News
& Events

Hopwood offers up to £4,500 to employ apprentices

Training@Hopwood (The employer engagement arm of Hopwood Hall College) is currently offering employers incentives of £1,500 to recruit apprentices into existing teams. Employers can recruit up to 3 new apprentices under the incentive scheme.

Bethany beats tough competition for spa job

Beauty Therapy apprentice Bethany Lancaster has secured a coveted job at Mercure Norton Grange Hotel & Spa.

Catering students help out local dinner club

Community-minded catering students from Hopwood Hall College have been cooking for guests at a local dinner club since the College found out that their funding had been cut.

Drake Street shop say ‘We’d love to see you'

Rochdale residents are being invited to drop in to their new revamped ‘skills shop’ on Drake Street this year.

Students create ‘word cloud’ for Rochdale Campus

The Student Leadership Team at Hopwood Hall College has helped to create a ‘word cloud’ to be displayed on the emerging, new look Rochdale Campus.

Designs on new careers

Hopwood Hall College is launching a new and exciting Higher National Diploma in Games Design; the digital media sector is growing, not only regionally, but nationally too and so this course provides excellent opportunities for future employment.

Staff from Champness Hall offer hand to college

A tutor from Hopwood Hall College had a chance meeting with the Minister of the Church at Champness Hall, which proved to her that community spirit is alive and well in Rochdale.

Local school employs its first apprentices

Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School in Littleborough, is taking advantage of the Government’s drive to encourage businesses to employ apprentices.

College receives £1.9m grant for improvements

On 22nd December, The Skills Funding Agency (SFA) announced that Hopwood Hall College is one of only 46 colleges in the country to receive large grants to invest in their buildings and facilities.

College managers show festive spirit

A pair of Hopwood Hall College Managers changed jobs for the day and became market stall traders for charity this December.

Social networking to keep parents ‘in the loop'

Hopwood Hall College is keeping students and parents up-to-date with social media; they can go online to get Tweets and Facebook updates telling them everything they need to know about the College.

Starting January...

Choose a course for you… at Hopwood Hall College

College plea to local employers

Rochdale Borough Council are offering grants to local businesses to help with wage and training costs of apprentices. They are asking “Could your company recruit a Middleton resident with A-Levels as an Apprentice?”.

Hair and media make-up students help out with ‘Roc

Hopwood Hall College’s Hair and Media Make-Up department has been approached by a film company making a film about Rochdale.

Famous poet performs to students

Inua Ellams, an award winning poet and performer visited students at Hopwood Hall College last week.

‘Future looks bright’ for local college…

…as it hits 95% achievement rate

A moustache-tic ‘Movember’ at Hopwood Hall

Five male staff members at Hopwood Hall College have gone hairy this November in aid of prostate cancer; the men have spent the whole month growing moustaches for this worthy cause.

Daniel’s drive leads to dream job

Daniel Betham knew from a young age that he wanted to work with cars; his fascination with vehicles was inspired through watching films about fast cars when he was a youngster. So, when Daniel left Falinge Park High School, he started at full time course at Hopwood Hall College doing Vehicle Maintenance and Repair.

STRIKE ACTION NOTICE

Wednesday 30th November - The College is OPEN for Teaching

Wild for apprenticeships

26 year old Stuart Wild from Rochdale left school with no GCSEs and no real idea of what he wanted to do for a career. Over the following few years he tried several different careers, but none were what he wanted.

Apprentices help to judge Business Awards

On Friday night, the first Rochdale Business Awards took place. Finalists and winners were recognised and rewarded at a glittering gala dinner held in Rochdale Town Hall.

Apprentice Gemma lands job in Human Resources

23 year old Gemma Oddie went to Cardinal Langley School in Middleton where she completed her A-levels. However, Gemma didn’t want to go on to University; instead she wanted to earn money, but she also wanted to continue to learn.

Hairy and scary

Hopwood Hall’s Hair and Media Make-Up students spooked up BBC Lancashire Radio DJ in ‘Farm of Terror’ slot

You’re all hired!

That’s what a college said to these 10 young people from the Greater Manchester area.

‘Have a go’ Michelle bags the goodies

Local residents from across the area attended a big Jobs Skills Fair at the Town Hall on September 29th to meet with potential employers, colleges and training providers. Hopwood Hall College has a big presence at the event, including their ‘Image’ hair and beauty department who had an interactive stand at the event.

Grand ceremony held for local grads

67 students graduated from Hopwood Hall College’s higher education (HE) courses at a glittering graduation ceremony on 7th October.

Carer Tracy proves it is never too late

49 year old former Hopwood Hall College student Tracy Thomas from Middleton has been a carer for her husband Mark for the past 14 years.

Education turns young lady’s life around

Maryam Rana came from Toronto in Canada but moved to England at 13 years old where she was home schooled till she reached 16. She then came to Hopwood Hall College with no GCSEs but a strong desire to learn. After a few years of hard work and determination she’s landed herself top grades and a place at a top university.

Animal ambition for Heather

21 year old Heather Basford is 21 from Milnrow Rochdale is one step closer to securing highly sought-after place at the University of Liverpool to study BVSc Veterinary Science.

Former apprentice employs his own

26 year old Peter Aughey from Urmston, Manchester went to Hopwood Hall College to study for an Apprenticeship in Electrical Installation and now employs his own apprentices.

BBC chef hosts college ‘Cook Off’

Hopwood Hall College students took part in a fun Cook Off event on 2nd September with celebrity BBC chef Azzam Ahmed.

‘Virtual’ computers revolutionise learning

A Lancashire college has placed itself at the cutting edge of educational technology.

Liam lands Liverpool FC job

20 year old Liam Chadwick of Failsworth came to Hopwood Hall College in 2007 to do a BTEC Level 1 course in Sport and has now landed himself two top sports jobs.

Denise achieves against the odds

42 year old Denise Jones is a mature student from Manchester who decided to return to education in 2009. So, she enrolled on a part time NVQ Level 2 Health and Social Care course at Hopwood Hall College’s Rochdale Campus.

Mayor and Mayoress congratulate young learners

Hopwood Hall College’s full-time Step Forward students gathered for their annual awards evening at the Henry West Conference suite recently; the event was held to celebrate their achievements during the past academic year.

South African student gets Distinction

Amina Meera came to the UK at the age of 17 and enrolled at Hopwood Hall College on a BTEC National Diploma in Business.

Three Ds and Salford Uni says “you’re in”

Danielle Wood has been studying BTEC Business at Hopwood Hall College for the past two years. Danielle’s hard work resulted in a triple distinction (DDD) grade, which is the highest grade achievable. She has been accepted at Salford University to study a Business Management Sandwich Degree over 4 years.

Step Forward Students Celebrate Success

The college’s full time Step Forward students gathered for their annual awards evening at the Henry West Conference suite on July 6th to celebrate their achievements during the 2011/12 academic year.

Class Rep Sana follows uni dreams

Sana Musa from Rochdale started her learning journey at Hopwood Hall College on a Level 2 Diploma in Digital Applications for IT users. On achieving a Merit, she progressed onto a Level 3 BTEC National Diploma in Business, where she has achieved the highest grade possible - a triple distinction. Her top grades have now secured her a coveted place at Bolton University to study Business Management and Marketing.

GCSE subjects now FREE for young adults

Click to find out more..

A DDDistinguishing result

Naomi Rushworth, a student at Hopwood Hall College completed her level 3, BTEC National Diploma in Business course; she gained a triple distinction grade (DDD) alongside completing additional Maths and English GCSEs. She has now secured a place at London South Bank University to continue studying Marketing at degree level.

GCSE English and maths now free for young adults

The Government has just announced that all people under 25 years old are entitled to study for their English and maths GCSEs for free; they are committed to ensuring that all young adults meet this level of ability in these core subjects.

Hair and Beauty tutors polish up their skills

On Monday 11th July the Image Hair and Beauty team from Hopwood Hall College spent a full day ensuring they are perfectly polished when it comes to skills.

Mohsin moves forward

Mohsin Yousaf from Rochdale joined the Progressions course at Hopwood Hall College in September 2010 and has worked hard to improve his English and Maths this year. He has been extremely successful on his long term work placement and has gained lots of valuable experience.

A beauty-full ceremony

Last month, Hopwood Hall College hosted an evening to celebrate the success of their Hair and Beauty Diploma students.

College announces new Bursary Scheme

Many young people who live locally and are in full-time education will be affected by the Government’s abolition of the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA); the EMA was a weekly payment of £10, £20 or £30 a week paid to young people in full-time education and on a low household income.

It’s never too late to graduate

Four mature local students are celebrating this week as they all receive their MBAs from Bolton University.

Local garage invests in another Hopwood apprentice

Anthony Rudman lives in Todmorden and was a pupil at Todmorden High School. Throughout the last 18 months, industrious Anthony has worked at Lake Garage in Littleborough during school holidays and weekends.

Teaching Tomorrow, teaching today

Six staff members from the Uniformed Public Services department at Hopwood Hall College have been honoured to be involved in creating a new book for charity. The book is designed to support new trainee teachers ‘Teaching Tomorrow’.

Tutors take the plunge into fundraising success

Last Sunday, Hopwood Hall College’s English for Speakers of Other Languages tutors Janet Young and Joan Cook swam their way into the hearts of many, raising £1000 for the Bone Cancer Research Trust.

Student Bursaries

Student Bursary for 16 - 18 year olds 2011/12 Guidance

Hopwood Hall Students Graduate in Style

A parachute display, a visit from the fire service and a tug-of-war showdown brought college life to an exciting end for students at Hopwood Hall College.

An Arty End to the Year

Hopwood Hall College’s Art & Design students ended the academic year with a spectacular Summer Show.

Avant-Garde Showcase of Young Hairdressers’ Skills

Hairdressing students from Hopwood Hall College put on a showcase of their creative skills in front of special guest judges Nicky Oliver and Sylvia Oliver.

College Keep Presence in Community Despite Cuts

In February Hopwood Hall College announced its Business Transformation Plan in response to harsh Government funding cuts. All colleges in the country have been hit by massive funding cuts; consequently all have been forced to make significant cuts to their budgets. Hopwood Hall has also been affected, suffering a sizeable £3m cut to its income, equalling about 20% of its total budget.

Education Is…

13 Performing Arts students from Rochdale and Middleton who study at Hopwood Hall College have been putting on an innovative performance at Blue Pitt Mill.

Enterprise Students get Tips from Business Mentor

Students currently studying at Hopwood Hall College’s Middleton campus on the ‘Progressions’ courses have been benefitting from the support of a top business mentor.

Extra Training Leads to ‘Extra’ Job

29 year old Rochdale resident David Tierney had been unemployed for almost two years when he approached Orchard Training Solutions (the employment arm of Hopwood Hall College) for help last July.

Fitness Apprenticeships Evolution in Rochdale

Hopwood Hall College has begun a new era of work-based learning in the fitness industry, covering the training needs of employers in the Rochdale, Bury and Oldham areas.

Football Academy Gets Another Win in the Net

Hopwood Hall College’s Football Academy (1st team squad) has just enjoyed another successful season, winning the ECFA North West league for a third year in a row.

Hair-raising Fundraising for Local Hospice

13 Hair & Media Make up students from Hopwood Hall College’s Image department put on a dazzling avant-garde style show recently.

Hopwood Hall College Helps Out its Batty Friends

In preparation for construction of Hopwood Hall College’s new Technology Centre, ecology surveys were carried out on their unused former residential blocks prior to their demolition; the College knew there to be some bats present and wanted to make absolutely sure that they were looked after properly.

Hopwood is Taking Hospitality to a Higher Level!

Hopwood Hall College is increasing the accessibility of higher level study in hospitality and catering within in the local area. This September sees the introduction of the brand new Foundation Degree in Hospitality Management at the College.

Junior Chefs Graduate

Hopwood Hall College’s latest batch of Junior Chefs ‘graduated’ this summer with the students ready to put their newly acquired cooking skills to good use.

Public Services Students Battle it Out in Olympiad

Hopwood Hall College’s Uniformed Public Services (UPS) department held its annual Sports Olympiad this Friday 13th May 2011.

Redundant Council Worker Gets Job at College

Diane Finley from Bury was referred to Orchard Training Solutions (part of Hopwood Hall College) when she was under threat of redundancy from Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council.

Scott’s Preparing for a Life of Grime

Scott Greenwood is jubilant having been accepted to study for a Foundation Degree in Environmental Health.

Students Get Training from Celebrity Nicky Oliver

Three lucky hairdressing students from Hopwood Hall College spent a full day receiving one-to-one training from celebrity hairdresser Nicky Oliver.

Students Honoured at Awards Night

42 students from across the Borough were honoured at a prestigious award ceremony at the Middleton Arena last Thursday night. The Hopwood Hall College students had been selected from thousands of students to receive awards for their achievements.

Students Raise £1.5K for Hospice

For the 10th year in a row, Hopwood Hall College students have raised money for local hospice

Summander Follows Criminology Dream

Summander Hussain joined Hopwood Hall College’s Level 1 BTEC Uniformed Public Services (UPS) course as a very quiet young man in September 2006. Although he managed to pass this qualification, his tutors felt that Summander would benefit greatly by attending the College’s progressions group to concentrate on his ICT, English, Maths and communication skills. So in September 2007 he enrolled on to this course and with the right support and guidance he achieved outstanding results in all his exams.

Summander Follows Criminology Dream

Summander Hussain joined Hopwood Hall College’s Level 1 BTEC Uniformed Public Services (UPS) course as a very quiet young man in September 2006. Although he managed to pass this qualification, his tutors felt that Summander would benefit greatly by attending the College’s progressions group to concentrate on his ICT, English, Maths and communication skills. So in September 2007 he enrolled on to this course and with the right support and guidance he achieved outstanding results in all his exams.

20th Time Lucky in the Job Market for Hannah

20 year old Hannah Collier lives Kingsway in Rochdale and went to Hollingworth High in Minrow. After leaving college last June, she struggled to find work. Like many young people, Hannah found the job market extremely competitive. She sent her CV off to over 20 times, with no luck.

Andrew Drives Business Forward in his Dream Job

Andrew Kelly is 18 years old and lives in Rochdale; he went to school at Balderstone Technology College and then onto Hopwood Hall College in Rochdale where he successfully completed a Diploma in Vehicle Maintenance and Repair.

Barclays Provides £5.2m for College Campus Plans

Barclays Corporate has provided a £5.2M finance facility to assist Hopwood Hall College with its campus upgrade plans which will significantly enhance its facilities for students.

Beauty Students Get Entrepreneurial Forcharity

Throughout the year, Hopwood Hall College holds a number of ‘Focus Weeks’ for its students. They have different themes and this time the theme was ‘Enterprise’.

Dressing Funny for Money

Good-humoured teaching staff at Hopwood Hall College donned silly outfits for Comic Relief.

Firefighter Returns to Show Students the Ropes

17 students from the Uniformed Public Services (UPS) Department at Hopwood Hall College were given an up-close demonstration of state-of-the-art fire appliances by a rather familiar crew from their local fire service…

Former Students Receive Bursaries

Two former students of Hopwood Hall College have been awarded bursaries by the Queen Elizabeth Foundation Trust.

Granada TV Films MP’s Visit to College

Granada TV visited the English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) department to film a visit by the local MP for Rochdale to Hopwood Hall College.

Heywood Skills 4 U Project to Come to an End

The Skills 4 U project which has helped more than 600 Heywood residents to engage in some form of training or learning is coming to an end on 31st March 2011. The project has offered bespoke and tailor made courses, which has been delivered locally in various community venues, such as Heady Hill, Back O’th Moss and the Phoenix Centre.

Hop-on for Hopwood!

Hopwood Hall College has invested £120,000 in free bus travel for students travelling to its Middleton Campus.

Hopwood Hall College holds its Annual Review

Hopwood Hall College held its Annual Review event on Friday; the purpose of the event was to inform key stakeholders about the College’s achievements over the previous year,showcase the good work that has gone on and also to inform them about developments for the upcoming year.

Joe’s Driving Ambition

21 year old Joe Cruttenden from Rochdale has been involved with motorsport since he can remember. He started navigating for his dad on a few road rallies as a young lad. Then, at 14 years old, Joe started Autograss on a very limited budget; Joe says “My competitors’ engines were worth more than my car, so perhaps not surprisingly, my success was only moderate”.

Life is Sweet for Sugar Lounge Owner

38 year old Orangeabe Akhtar from Rochdale dreamed of starting his own business. So, last year he decided to go for it and began to set up his new restaurant.

Life is Sweet for Sugar Lounge Owner

38 year old Orangeabe Akhtar from Rochdale dreamed of starting his own business. So, last year he decided to go for it and began to set up his new restaurant.

Locals Given a Taster of College

Hopwood Hall College opened its doors on Saturday to welcome people from across the borough and beyond, to find out what’s on offer, meet teaching staff, and discuss opportunities for their future.

Marc Cooks Up a Winning Menu for Hopwood Hall

Marc Rothwell is a first year student studying Catering and Hospitality at Hopwood Hall College, Rochdale.

Rachel Gets Career on Track with an Apprenticeship

Rachel Cleminson is 19 years old and from Rochdale. Rachel attended Hollingworth High School and then worked as a Sales Assistant for three years.

Residents Give the Thumbs Up to Virtual Tours

A group of Travel and Tourism students from Hopwood HallCollege have been helping Rochdale Council with market research; they were tasked with finding out how many people were interested in Rochdale’s heritage and the possible introduction of a virtual Town Hall tour.

Rochdale Business Opens With Help From Apprentice

Beyond Bronze Tanning braved the recession to open its doors for the first time 15th January 2011.

Skills Centre Gets Local Unemployed Back into Work

Orchard Skills Centre on Drake Street helps those who have been made redundant or have been unemployed for a length of time. In the first instance all learners are offered advice and guidance with one of the team. This helps tailor individual training needs to the most suitable course. The training on offer is very diverse covering subjects such as IT, Health and Social Care, Catering and hospitality, Security, Sage Accounting and teaching.

Smart Company Employs Apprentices

Hopwood Hall College’s Electrical Apprentice of the Year Jordan Melia is celebrating after successfully completing his apprenticeship in Electrical Installation with a local company.

Students Aim Higher

Students at Hopwood Hall College have recently visited the HE Convention at the Manchester Central Convention Centre.

Students Build a Fort for Local Children’s Home

In a show of community spirit, students and staff from the Carpentry and Joinery Department at Hopwood Hall College gave up their time over the Easter break to help their local children’s home.

Students Join Forces for Help for Heroes

Hopwood Hall College students are to take part in a nationwide cycle challenge involving 12 other colleges from around the country.

Students to Represent College in National Comp

5 Hopwood Beauty Therapy students headed to Warrington last week to take part in heats for a nationwide college competition.

World is Rabia’s Oyster

Apprentice Rabia secures brilliant account manager job with local company

‘Response to Redundancy’ Helps Residents into Work

Last year Orchard Training Solutions (a division of Hopwood Hall College) opened a new Skills Centre on Drake Street, Rochdale. The Centre was developed to help local residents who had been made redundant, back into work.

A Healthy New Year Resolution for College Students

During November and December, Hopwood Hall College piloted stop smoking sessions in a bid to help its staff and students to get healthy.

Apprenticeships event to be held at Rochdale Town

Rochdale Council’s 14-19 team is to hold a big event at Rochdale Town Hall on 10th February to tell local school pupils about the opportunity to become an apprentice when they leave school.

Bricklayers Build A Bell Tower From A Bygone Era

Mohammed Usman, 19, and Rafad Mohammed, 18, both from Rochdale, are studying Bricklaying at HopwoodHall College, Rochdale. This is their third year with the brickwork department; they started on a foundation programme two years ago and are now studying for the Level 2 Diploma in Bricklaying.

Cadets Help The Heroes

Groups of Hopwood Hall Cadets from Rochdale took part in a variety of fundraising activities order to raise money for Help4Heroes.

Catering Students Embrace Burns

The Cottons restaurant at Hopwood Hall College played host to a lively lunch celebrating the life of the Scottish bard, Robert Burns.

Catering Students’ Achievements Recognised

Hopwood Hall Collegehonoured its top students last month at aprestigious award ceremony at Rochdale Town Hall. The Hopwood Hall College students had been selected from thousands of students to receive awards fortheir achievements.

Fantasy Fingertips

Beauty students from Hopwood Hall College created fantasy fingernails in a competition on 3D nails.

Mobile phone app to revolutionise e-learning?

A North West college is the first in the country to provide its students with a mobile phone app to deliver education resources to them.

Students Help Local Shelter

St Gabriel’s is temporary accommodation of 12 self-contained flats for women aged 16- 21 who are pregnant or with babies up to one year that are homeless. They are based in the centre of Rochdale.

Students help with town centre regeneration plans

Travel and Tourism students from HopwoodHall College have helped the Council and Rochdale Development Agency to conduct market research in Middleton and Rochdale Town centres.

Top Marks For Cleanliness

Not many would believe a group of students could achieve the highest standard in food safety hygiene…

Young Designer Wins Competition

Hopwood Hall College has a Code of Conduct for its students and this year they decided they want to revamp the posters with the help of their students…

Dates For Your Diary 2010/11