Young people in the South of Scotland are set to benefit from a radical new approach to delivering high level skills following the induction of Dumfries and Galloway College to the WorldSkills UK Centre of Excellence it was announced on the 21 September.
Launched by WorldSkills UK, in partnership with education and skills charity NCFE, the Centre of Excellence will mainstream world-class standards in skills development.
Utilising NCFE’s expertise in curriculum development and drawing on its unique insights into global skills systems through its membership of WorldSkills, the global hub for skills excellence, WorldSkills UK will coach and mentor staff at Dumfries and Galloway College to embed world-class practises and techniques in their teaching, learning and assessment practices. By creating a collective of world-class educators, all students at Dumfries and Galloway College will benefit from the highest quality training.
In addition to its work with Further Education Colleges throughout the UK, the WorldSkills UK Centre of Excellence will also play an important role in supporting the development of higher technical standards across qualifications and assessment development.
Parisa Shirazi, Head of skills development and international competition at WorldSkills UK, said:
“This is a milestone moment – a unique opportunity for Dumfries and Galloway College to work with colleges across the UK and join the dawn of a skills revolution.
“Working with the staff at Dumfries and Galloway College we will champion a skills-led recovery, which is driven by international benchmarking and rightly values high-quality apprenticeships and technical education to enable all young people to develop the employability skills that will provide them with a rewarding future.”
Dumfries and Galloway College Principal, Joanna Campbell, said:
“At Dumfries and Galloway College we are delighted to be part of the WorldSkills UK Centre of Excellence.
“Vocational skills and training are key to our success here in the South of Scotland and so we understand how important they are, how to help promote them, and how they help prepare our students for their careers after they leave us.
“Our college will work hand-in-hand with WorldSkills UK and I am very excited to see what we can achieve by working together to promote the benefits of a skills-based education.”
David Gallagher, Chief Executive at NCFE, commented:
“Skills change the lives of young people. They build self-esteem and release potential, create opportunities and build stronger communities, and are the foundation of economic and social progress, which is why we are thrilled to be partnering with WorldSkills UK on this revolutionary and timely project.”
“The impact of this project will resonate for years to come and has the potential to inspire and create the next generation of world-class educators and learners, whilst creating a prestige for apprenticeships and technical teaching which will both positively impact the economy and promote social mobility.”
