North Hertfordshire College is the major provider of FE and HE education in Hertfordshire. The Academy of Creative and Cultural Industries is based at the Centre for the Arts (CFA) in Hitchin and consists of five curriculum areas which includes Art, Design & Media and Performing Arts.
The Centre for the Arts is a dedicated arts centre and includes a professional gallery space with a full programme of exhibitions, several large theatre spaces and several dance studios with a regular programme of shows throughout the year. The Academy of Creative and Cultural Industries is also a member of the National Skills Academy (NSA) Founder College Group.
The Academy enrols approximately 1000 full-time learners on a wide range of further and higher education courses from Level 1 through to BA(Hons) programmes. The Academy also recruits learners through Creative Apprenticeship and is one of the colleges that passed through Gateway 1 to deliver the Creative Media Diploma from September 2008. The Academy also delivers a wide range of part-time courses and several full cost professional development courses.
Art, Design & Media and Performing Arts offer a broad range of courses at Level 1 to BA (Hons) Degree. The majority of full-time learners are aged 16-19 and study on BTEC Introductory, First and National Diploma courses or the new Foundation, Higher or Advanced Diploma courses in Creative Media. The largest course is the Foundation Diploma (Post 18) course which recruits learners post A-Level. The curriculum areas also run Foundation Degree courses in Creative Enterprises (Fashion & Textiles and Performing Arts) and a range of part time professional development courses including Photoshop, Digital Photography, InDesign, and Photography.
All staff are practitioners and continue to practice and exhibit nationally and internationally. The Art, Design and Media students take part in a number of ‘live projects’ including the prestigious ‘Clothes Show Live’ in Birmingham. Students in Performing Arts work with a large number of professional performers across a range of areas including Laban Contemporary Dance Company, Rob Cousins (West End Musical Director) and Trestle Theatre Company. Performing arts students also participate in a major TIE (Theatre in Education) programme.
News & Events
National Skills Academy Founder College Status Launched by North Hertfordshire College
At Knebworth House on Wednesday 3rd March, North Hertfordshire College (NHC) announced the launch of its status as a Founder College of the National Skills Academy for Creative & Cultural Skills (NSA) before a VIP audience.
As a Founder College it has the remit of raising the profile of creative industries across the sub-region. The event included a showcase of creative and cultural student work from across colleges in the sub-region. This included film production, dance, music and a fashion show. This development positions Hertfordshire at the forefront of an unprecedented national initiative to enable young people of talent to obtain career opportunities in the cultural and creative sectors, irrespective of their means or backgrounds.
As the first and only ‘Further Education Ambassador’ for a Sector Skills Council, Fintan Donohue, NHC Principal, plays a major role in encouraging colleges across the UK to work with Creative & Cultural Skills and the industry it serves, to improve training and skills, and individual opportunities. He declared his belief that: “This new partnership with the NSA has given us an exceptional opportunity to challenge the long-established culture of un-paid work experience within the Arts. We shall seize this opportunity with enthusiasm.”
Fintan Donohue expressed the college’s profound sense of corporate pride at being appointed as one of 20 Founder Colleges representing the National Skills Academy for Creative & Cultural Skills across the UK. He said: “This extensive network is led by college Principals who are determined to influence and contribute to the growth of creative enterprises and the employment they generate. A key element of our role as the NSA Founder College across this sub-region is to bring employers, colleges and schools together across the three counties, to work collectively in shaping qualifications, expanding Creative Apprenticeships, and advancing technical skills: all of which will strengthen the employability of our students.”
He continued: “By working closely with Industry Members of the NSA we can harness the potential of young people to fulfil their ambition to follow a career path that has historically been shut to them. We can now take on the responsibility to be a catalyst for developing a truly original programme involving new strategies for qualification reform, learning and education practices, and enhanced employment choices in the creative and cultural sectors. All this is not fanciful, but thoroughly practical. With the support of employers, learning and education providers, and stakeholders, our objectives are down-to-earth: to increase opportunities and to improve skills in the creative and cultural sectors where our students not only learn a craft but will be able to practice it in a wide variety of jobs and, as a result, strengthen our region’s economic performance. We are particularly grateful to the East of England Development Agency who are also working with us to enhance the technical capacity of our college to deliver more relevant industry-standard provision.”
The event’s key-note speaker, Tom Bewick, Chief Executive of Creative & Cultural Skills, said: “In spite of recession, economic output in the creative and cultural sector has grown by 4½% in 2009. The West End is booming and the UK is recognised as the leading country in cultural and creative industries across the world. We estimate that there will be a need for over 30,000 technically skilled employees in this industry by 2014. North Hertfordshire College and its network will play a key role in improving the supply of skilled labour to the industry over that period.”
Special guest Paul Latham, Chief Operating Officer, International Music and Chair of the National Skills Academy for Creative & Cultural Skills, unveiled a plaque in recognition of NHC’s new regional position as the NSA’s Founder College. He stated: “I have always dreamt of the situation where the career structure and the opportunities for technical employment in the creative and cultural skills sector would be transparent.
At last through the advancement of the NSA, the industry is now actively working with the further education sector to make this a reality. We have a Creative Blueprint and the infrastructure to open up new routes into our industry. This magnificent event today and the many others occurring across the UK are a true celebration of this potential.”
The Creative and Cultural Industries Academy at NHC is established as a major provider of further and higher education, and has earned the reputation of a vibrant and innovative arts centre, providing outstanding student teaching and training in music, dance, acting, media production, photography, fashion and textiles, and television. The Academy offers a wide range of programmes up to and including Honours Degrees, Creative Apprenticeships and Diplomas in creative media, production and technical arts.
The NSA is a network of creative and cultural employers and organisations, freelancers, training providers and industry trade associations working together to develop, improve and recognise the skills of people working in the sector. It works to improve skills development opportunities for people entering the sector and for those already employed within it.