Huddersfield Technical College

By Alice Tarleton

Published: 01 August 2006

Age: 110

History: Huddersfield Technical College was founded in 1896.

Address: The college is in friendly Huddersfield in Yorkshire, with the romantic dales on your doorstep. Huddersfield has around 130,000 people, is pretty much plum in the middle of England and is close to Leeds, Manchester and Sheffield.

Ambience: The main campus is situated in the centre of Huddersfield and there are an extra five centres for specific courses dotted around the surrounding area. Mix of new and historic buildings with modern facilities. Students learn in a friendly, supportive, adult environment.

Vital statistics: Over 20,000 students of all ages study at the college. A huge range of 1,000 courses for qualifications or leisure including full-time, part-time and adult education. Courses are available in the following areas: art, design and performing arts; business and leisure industries; caring; construction, engineering and transport studies; science and communication.

Added value: Centre of Excellence (CoVE) for Computer Aided Design and Manufacture. Modern facilities include a state-of-the-art engineering technology suite, purpose-built construction and transport centre, school of art, design and performing arts with a working theatre and recording studio, and a recently redeveloped eco-friendly centre for animal care and environmental studies. Also a well-resourced library and up-to-the-minute IT centre as well as restaurants, a bookshop, hair and beauty salons, a travel agency and sports facilities are all available to students.

Glittering alumni: Justin Hawkins, singer with The Darkness; he studied in the late Nineties on the National Diploma in Music Technology.

Transport links: The main college campus is five minutes’ walk from Huddersfield's major bus and railway stations.

Who's the boss? Principal and chief executive, Chris Sadler.

Teaching: The college was inspected by Ofsted in February 2004. Inspectors judged the quality of education to be good in three curriculum areas and satisfactory in nine. Provision in construction is unsatisfactory. Of the four work-based learning areas that were graded, engineering and business administration were judged satisfactory, construction was unsatisfactory and hairdressing and beauty therapy was very poor.

Nightlife: A wide choice of restaurants, pubs and clubs means that the town has a lively nightlife. There is also a leading regional theatre, nine-screen cinema and the McAlpine stadium which hosts sporting events and concerts. Dedicated clubbers and ravers are within reaching distance of Leeds, Sheffield and Manchester.

Clubs & Societies: An active students’ union. Activities available range from sports and outdoor pursuits to drama and music.

Prospectus: 01484 536521; www.huddcoll.ac.uk

UCAS code: H58