WCG presented with prestigious prize in Royal ceremony

His Royal Highness Prince Charles and Her Royal Highness Princess Anne have presented leading college group WCG with a prestigious prize which recognises its pioneering work in developing future engineers.

WCG (formerly Warwickshire College Group) was presented with The Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education in a ceremony at St James’s Palace.

The prize, which was first announced in November 2021, is in recognition of the college’s work in the engineering sector over the last quarter of a century.

WCG is the only college from the Midlands to be recognised among the 2020-2022 winners, one of 21 winning universities and Colleges from across the UK with only five other colleges receiving this accolade.

Angela Joyce, CEO of WCG, was joined by Peter Manford, Chairman, Chris White, Vice Chairman, Peter Husband, Group Principal, Alan May, Director of Apprenticeships and three engineering apprentices at the ceremony.

The ceremony followed the prize winner’s dinner at London’s Guildhall the previous evening, which celebrated the achievements of all the winners of this year’s awards.

WCG has been a trailblazer for employer-centric engineering provision for more than 25 years and has seen its engineering apprentice numbers grow from 40 in 1996 to 1,195 in 2021.

The group now delivers engineering courses at three of its colleges including Warwick Trident College, Rugby College and Evesham College.

Angela Joyce said that it was an ‘incredibly proud day’ for the college and that the group strives to continue to lead the way in the delivery of education provision in the engineering sector.

“We have been looking forward to this moment since we were told we had won the prize in November and it was an incredibly proud day for everyone associated with WCG,” Angela said.

“The ceremony was a great opportunity to speak with leaders from across the education sector and we were proud to represent the Midlands and showcase WCG’s pioneering approach to engineering training. 

 “The Government’s latest skills strategy has sought to put employers at the forefront in the development of post-16 education, but this is something we have been doing at WCG for more than a quarter of a century.

“This award celebrates the dedication of the engineering staff team at Warwick Trident, Evesham and Rugby colleges, but also reflects an approach to working with employers that we take right across our colleges in Warwickshire and Worcestershire.

“Despite winning this prestigious prize, we won’t rest on our laurels and will continue to innovate with our engineering training provision. It’s vital that our provision continues to react to the ever-changing needs of industry and we will continue to work with our network of employers to ensure that remains the case.”