Bright Futures - Nine Stories from
Further Education
National Union of Students - Further
Education Zone Committee
Further education is formal learning outside of schools and higher education institutions, covering
academic and vocational courses and training for apprenticeships.
The further education sector in England receives around £7 billion of public funding each year, to
educate and train around 4 million learners.
FE is an incredibly diverse sector. Learners enter it through a phenomenal range of backgrounds, with
different previous experiences of education and work, and with varying ambitions and personal goals.
As a result, it has often been a difficult sector for those who may have only been educated at schools
and universities to understand.
We believe that a lack of understanding of FE has been one major reason why UK national and
devolved governments have been able to regularly cut, restructure and reform the sector, and often in
the process do a great deal of harm.
NUS represents learners from across the FE sector. Each year, delegates from colleges and training
providers elect a ‘Zone Committee’ to discuss further education issues and lead on policy making.
Here we present the ‘learner journeys’ of the 2015-16 committee: a diverse array of pathways that
show the power of further education to change lives.
Shakira Martin, NUS Vice
President (Further Education)
I am the Vice President (Further Education) at
the National Union of Students and the former
President of Lewisham Southwark College
Students’ Union. I have studied on a number of
further education courses including ILM
Leadership and Management and most recently
have completed my Diploma in Education and
Training (DET).
As a single mother of two beautiful girls, I
know first-hand the power of education to
transform lives. Further education has given
me 10 years’ worth of chances to break a cycle
of deprivation, be a role model to my children
and develop the confidence to stand for a
national position at NUS. My passion for
education has particularly developed over the
last 4 years, having overcome the adversity of
Bright Futures – Nine Stories from FE
domestic violence and a close family member’s
addiction to drugs.
My interests include teaching and learning
quality, learner voice, college governance,
education and politics. I aspire to become a
Further Education College Principal.
I found this time in my life to be one of the
most difficult times ever. So lost and confused,
the future was really dark and rigid. I decided
to leave after completing my AS knowing that,
although I loved the creative side in me, it
wasn’t fulfilling the depth of my soul. I felt like
there was something else out there for me, I
just hadn’t found it yet.
As NUS Vice-President, I am focusing on
improving the representation of further
education unions in NUS and throughout wider
society. I am campaigning for employers
and the government to value the support
that further education institutions provide
for local communities in the face of drastic
funding cuts. I would particularly like to raise
the profile of the issues faced by the most
marginalised student groups: black, women,
disabled, international and LGBT people.
I hope that by sharing my journey I will inspire,
empower and motivate others to reach their full
potential.
Charlie Baker, Derby College
In my position on the NUS FE Zone I want to
raise the profile of the issues faced by learners
who leave care and support young people in
care to get involved in influencing how services
are delivered.
In November I was nominated for an award
from Derbyshire County Council in recognition
of my achievement in graduating college and
for my appointment with Derby College
Students’ Union and NUS. I previously won the
Celia Pain Award at Friesland School for my
volunteering work, school council and youth
forum involvement and my achievement in
gaining 14 A* to C grades at GCSE.
I was in a series of care and foster homes from
the age of six until I was seventeen. I originally
attended New College Nottingham to study
Applied Art and Photography with no idea what
I wanted to do. I really started to feel the
pressure from lecturers to think about ‘making
it career focused’ and taking my ‘next steps’.
‘A really good FE course
changed my life…’
Over the summer I lived in respite
accommodation in Derby and started thinking
more about how I could use my own personal
experiences to help the lives of others. I had
some chats with friends and family as well as
having a meeting at Connexions. They
encouraged and supported me to study a Level
3 diploma in Health and Social Care. I enrolled
successfully and moved into independent living.
This was a very challenging point in my life, but
the most rewarding ever.
A really good FE course changed my life, now
the future is bright and I have never been
happier. I feel empowered to help make the
future brighter for others too and I have
recently been appointed as a Young
Ambassador with Inspiring Voices in
Derbyshire, part of a national scheme run by
The Fostering Network.
Lee Pearson, Hull College
When I left school I went to Hull College to
study BTEC Business and have now completed
my levels 1 and 2. In March 2014 I was elected
as the Enterprise Officer at my college and my
experiences that year gave me the courage to
go on and run for Presidency. I was successful
and I now proudly represent just short of
22,000 students!
This has changed my life and I have grown
so much within a short amount of time. I
used to be the quiet kid at the back of the class
and wouldn’t stand up for anything or anyone,
and now I represent the views of 22,000
students.
Poppy Wolfarth
Asset Training, Liverpool
After completing my GCSEs I was adamant that
I wasn’t going back to school. I really didn’t
enjoy high school, I really struggled being in a
classroom for hours a week.
At a meeting with an apprenticeship consultant
to discuss my job prospects, they suggested
that I try an apprenticeship. I was offered a
place at the company working on reception. It
involved classes and exams on business
management but I quickly realised it was what
I wanted to do.
I have experienced mental health problems
within the past two years and thought there
was no coming back from it, until I got involved
with my Students’ Union. If you are reading this
then I wish you all the best and if you ever
have a problem in your life then take the bull
by the horns and go for it!!
The best thing about my role as President is
that I make a difference to every student I talk
to.
I really loved it. I was earning money, able to
go out with my friends, save up and go on
holiday. I’m an active person and I was
learning by shadowing someone. When I was
16, I didn’t know what I wanted to do but,
as an apprentice, I’ve had a lot of different
roles and that’s made me more confident
to put myself out of my comfort zone and
try new things.
After a year I received my intermediate
apprenticeship in Business Administration, then
went on to complete my advanced
apprenticeship in Business Administration and
an apprenticeship in Team Leading. I now work
for Asset Training as a Learner Engagement
Officer, giving advice to young people about
careers and apprenticeships and am in the
process of buying a property in Liverpool.
Last year I was elected to sit on the
National Executive Council of the National
Union of Students. I am the first
apprentice to do so. Before being elected I
had to give a speech in front of 2,000 people, a
feat I never would have considered if it weren’t
for my apprenticeship.
When my apprentice friend broke her leg and
was not being paid sick pay whilst she was
recovering, I decided to bring this to the
attention of NUS to highlight the fact that
actually, many apprentices earn too little to
qualify for sick pay.
Campaigning by NUS was successful and in
October 2015 the national minimum wage for
apprentices increased from £2.73 to £3.30 an
hour, meaning that between 150,000 and
200,000 apprentices who were not previously
eligible for sick pay can now receive it.
That was kind of a big success. If I was at
college I wouldn’t have been bothered to get
involved, but being an apprentice involves big
issues like sick pay and childcare and working a
full week and not getting paid enough.
Angela Alexander, Ayrshire
College
I left school at the age of 15 to have my first
daughter with very few standard grades. I
spent numerous years after that being a stay at
home mum as I believed that, with the very
few qualifications I had, I would never be able
to achieve anything. I went through a few
college courses and scraped a pass and really
struggled with my own mental health
throughout, so I gave up again.
I decided to go back to college at the age of 27
and it has changed my life. I excelled in my
course and passed with A’s in my graded units
in HNC & HND. I developed in confidence
and self-esteem throughout my course
despite facing numerous barriers. One of
these was the fact I had 4 children and was a
single parent throughout most of my course, it
was a constant struggle but I was determined
to succeed. With the support of the staff at the
college I managed to keep my head up.
I thrived throughout my time at college and
wanted to help others who also faced struggles
on a daily basis. Ayrshire College helped shape
who I am today. They encouraged me to run
for the sabbatical role in the Student
Association and I have genuinely loved every
minute of this! When you know you can help
make a difference to student lives on a daily
basis it makes the job worthwhile!
‘I thrived throughout
my time at college and
wanted to help others
who also faced
struggles on a daily
basis. Ayrshire College
helped shape who I am
today.’
Charmaine Jacobs – East Kent
College
Robin Ferguson, Derwen
College
After working for 5 years in the field of Social
Inclusion and Community Development, I
moved from London to Folkestone with my son
in spring 2014. My goal was to create a better
lifestyle for us both and to pursue a new path
of developing my own Social Enterprise.
I am a Trainee at Derwen College, which is a
specialist residential college for learners aged
sixteen plus with a broad range of learning
difficulties and disabilities, and is situated on
the Wales and Shropshire border at Oswestry.
I made the decision to retrain and enrolled as a
mature adult learner at the new Peter Jones
Enterprise academy within East Kent College
and embarked on a Level 3 Diploma in
Enterprise and Entrepreneurship.
My primary barrier to returning to education
was finance. If it hadn’t been for the 24+
Advanced Loan and a Student Bursary, the
opportunity for me to study and retrain would
have been out of my reach. During this time I
got involved with the student movement and
was elected as Students’ Union Vice President
of the Folkestone Campus.
‘My primary barrier to
returning to education
was finance.’
Following on from my success in this role, I was
awarded “Inspirational Learner 2014/15” at the
East Kent College Student Awards for my work
and achievements with the students’ union. In
June 2015 I was elected as President,
representing 3,000 students across three
campuses in Broadstairs, Dover and Folkestone.
Before I came to Derwen as a student I was at
Oxford and Charwell Valley College where I was
studying on a foundation course. I wanted to
do work experience to help me gain the
skills to get paid work when I leave
college, but the College were unable to provide
work experience due to concerns around
insurance. The Connexions service in my area
suggested applying for a place at Derwen
College and after waiting a long time to secure
funding, I started in my new institution.
I am currently doing internal work experience
at Derwen within some of our customer facing
outlets where I serve members of the public. I
also do some external work experience in the
restaurant at Coed y Dinas in Welshpool and I
volunteer at the British Heart Foundation in
Oswestry.
I have worked hard to overcome difficulties
with my speech and to build my selfconfidence. I am currently on the Student
Council at Derwen College as the
Representative for the 52 Week Living and
Work Programme Trainees and I’m also the
treasurer for the students’ union at Derwen.
Emily Chapman, Leeds City
College
My name is Emily Chapman, I am the SU
president at Leeds City College. The past 10
years for me have been a struggle. A lot of
things happened and I made a lot of mistakes,
which to this day still haunt me.
In 2009 I was at Stirling University studying for
my Film and Media Studies degree. I had my
loan, I had drink and parties and I got the
spending bug. That led me to the week before
Christmas in 2009 and having to call my Dad
asking him to bring me home. I try to not
remember that car journey!
That shot my confidence completely, I broke
relationships with my family which to this day
I'm still mending. I couldn't see that light at the
end of the tunnel. I self-harmed, had severe
depression and became a huge fan of
chocolate! I also had devolved anxiety disorder
and was extremely prone to panic attacks.
Socially I isolated myself and got into my head
I was better off alone. I spent the next years
working, thinking I couldn't re-achieve
anything, just earning money then spending it.
In February 2014 I lost a member of my family,
he always used to say "this year is your year".
When he died I felt like I let him down because
I never made it my year. It was then that I
took the time to start learning how to look after
myself.
In September 2014 I enrolled onto Law and
Criminal Studies at Leeds City College. I got to
know the guys at the SU, helped set up their
trustee board and became extremely active
with them. In Jan 2015 I made the decision to
run for Vice President (Park Lane) and on 27th
March 2015 I was elected as SU president for
2015-2016. This is where I started learning and
getting involved in FE at a national level.
Coming to college and meeting the people
I now consider friends for life and part of
my family gave me my second chance and
showed me what this sector can do. I will
work and fight as hard as I can to make
sure it's there for others in the future.
‘The Government say
they want more
qualified people. Well
without FE those
sentiments will never
become a reality,
especially if you keep
cutting away at the
sector.’
James Bangert – Sheffield
College
In 2011 I thought my journey in education had
come to an end. After leaving my Sixth Form
studies due to illness, I worked for a year as a
Clinical Support Worker at The Northern
General Hospital in Sheffield. Here I learned
how people from the poorest backgrounds in
our society suffered and how our young who,
like me, had fallen out of mainstream
education, had failed to make progress in the
‘real world’ due to their lack of qualifications.
In 2013 I went back to school to complete my
education. It was during my two years at
Sheffield College that I realised just how
important further education is. To many, FE
was more than just a place to learn, it was
a genuine lifeline, a second chance to
achieve a qualification and explore their
untapped potential.
However, like all good things, there are those
who do not believe in it and would like to see
FE twisted and changed in to something that
serves no purpose to the students who need it.
That’s why I joined my students’ union. I
fought against cuts to our staff and courses and
made sure students’ views were at the heart of
discussions. As I came to the end of my studies
and realised the outcome of the recent General
Election, I decided to stand and was elected
President of Sheffield College Students’ Union.
I believe in FE and I believe that it is one of the
most important educational institutions in our
country today. The Government say they want
more qualified people. Well without FE those
sentiments will never become a reality,
especially if you keep cutting away at the
sector.
As a member of NUS’ FE Committee I will
continue to fight for more funding for FE and to
stop any future movements from the
government to close down the sector.
Everyone deserves an education and
together we can make sure that everyone
will.
‘I believe in FE and I
believe that it is one of
the most important
educational institutions
in our country today.’