown.

“They truly demonstrate that it is possible to achieve anything when you believe it is possible.

“We hope that we have raised the aspirations and exceeded the expectations of all our students. We’re thoroughly proud of everyone who was nominated and won awards tonight.”

Other winners on the night included:

Joint Health and Childcare Students of the Year:
Samantha Lee and Carla Turton

Hair and Beauty Student of the Year:
Nichola Poole

Sport, Public Services, Travel & Tourism and Arts Student of the Year:
Jamie Harding

Management, Professional and ICT Full-time Student of the Year:
Matthew Spencer

Management, Professional and ICT Part-time Student of the Year:
Maria Teresa Bianchi

Engineering Student of the Year:
Joseph Urban and Chris Milne

Built Environment Student of the Year:
Darren Lees

Access to Higher Education Student of the Year:
Michelle Jacobs

Cliff Houlding Memorial Trophy Year 1 Student of the Year:
Calvin Jobling

Cliff Houlding Memorial Trophy Year 2 Student of the Year:
Keiran Reed

The Association of Plumbing & Heating Contractors Shield Student of the Year:
Alastair Brook

Joint Achievement Over Adversity award winners:
Jessica Howes and Debra Foster

Enthusiasm and Contributions to the College award:
Liam Cowan

View photos from the event on the college's Flickr photostream here.