Hereward College Principal awarded MBE in Queen’s Birthday Honours

The Principal of Hereward College has been awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to young people with disabilities.

Paul Cook, who has played a leading role in the special educational needs and disability sector for the past decade, is also Director of Employment for Natspec and a member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Assistive Technology which meets in the House of Lords.

He has more than 20 years’ experience in the further education sector overall, having started as a public services tutor in Sheffield during his six years as a police constable with South Yorkshire Police in the late-1990s.

The move into teaching came about due to his role in the force as a self defence trainer; Paul, who was educated at Firth Park Comprehensive School in Sheffield and then studied Pure Chemistry at the University of Sheffield, was also an accomplished national under-21 karate champion in his youth.

He started his full-time FE career at Bridgwater College in Somerset in 2000, before taking on quality management roles at South Cheshire College in Crewe and Northumberland College in Ashington.

Paul then supported a number of colleges on special measures with their quality and finances with the Learning and Skills Improvement Service (LSIS), and also spent five years as a part-time Ofsted inspector before being appointed Principal of ESPA College in Sunderland in 2012.

Key achievements there included an expansion into the Tees Valley with a new learning facility launched in Middlesbrough, the refurbishment of the college’s main campus and a successful Ofsted inspection.

Since becoming Principal and CEO at Hereward College in 2017 Paul has overseen a significant turnaround, with a then inadequate rated college earmarked for merger now graded ‘outstanding’ for finance and ‘good’ in every other category by Ofsted.

The college is recognised as a pioneer in supported internships, which have led to full-time paid positions for students with employer partners including West Midlands Police and Severn Trent Water.

Premier Inn opened a three-bed training facility on the college’s Tile Hill campus, its home for 50 years, in 2019 and offers regular internship opportunities for Hereward students.

Paul, whose research project for his MA in Education at Northumbria University in 2019 was entitled ‘getting learners with disabilities into employment’, is particularly proud of the successes Hereward College has had in this area.

He said: “It is a huge source of pride that the number of Hereward graduates gaining paid work outcomes is at 19% more than three times the national average. Our learners on supported internships enjoy even greater success, with paid work outcome rates ranging between 40% and 100%.

“We impact more profoundly the life chances of young people with SEND as we don’t just give them the academic qualifications; we give them the skills needed for all facets of their adult life. It’s hugely rewarding work.”

Speaking of his “incredible surprise” when receiving notification of his MBE, Paul, 50, added: “I’d like to share the award with the wonderful staff and students I work with and use it to further raise the profile of the needs of learners with SEND.”

Describing the MBE as “a well-deserved accolade”, Chair of the College Corporation Ian Pursglove said: “Paul plays an incredibly important role as a national ambassador for colleges providing specialist further education and training for young people with learning difficulties and disabilities.

“His extensive experience has been tapped into by both Natspec and the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Assistive Technology, sharing the pioneering work we have piloted here at Hereward which is transforming the life chances of young people with disabilities.”