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Asa Gordon Joins Sandwell Family of Colleges as Deputy Principal, Curriculum and Skills
This week, Asa Gordon joins the Sandwell Family of Colleges – of which Cadbury Sixth Form College forms part – as Deputy Principal for Curriculum and Skills, stepping into this role as David Holden retires after a successful decade at the College.
Asa comes to Sandwell from his previous position as Vice Principal at Bradford College, where he had a remit from the Governors to deliver a curriculum that meets the needs of students, employers and the community. His achievements there included introducing a skills-focused programme for young people, a responsive adult offering aligned to meet the skills gap identified through the Local Skills Improvement Plan, and the launch of Higher Technical Qualifications and Higher-Level Apprenticeships.
With extensive experience in leading apprenticeships, Asa previously led apprentices at Bradford to success before becoming Assistant Principal for Study Programmes and Adult Provision. He is committed to the transformative role of Further Education, having served the sector for over 20 years and participated on several strategic boards. Additionally, he is an experienced school governor.
Asa’s appointment will be followed in January by the new Senior Vice Principal for Quality and Student Success. Asa joins Lisa Capper MBE, the new CEO and Principal, who also took up her post this week.
Lisa Capper MBE commented: “I am delighted that Asa is joining the Sandwell Family of Colleges for his next challenge. Developing the skills pipeline for young people, adults, and apprentices is crucial for the areas surrounding our colleges and the West Midlands region. Asa brings invaluable experience in curriculum development across key sectors, and we look forward to the exciting opportunities ahead.”
Asa shared: “I can’t wait to get started meeting colleagues and learners and supporting our plans for continued success. It’s an exciting time to be joining and contributing to the local area and the wider City region.”
Alan Taylor, Chair of Governors, added: “Asa is a great addition to our team as we move forward with our exciting developments and our relentless focus on learner success.”
Festival of Learning at Cadbury College
This week has been an incredibly exciting one for the Sandwell Family of Colleges as we celebrated our first Festival of Learning! The festival took place from Monday 21st October, to Thursday 24th October.
The Festival of Learning celebrates and showcases all aspects of college life across the three colleges, with this year’s theme being Lifelong Learning. The week has demonstrated how the colleges value personal and professional development for students, staff and our partners.
We have been delighted to have been joined by some incredible employers and alumni who have shared incredible insights to our students and staff. Just some of the inspiring events that have taken place this week include:
- University of Aston for an insightful Law Talk to our Law students
- Khaled Daley (Alumni) who performed Hamilton at the West End (plus many other performances), led a dance workshop to various groups
- Birmingham Black Lawyers did a Tech & IP Law Workshop for our Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth Law students
- Working for British Airways: Careers in Cabin Crew for our Business and Travel & Tourism groups
Khalid Daley (Alumni 2012-2013) who studied Drama & Theatre studies, English Language & Literature and Business said “I loved my time at Cadbury College, it was amazing to be amongst diverse and multicultural people and setting. Being with the students this week has been amazing. It’s so inspiring, I find young people so incredible, they have their own individuality and is what makes them special. So many of them really brought it out and haven’t even reached their full potential yet.”
This festival is the first of its kind at the college and we can’t wait to watch it grow even further year on year. To see some of the events and talks in action from this week, please follow our Instagram page here.
Dream Big MP Sonia Kumar Tells Students On Her Return To Cadbury
Politics A Level students from Cadbury Sixth Form College had the inspirational opportunity to hear from Sonia Kumar, Dudley’s first female MP and former alumna.
Sonia, a former NHS physiotherapist, shared her insights into the world of politics, her journey from Cadbury to Parliament, and current affairs.
She graduated with a distinction in MSc business and management from Aston University in July – the same month she gained her Dudley seat at the 2024 General Election with a majority of 1,900.
After leaving Cadbury College Sonia worked at the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital in Northfield where she is now a foundation trust member.
Sonia says: “My message to students is to dream big, break glass ceilings, and manifest what they want to do. I worked in the NHS for a decade and decided I wanted to make more of a change with politics and also studying at the same time. There is nothing you can’t achieve if you put your mind to it.”
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A new Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths (STEM) Centre has opened to its very first students at Cadbury Sixth Form College.
Due to the overwhelming demand for places at Cadbury Sixth Form College, the £6.6 million centre is focused on delivering a new technical curriculum, responding to a growing demand for specialist teaching facilities and learning for students. The centre aims to ensure that Cadbury Sixth Form College can offer students the broadest choice of advanced courses, including A levels, T Levels and vocational qualifications, across Birmingham.
The 1,000 sqm, two storey STEM Centre supports the education of young people looking to enter careers in advanced manufacturing, life sciences and other critical sectors of the economy. It houses dedicated suites for Digital Media, Health, Computer Aided Design (CAD) and Employee Engagement. Digital learning labs and VR suites will offer robotics and coding opportunities for new T Level and A Level courses, alongside a media suite, a practical healthcare learning space, extended classrooms and flexible study and social spaces.
The project marks Phase 2 of Cadbury College’s ambition to position itself to support as many young people as possible who aspire to advanced learning and university; and continues the multi-year investment following the opening of its £3.5 million Science City facilities in 2021. This new facility will support the growing need for new skills and jobs across Birmingham and the West Midlands for both universities and employers.
Julia Stevens, Principal of Cadbury Sixth Form College, commented: “We’re so excited to open the doors to our new STEM Centre, providing local students with even more opportunities to study in state-of-the-art facilities.
“The new building allows students to get hands on and see what their industry looks like, preparing them for life after college – whether that be for university or straight into employment. By providing specialist teaching facilities in growth areas such as advanced manufacturing and life sciences, the new STEM Centre will be a huge benefit to the wider community and the regional economy.”
To find out more about the new STEM Centre at Cadbury College, sign up now for one of our next open days.
Images © Speller Metcalfe
One of Cadbury’s successful alumni, Hamza Ali, has won a competition to create a new Reddit icon for social media superstar KSI. Hamza, who is set to graduate from Birmingham City University as a Graphic Designer in the summer, has been praised for his “passion, imagination and huge flair” by the famous YouTube influencer.
Hamza saw off thousands of rivals from around the world with his entry, which will now be viewed by KSI’s army of 2.9m followers. KSI, who also has more than 20 million subscribers on YouTube, added: “I’ve seen Hamza’s work all over Reddit. I love his passion, imagination and huge flair for artistic design. I know his work is in hot demand by other YouTube influencers. He is very talented. Hamza managed to whip up a madness of colours and energy, combining all the things I love in this icon. The design is super awesome and sick.”
Hamza, who goes by the name Ballpoint Papi on social media and has more than 40,000 followers across TikTok, X and Instagram, said: “It’s pretty amazing and it’s hard to put into words what this means. KSI rarely changes his icon for Reddit, so it’s really massive. It means the entire KSI community will know my work. KSI is very into Dragon Ball Z, so the icon was inspired by this and the Reddit logo.”
Hamza hopes this competition win will improve his chances of impressing leading design agencies in the USA when he heads to New York later this year with a group of fellow creatives from the Faculty of Arts, Design and Media at BCU. He also plans on travelling to Japan to publicise his work next summer with a series of exhibitions.
He added: “Apart from my academic pursuits, I have arranged studio visits in New York City. During my visit, I will be exploring ‘SlangInc’ and Design Bridge to broaden my knowledge and gain real-time exposure to the professional world of graphic design. This opportunity follows a similar experience I had last year when I met with esteemed designers such as Michael Beirut at Pentagram and Georgia Stout at 2×4. These visits have shaped my approach to design and have inspired me to continue pushing the boundaries of creativity.”
Hamza credited his experience and lecturers at Cadbury for paving the way to his growing success. “The A Levels I chose have played a significant role in shaping me into the designer I am today. Stuart, my former graphic design tutor at Cadbury, challenged me creatively, and I am incredibly grateful for him pushing me beyond the boundaries of what is considered ‘normal’ for a graphics designer. He encouraged me to pursue a career in graphic design, and I attribute my success in this field to his guidance and unwavering support.”
You can view Hamza’s winning icon here
Our tireless Careers Team have worked round the clock to process record numbers of university applications ahead of the cut off time.
Numbers of Cadbury Sixth Form College students applying for higher education places has now brought the total for all Sandwell College group sites to more than 1,300.
Careers Coordinator and Adviser, Andrew Farthing, said: “Ahead of the 6pm UCAS deadline on 31st January, the Careers Team worked tirelessly to advise students and tutors, check all student applications and send completed applications with references to UCAS.
“This huge task will help our students to secure offers for places at university. We are on track for record numbers of applications this year.”
Last year 1,035 students across the group were placed at university destinations. Russell Group Universities attracting our students included Oxford, Birmingham, Nottingham, Warwick, Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Southampton and York.
The top 5 most popular choices emerged as Birmingham City University, University of Wolverhampton, Aston University, Coventry University, plus De Montfort and Birmingham Newman University in joint fifth place for popularity.
Course sectors which attracted the most students were Criminology and Law, Business/Finance/Accounting/Economics, Nursing and Midwifery, Computing, Psychology and Engineering.
To be part of our next year of success at Cadbury, apply now!
