50 students from Japanese nursing school, Saitama Medical University Junior College, visited The College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London’s (CONEL) Enfield campus on Tuesday 26 February 2019, to gain a greater understanding of the way nursing is taught in England.

The Japanese students were keen to see how teaching and practice differs between the UK and Japan, so the group divided their time between visiting CONEL and a local hospice.  At CONEL, the students and their tutors were greeted by Access to Nursing tutor, Christine Peck, who introduced them to our Access to Nursing students, before running workshops to help students discover what similarities and differences there are between them, and to help them learn from each other.

Christine Peck, said, “Today has been very interesting. I think it will make my students appreciate how broad their course is, despite it being difficult. In the UK we go into a lot more detail about mental health, sociology and psychology than they do in Japan. The Japanese students are very interested in the NHS as it is so different from their healthcare system and were shocked at how much work our access students do in just 9 months.”

Lunch gave our students and their Japanese counterparts the chance to learn about each other’s courses and cultures. CONEL student Doreen Addo said: “Getting to talk to the Japanese students has been very insightful, especially finding out how they pick their courses and modules. It’s also interesting to know that their courses are funded the same way as ours – either by parents, loans or scholarships.”

Access to Nursing student, Nashania Johnson, Said, “Talking to our visitors was really motivating.  They liked the way we are taught to think and work independently by our tutors, and they felt that our course was challenging but also very interesting.  We have so much in common and were touched that they wanted us to visit them”.

CONEL was recommended to the traveling school by Miki Travel after all 25 Access to Nursing students were successfully places in Higher education institutions.

When asked for his reflections on the day, Saitama Medical University Junior College tutor, Atsushi Katsuhisa, said, “It was very excellent and easy to understand. Very good for our students and we found CONEL a very good college.”

CONEL student Ashley Kalulu, told us: “Meeting the students from Japan and learning how much they wanted to know about our training in Enfield made me much more motivated and appreciative of the Access course.  It has increased my determination to do well”.

If you are interested in studying an Access to Nursing course here at CONEL click here.

CONEL’s Access to Computing students take their study seriously. Seriously enough to request a mentor to support them with structural programming units and help them build their Java skills. And recently they have got a fantastic mentor, Stanislav Ivanov, a CONEL alumnus.

A 2017 CONEL Excellence Award winner, Stanislav is now in his second year at King’s College University studying for a Computer Science degree. Despite his extremely tight timetable, Stanislav comes in every Friday to run programming workshops and support the students. As he explains: “I enjoyed my time while I was at CONEL and really appreciated the help that I received from all the teachers and the staff here. I just wanted to return the favour and help other students.”

Coming back to college has advantages for both Stanislav and the students who he supports. “I bring my perspective as a student who has been to CONEL, so I know what their course is like. But I can also share some of the knowledge and skills that I am learning at university, and I think it help the students prepare better for university.

“University is a serious jump from college. At Kings you have far less time with tutors as the classes are a lot bigger and you also have to be able to manage your time more than at college.”

The Java workshop that Stanislav runs, covers Java programming. It includes a basic introduction to Java, why it is important and how to install the required software. Stansilav I work alongside the class tutor to makes sure my workshop fits with the main teaching and the main concepts in Java which we do in our first year at university.

Stanislav Ivanov (standing) with Access to Computing students Gabriel De La Paz and Andreea Croitoru.

Java is a useful programming language for students to learn, not just because it is used in around 3 billion devices around the world, from desktop PCs and supercomputers to gaming consoles, mobile phones, but because it is a route into learning other, newer and future programming languages. As Stanislav explains, “Learning the skills to programme a language like Java enables you to develop your grasp of logic and it helps you to learn other programming languages more quickly and efficiently.”

The students are very appreciative of his support. One student, Ashley told us: “Stanislav’s workshops have helped a lot. He brings a different perspective, as he’s been in our shoes himself. He tends to skip over some of the simpler concepts, so the workshops go at a faster pace, which is good. They are giving us a lot more confidence for our main lessons with our tutor.”

Your next steps

Did you study at CONEL? You could inspire our students! We are looking for ex-students from any subject to help support our current students. Contact the college or your old class tutor for more details on how you could help.

You could follow in Stanislav’s, Ashley’s, Andreea’s or Gabriel’s footsteps on our Access to Computing level 3 course, which gives students the skills and knowledge that they will need to study computing or ICT at university. You’ll learn about web site design, Java programming and programme design, computer networks, databases and mathematics, as well as presentation and seminar skills.  Find out more here: https://www.conel.ac.uk/courses/ict-and-computing/47-level-3/116-it-access-to-higher-education-diploma-level-3.html

The College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London’s (CONEL) Enfield Centre hosted its annual Rail and Engineering Career and Apprenticeship Event in conjunction with the UK National Apprenticeship week.

Students from CONEL and local schools given information by representatives from companies such as; Siemens, NTAR, Bombardier, Alstom, Thales Eurostar, Cory energy and Miele, regarding Apprenticeship opportunities within their company’s.

The event opened with a talk and presentations in the Hub to students, detailing the types of jobs the visiting companies were offering within the Engineering sector.

Diandra Marshall-Bruce, a current Siemens apprentice explained her journey as an apprentice at the London Rail Academy at CONEL College, Enfield:

The group then went down to the London Rail Academy to view the training facilities and to engage with representatives from the companies to find out more information about the jobs on offer. Classes were running while the group was there, giving prospective students an authentic insight into the courses that interested them.

Barry Connelly – Director, London Rail Academy said, “The event today provided an opportunity for over 500 young people to view our excellent Engineering training facility and to engage with a number of our blue chip clients to discuss the possibility of joining them as an apprentice.”

CCCT also made an appearance, helping students apply and talking them through the apprenticeships available.

Project Consultant for NSAR-Connect, Nigel Eagers, said, “I think you can see that CONEL leads the way in promoting rail courses and apprenticeships. It reaches out very successfully to local communities, reaching a wide and diverse range of talent, delivering high quality apprenticeships that really benefit the industry, and leading the way in Apprenticeship delivery for the rail industry as a college!” NSAR-Connect is “a placement service that provides employers with candidates who have successfully been through an industry-leading assessment process.”

City and Islington College student Akram Husaen said, “I have been looking at apprenticeships online but coming here has allowed me to go in more detail and speak to the companies.”

The Rail and Engineering Apprenticeship and Career Event takes place annually. It provides a great opportunity for students to get a deeper understanding of the life that awaits them after education. If you missed this year’s event, or would like to find out more about our Rail and Engineering courses, click here. These courses give you the skills you need to get a job in the industry and offer opportunities to progress onto an Apprenticeship.

The College of Haringey Enfield and North East London (CONEL) has once again been voted one of the country’s best higher education colleges by its students.

CONEL has been nominated in the FE College category of the prestigious WhatUni Awards. Unusually for such an award, it is based entirely on reviews that have been submitted by students to the WhatUni.com website, which ranks the UK’s universities and those colleges that offer higher education too.

The college offers a range of higher education qualifications, from Access to Higher Education courses, work-related Higher National Certificates or Diplomas, and Foundation Degrees. It is this provision which made CONEL eligible for the award.

Commenting on CONEL’s nomination, Principal Kurt Hintz, said: “It is very satisfying to have been recognised once again by our higher education students as being a great place to learn. We are well-known in London for our free courses and our excellent provision at entry level and levels 1 and 2, so to be shortlisted for a higher education award is fantastic and a testament to the dedication and skills of our HE tutors.”

The college was ranked 4th out of the 10 shortlisted colleges, with an impressive average score of 4.4 out of 5.  We are the only college in London to have been shortlisted and on 25 April, we will find out if we have won at the WhatUni Student Choice Awards in central London.

Don’t just take our word for it. Here’s a selection of students’ reviews from WhatUni:

I have really enjoyed my time at Conel the teachers are wonder and supportive there’s so many courses available, I’m learning things I never thought I could learn

Gemma

 This is a really a fantastic course. My teacher is really good and I have so many skills from their classes

Pauline, January 2019

 The course is very useful. Teachers are very helpful. The college is a very good environment for study

Maria, January 2019.

In July 2011 Amani Simpson was stabbed seven times during a frenzied attack by a group of around 20 men in Enfield.

Miraculously, Amani – a former pupil of Enfield Grammar School and City & Islington College – survived and has since dedicated himself to speaking in schools and colleges, to try to steer young people away from the violence and danger of knife crime.

Earlier this month, Amani visited CONEL’s Tottenham centre to deliver a powerful session and Q&A to our students.  The event also featured a showing of a short film about his stabbing, called Amani, made with his friend, the actor Joivan Wade, which to date has had over 1.6 million views on YouTube.

The talk offered an opportunity for CONEL students to meet Amani and hear his story.  It also enabled a free and open discussion about the students’ lives and the challenges that they and their communities face every day.

As Amani told us: “I put my story into a film to empower the conversation about knife crime.  I want to extend the film to go into more detail to explain the stories of others and how it effects the wider community.”

When asked about his visit to the college, Amani told us: “It was an honour to come to CONEL. I know a lot of people who went here and are from Tottenham. It is good to give back to the community.”

Anthony Robinson, CONEL's Quality & Learner Experience Manager said: “Knife crime is constantly in the news and it’s particularly prevalent in London compared to other parts of the country. Young black and minority ethnic teenage boys and men are disproportionately affected by knife crime – as both victims and perpetrators – and Amani’s visit is part of a programme of events partly funded by the Mayor of London's Young Londoners Fund that we are holding to help divert young people away from criminal activities and support them to make better choices in their lives." 

CCCG recently welcomed a group of twelve teachers from Guangdong Construction Polytechnic on a 3 week teacher training programme. The programme included an introductory week of presentations and sessions introducing teachers to vocational education in the UK and the Capital City College Group, a week of pedagogy workshops and a week of shadowing and observation with Engineering and Construction teams and CONEL’s Enfield Centre.

During the introductory week teachers met managers from the Capital City College Training team to learn about employer engagement and apprenticeships. They also undertook training sessions with Westminster Kingsway College including an Enterprise workshop and a session on digital technologies in the classroom.

During their week with CONEL’s Engineering and Construction teams the teachers visited Hitachi Rail (formally Virgin/LNER) depot at Bounds Green where they had an opportunity to meet with Apprentices and their managers as well as receiving a tour of the site. The group also participated in CONEL’s engineering apprenticeship event where they had an opportunity to meet with employers recruiting apprentices as well as prospective apprentices.

The training programme follows an MOU signing between Capital City College Group and Guangdong Construction Polytechnic at Westminster Kingsway College last summer. The institutions intend to continue collaboration and plan to hold an Apprenticeships conference in China in May 2019. Feedback from the training programme was extremely positive with the teachers reporting the visit had been most beneficial and returning to China with plans to implement areas of best practice observed at Guangdong Construction Polytechnic.

On speaking of the programme teachers said ‘We speak highly of CCCG’s work and extend our deep gratitude to them for their best efforts. They attached great importance to the training, and the course was well-planned and helpful, including both theoretical and practical teaching, as well as enterprise visits and on-site observation.’

CONEL student Lee Driscoll competed at the National Indoor Rowing Championships (NJIRC) last month (Friday 15 March 2019). Lee competed in the first race of the day, male year 13, 2000m race finishing with a time of nine minutes, thirty one seconds.

The National Junior Indoor Rowing Championships is held annually by London Youth Rowing, where schools and colleges across the UK compete in races of different age groups and distances. NJIRC took place in the Copper Box Arena in the iconic Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park for the very first time this year.

Here is what Lee had to say about CONEL and the NJIRC:

Robert Murphy, College Sportsmaker at CONEL said, “This was a great event run by the London Youth Rowing organisation. This was a great opportunity for all of the students that had been training all year to compete. The students that did attend thoroughly enjoyed the event and it is great that we can take our learners to events like this as an extension to the enrichment sports programme that we run at the college.”

CONEL also had a promotional stand at the event where, this year, some Sports students were carrying out health checks and giving our information, advice and guidance on CONEL courses.

If you are interested in a Sports course, click here.

The College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London are proud to present our Step into Accounting Apprenticeships and Careers Morning.

The event runs on the morning of 1 May 2019, kicking off at 9:30am and brings together the big brands Tottenham Hotspur Foundation, BKL Chartered Accountants,  CIMA, CIPFA and AAT. FREE refreshments will be served during the morning. You will be able to keep up-to-speed in the accounting and finance sector by engaging with professional accounting bodies. 

We would like to share our success stories with you. You can benefit from the conference by meeting key decision employers in person which will allow you to increase your visibility and receive recognition during the event. 

What to expect from the event: 

• You can network and meet like-minded apprentices and employers
• Find out the benefits of joining the AAT course
• Explore up-coming area around Seven Sisters tube station
• Enquire about the course and sign-up
• Learn about best in class experience
• You can start earning from £12,000

As part of the college’s commitment to tackling mental health issues, The College of Haringey Enfield & North East London (CONEL) held a 'Question Time' style event at the Enfield centre last month (Wednesday 13 March).

The event was run by an interactive panel of mental health professionals from the NHS, who answered questions from students and dispelled the myths and stigma around mental health issues.

Rebecca Burkoff, Senior Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner, opened the discussion by asking the group questions about mental health statistics, imparting knowledge while illustrating common misunderstandings around mental wellbeing. The conversation remained local, focusing in on problems relevant to Enfield.

Rebecca said, “I really love coming to speak to college students; I think there is a lot of interest but a lack of knowledge. Being able to teach these students is very rewarding - seeing them leave knowing more about mental health.”

This video was shown to the students:

The World Health Organisation estimates that one in four people will suffer from a mental health condition at some point in their lives; currently, around 450 million people have an active diagnosis. While measures are being put in place to facilitate people into appropriate treatment plans, stigma reduction is the first step towards recovery. Staff at the event stressed the importance of opening up the conversation around mental health more generally.

Louise Webber, Enrichment Coordinator and Pastoral Lead for CONEL, said, "Events like this are definitely raising awareness and informing students on what mental health is and how it is affecting their community and the people around them. Even if they only take one thing away from this discussion they are still leaving here better equipped than when they came.”

The event follows on from a previous visit from 5asidechess. 5asidechess is a nationwide social enterprise “determined to reconnect people in a disconnected world.” The company aims to combat loneliness and social isolation by bringing people together with chess. 5asidechess visited both our Tottenham and Enfield Centres on 5 February 2019.

If you are personally affected by mental health issues – or know somebody suffering from a mental health condition – please contact one of your Safeguarding Officers. https://www.conel.ac.uk/for-learners/student-support/218-safeguarding.html

Since opening its gates in November 2017, our Enfield Centre’s 3G pitch has been home to some amazing footballing talent ranging from our very own Charlton Athletic Academy players to local football teams. Of the local teams that make use of the pitch, Jack Wilshere’s NCF Elites (JW’S NCF Elites) has become a regular partner.

As well as bringing some of North London’s top youth talent to Enfield, JW’S NCF Elites has recently invited ex-professional footballers including Tony Adams, Aaron Ramsey, Ashley Cole, and David Seaman along to help coach and inspire the next generation of football. Posting Jack Wilshere to the position of working Director in February 2019, the company – previously known as NCF Elites – has been able to make use of the West Ham & England midfielder’s industry contacts, bringing seasoned professionals along with him to weekly training sessions.

Here are a selection of highlights from recent training sessions at the 3G pitch in Enfield with JW’S NCF Elites:

Tony Adams (1^st March 2019)

Aaron Ramsey (8^th March 2019)

Jack Wilshere and Ashley Cole with Sky Sports news (22^nd March 2019)

David Seaman (5^th April 2019)

This is what Nick Cook, JW’S NCF Elites Director, had to say about our facilities:

“We are delighted to be working with CONEL and the fantastic facilities they have available. They have offered us great support on our journey so far and we look forward to our partnership developing further during the coming months and years.”

Looking to rent out sports facilities? Check out our availability here: (https://www.conel.ac.uk/about-us/sports-facilities-3g-pitch-hire.html)

Interested in a sports course at the college? Click here

Since February, CONEL has been running a Women into Transportation and Engineering (WiTnE) programme, in partnership with TFL in support of the international ‘Women Into STEM’ movement.

According to the National College for High-Speed Rail, women account for just 9% of the UK’s engineering workforce and only 4% of rail engineers, so there is a clear need to encourage more women into the sector.

The WiTnE programme was organised alongside blue-chip railway and engineering companies Siemens, Arriva Rail, Thales, Telent and Morson Group and is providing women with invaluable opportunities in the industry. 43 women came to our initial information session day; 22 of whom started and successfully completed a two-week employability programme to give them the skills they need to prepare for work. Being on the course gave each learner a guaranteed work placement with a nominated employer, relevant to their sector of interest. 

All learners who attended their work placements have been guaranteed interviews with their employers should they want full-time work at a later date. The event was widely regarded as a success by students and employers alike. Two learners from the cohort were even fast-tracked to the second round of interviews in their applications with Arriva Rail. And Arriva Rail was so impressed by their CONEL students that they are in discussions with CCCT, our Apprenticeship training arm, to recruit six new apprentices.

Nicola Sophia from Transport for London (TFL) said: “I would like to congratulate CONEL and all of the partners for the successful delivery of the WiTnE pre-employment programme. The candidates were all very pleased with their work placements.

“The candidates completed the programme with a greater appreciation of the transportation and engineering sectors, and the opportunities that wait for all our students, regardless of gender.”

We plan to run a similar themed programme 2-3 times a year with TFL, with the next one focusing on helping more people from black and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds get jobs in the transportation industry.

With women so underrepresented in construction and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) roles generally, CONEL has made the recruiting of women to our courses a priority. Our FREE short courses, in particular, have proved to be a very accessible way for women to get into these subjects.  And with specialist free “Women into…” courses in carpentry & joinery, brickwork, and painting & decorating still enrolling for available for May and June, there are more opportunities for women to start their careers by learning with CONEL.

If you are interested in doing this course or a similar Engineering course, please contact: courseinfo@conel.ac.uk or call us on 020 8442 3442.

On 3 April, three Level 3 Business students from the Career Ready Programme, visited the Suited & Booted charity, based near Liverpool Street Station.

 Suited & Booted supply formal clothes and accessories to men who require support selecting appropriate wear for job interviews and City employment.

Students David Agunwah, Ritik Vibhani and Michael Raul Cabana Sotelo were accompanied by Anne-Marie Melbourne, CONEL’s Employer Engagement officer. Two store assistants then helped kit out the students with individually tailored outfits ahead of upcoming work experience.

David, Michael and Ritik were all very happy with their suits and said they really enjoyed their appointments.  The three are expecting summer internships in the coming months, and reportedly enjoyed the opportunity to get a taste for professional life in the big city. David will be based at Citi bank in Canary Wharf for his internship, while Ritik and Michael will be based at PA Consultancy Group in Victoria.

David said, “I joined the Career Ready programme to gain work experience. It is a flexible programme, so that helps with my studying. I really liked getting my free suit, which will help me when I start my internship at Citi bank in July.”

Anne-Marie Said, “This was our first time at Suited and Booted as a college. My manager gave me a flyer for the company and when I contacted them the founder of the charity invited us down. It was easy to get to and the students were really excited. Before we went we filled out forms which meant when we arrived, they were ready with suits the right size for our students. They all tried on two suits and they were really happy with what they came away with, one of the students with an Armani suit. They even got bags for their work. When leaving they were also given money to take up the hems of their trousers and told where they can get free haircuts. It was a great experience.”

For more information on the career ready programme or to be part of the next cohort please contact Betty Benjamin (BBenjamin@conel.ac.uk).

There are massive misconceptions and stigmas that surround the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). Here at The College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London (CONEL) we challenge these by having an MMA Academy which installs discipline and respect within our students.

Alay Asghar has been in the world of MMA for 11 years, working at CONEL for the last three of those as Head coach of the MMA Academy.

From competitor to coach Alay has learnt a lot during his time in the sport. He said: “MMA is a sport which in my opinion instils discipline and character into the individuals who participate. There is a big misconception that MMA is all about promoting violence and fighting however in practice it is actually a great way to help the students channel their aggression within a controlled environment.

“MMA has many disciplines that have a deep-rooted history. Many of these have their own traditions dated hundreds of years based around respect for themselves, their opponent and life in general. I introduce and implement these ideologies amongst my students straight away which I hope will benefit them not only in the classroom but also in the outside world. These traditions consist of bowing, shaking hands and respecting the authority of the coaches and teachers.

“As well as these life skills, MMA is a great form of exercise for people of all abilities and backgrounds offering a unique path to bettering themselves physically and mentally.”

Brandon Wilkins is one of Alay’s top students. During his time at CONEL Brandon has won:

-Wikf European championship open weight 16-17 years. 
-Basel open 16-17 years +68kg 
-English champion 16-17 years -68kg 
-British champion 16-17 years -68kg 2017&2018. 
-Central England champion 2017 and 2018 x2 16-17 years -68kg and open weight.

Alongside the MMA Academy, Brandon studies Sports Fitness and Coaching which he hopes will assist him in pursuing a career in Karate. 

Brandon Said, “My training has to be very specific for Karate so I mainly focus on that at my own club but the college has helped me build up my fitness in the gym with the equipment that is there.”

If you are interested in joining our MMA Academy then click here to find out more: https://www.conel.ac.uk/martial-arts-academy.html or for more videos and pictures: https://www.instagram.com/mma.conel/

The College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London (CONEL) hosted the Accounting Apprenticeship and Careers conference in association with Leadership through Sport & Business, The Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT), PQ magazine and Tottenham Hotspur Foundation. This event took place on 1 May 2019.

The event was a great success and offered attendees an opportunity to gain information, advice and guidance on the world of Accounting.

With financial and accounting technicians earning on average £47,320 per year, working in accountancy is a great career option for a lot of people. You don’t have to be an expert with figures to start on your study journey. The accountancy workforce in the UK is projected to grow by more than 5% over the next 5 years. So there should be more job opportunities for trainee accountants.

CONEL works closely with Leadership through Sport & Business (LTSB). LTSB is a charity that gives bright, ambitious young people who face disadvantage an opportunity in accounting and finance careers. Deputy CEO at Leadership Through Sport & Business, Pete Ward, said, “As part of our 2015 cohort we had a great young woman called Bola. She started off being unable to get unpaid work experience because she didn’t have any work experience already. CONEL and LTSB worked together and found her a position at BKL, an accountancy firm based in Finchley. Bola then moved on from working at BKL to Santander and was nominated for a rising star award in the Women in Finance awards.

“As a charity we work with young people to achieve a future they don’t have a language for. Careers fairs like this, which have both industry understanding and representation from various chartered accountancy boards, means that young people are better equipped to describe their future and therefore achieve it.”

Student, Megan-Rose Caswell is studying Level 3 Accounting Apprenticeship and working for Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. Which means that she studies at CONEL one day each week and works at Tottenham Hotspur on the other four days. She said, “CONEL is great because I look forward to being with people of a similar age and at a similar level as myself. At work, I am with people a lot older and a lot more experienced, whereas in my college class everyone is working at the same pace and is in the same boat as me.”

Megan works in Tottenham Hotspur’s Accounts Payable department, processing payments to suppliers and contractors. Spurs have recently finished an £850 million, 3½ -year regeneration project, which has delivered a brand new 62,062-seat stadium for the club. Megan has been involved in processing some of the payments to the stadium’s contractors.

Nazia Khaliq, who works for CONEL to support apprentices being recruited and placed, said, “CONEL’s Accounting Academy has been running since 2010. The academy has produced some amazing accounting professionals. Past students are now working at a range of companies like BKL, Grant Thornton, Arc Insolvency, SmallBiz Accountancy Ltd and SmartSec Solutions.

“One of our success stories, Akash Ruparelia, started on the  Pre-Apprenticeship in Accounting programme at CONEL in 2012. In February 2019, Akash was the first student from the LTSB programme to qualify as a chartered accountant.”

Read more about Akash here: https://www.conel.ac.uk/news-events/news-archive/2707-conel-becomes-first-fully-qualified-accountant-from-young-leaders-programme.html

If you are interested in joining one of our accountancy courses or Apprenticeships then please click here: https://www.conel.ac.uk/courses/accounting.html

CONEL’s award-winning Plumbing tutor, Paul Oatham, has worked at the college since October 2016. Paul has started using videos as a new and exciting way to teach and engage his students. This not only helps students revise before exams but offers the opportunity to re-watch classes they may have missed or not fully understood.

How to - Centre to centre bend

How to - Draw a P13

Originally attending sixth form at school, Tai Juan was set on studying business. However, he soon became disillusioned with the pressures and expectations of school life as well as the challenges of having undiagnosed dyslexia.

Struggling with school life, Tai Juan needed to find an alternative route and as a consequence, spent some time out of education. Thankfully he found his happy place at the College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London (CONEL), changed courses and has never looked back.

Since finding CONEL, Tai Juan has felt extremely motivated about his future. With fantastic support from staff, Tai Juan is now studying Creative Media and loving every second of college life, his enthusiasm is truly infectious.

Tai Juan said, “I’ve studied at CONEL for two years now. This has been an amazing turn around. I didn’t get the grades I needed to stay on into Year 13. I am really grateful to CONEL; if I hadn’t found this college I wouldn’t be here right now. It’s really touched me.

“My goal was to go into business but then I switched. I have found out that I’m creative and through that I now know what I want to do. There are no words to say how grateful I am for CONEL, it could have looked so different for me. It has great equipment and facilities, there’s nothing that they don’t have. It’s a great place to study.

“I was diagnosed properly with dyslexia at CONEL. They have the facilities and learning support team I needed. I now get extra time in my exams and I also have a teacher who is there for me. There are times I have struggled or can’t spell certain words, but the teachers are there to help. CONEL has been there for me even when I’ve been out of education, it’s amazing.”

Each year the College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London holds its Excellence Awards, and in 2018 Tai Juan was nominated for, and won, an award for excellence on his Media Production course.

Tai Juan went on to say, “The Creative Media course is awesome, I’ve learnt a lot. I’ve learnt how to use a camera properly, make music videos and use software like Adobe; great skills for going into something creative in the future. I’m going to be studying Graphic Design at uni and I only got into that by coming here.

“One thing I really believe is that education shouldn’t be based on grades, but on your talent and what you can do.”

Now, properly diagnosed with dyslexia and fully supported, Tai Juan’s confidence has grown and he is looking to go onto university to continue with his new found passion.

To hear more from Tai Juan about his time at CONEL click below. 

If you are interested in studying Media at CONEL like Tai Juan, click here to begin your enrolment process: https://www.conel.ac.uk/courses/creative-and-media.html

From 25-28 May, 15 academy players from CONEL’s men’s football team went undefeated on their annual end-of-year football tour to Catalonia in north-eastern Spain.

CONEL was invited by the prestigious Academia de Futbol de Catalunya and played in two showcase games in front of scouts from La Liga clubs Barcelona and Espanyol.

The group had an action packed four day trip. Arriving on Saturday 25^th, the group settled into their hotel rooms before eating dinner together and watching the Copa del Rey final, Spain’s equivalent to England’s FA Cup.

On the Sunday morning the team faced their first opponents, Club Deportivo La Floresta, Tarragona’s leading football school and community club – which recently signed a collaboration agreement with Spanish La Liga side Villarreal. The game ended 1-1 after 90 minutes.

On Monday morning the squad trained at the Academia De Futbol de Catalunya and in the afternoon they played their second match vs triallists from the Academia, which also ended in a one-all draw. The Academia De Futbol de Catalunya has a range of excellent training and match pitches, and provides a ‘gateway’ to Spanish football, right from youth football and schools teams seeking tours or tournaments, to elite players who are looking for assistance breaking into the professional ranks in Spain.

Coach Josemar Santos said, “It was an amazing trip! The boys conducted themselves like true professionals. This was a great team building exercise, which will help us going into next season’s fixtures and may be the only opportunity that some of our students will have to play abroad.”

Student Romans Andrejevs, who played centre back on the tour, joined CONEL’s Charlton Athletic Football Club Development Squad in 2017. Romans said: “Josemar has helped me understand the game better. CONEL has outstanding facilities, the teachers are excellent and I’d fully recommend anyone looking for a career in sport to come here.”

Earlier this year, Romans signed with top Portuguese club Maritimo and will be joining them in the future. Meanwhile he is continuing his studies at CONEL and is excelling in his Sport First Diploma course.

To join one of CONEL’s sports academies and be in with a chance of going on a trip like this, click here: https://www.conel.ac.uk/for-learners/sports-academies.html

Tasnim Alam is one of our Level 3 Science students. He has always been intrigued by science and feels that he learns something new about it every day that he steps foot inside the College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London (CONEL). But the advantages of studying at CONEL extend way beyong the science knowledge and skills that he has gained: Tasnim really enjoys his daily commute to the college and realises just how much he is maturing as a student and as a person. 

"more responsibility than when I was at school"

“For me, I have to get myself up and out in the morning, so there’s more responsibility than when I was at school where you rely on your parents to wake you up. This prepares you for life, waking up on your own, getting things done by yourself, it makes you more responsible.”

“College has helped me think about planning, what time to wake up, what time I have to leave to be at work or college on time – I’ve already put that into practice with a part time job I have outside of college.”

“The best thing about my course is learning things I didn’t know before. Also, the College has always told the students that if we need advice they are always on hand, especially when it comes to what we want to do in the future. They have always been there to help. I know that if I have a problem or issue can I approach one of my lecturers, even in the middle of the lesson, they will always find time to answer a question.”

Tasnim’s advice to other students is to try and keep your passion for education. Tasnim speaks from the heart as he had a period in life when he lost sight of that passion for a short while. However, he pulled through and is now brimming with enthusiasm about his learning and his own future.

Inspired? If you are passionate about understanding how the world works or making new discoveries, then a career in science might be right for you. Scientists work in a range of industries and sectors, including technology, transport, medicine and the environment. If this sounds good to you, why not follow in Tasnim's footsteps on a Science course at CONEL? Find out more here: https://www.conel.ac.uk/courses/science.html 

CONEL Alumnus Mek Mehmet-Yesil studied Access to HE: Nursing in 2017 and is now the NHS’s representative for North London and Haringey, raising awareness of HPV and cervical cancer. Mek returned in May to talk to the current Enfield Access and Pre-Access learners about her work in this area. 

Worldwide, cervical cancer is the most frequent cancer in women with an estimated 570,000 new cases in 2018 representing 7.5% of all female cancer deaths. It is estimated that there are more than 311,000 deaths from cervical cancer every year. Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common viral infection of the reproductive tract. Most sexually active women and men will be infected at some point in their lives and some may be repeatedly infected.

Working alongside Public Health England, Mek has been raising awareness for HPV and cervical cancer for four months, screening over 400 patients in this short time.

Mek said, “I’ve always wanted to be a Scientist in health, and biology and chemistry were my favourite subjects. I graduated from medical school back in 1990 but never pushed my career forward due to unforeseen circumstances. At the age of 45 I revisited my education with outstanding grades, many of which were distinctions. 

“This has been such an amazing journey after my one year Access to HE: Nursing course at CONEL in 2017.  I set up Health Screen UK back in February 2017 as I noticed there was a need for this service, especially in the deprived non-English community. The service consists of checking bloods, for people’s cholesterol levels, body mass index and diabetes. I have done several community events this year already.

“My daughter was taken ill because of the HPV virus so I conducted some research and was taken up by Public Health England in March this year to educate and spread awareness about this preventable disease. 

“Since studying at CONEL I have gone on to study a Masters course in Cardiology along with Human Sciences.” – Mek Mehmet-Yesil

“Attending CONEL gave me a new sense of life again, although most of the students were half my age it didn’t deter me. It was quite energising. It’s never too late to re-educate one’s self and there are no barriers involved. I felt complete after the course.”

If you would like to study Access to HE: Nursing like Mek then please Apply here: https://www.conel.ac.uk/courses/health-and-social-care/194-level-3/95-access-to-he-nursing-level-3.html

On 26 June, The College of Haringey Enfield & North East London (CONEL) hosted their annual Graduation ceremony for adults on Higher Education courses, Access to HE courses and Advanced and Higher Apprenticeships. The evening saw over 100 learners who had successfully completed their courses and apprenticeships in 2018-19 graduate from the College.

The ceremony took place in the college’s Tottenham Centre and was hosted by Rev Nims Obunge, member of the CONEL Local Advisory Board, with certificates presented by Kurt Hintz, CONEL’s Interim Principal.

The ceremony was opened by two City and Islington College performing arts students Karola Korczewska and Keisha Akinyemi who sang Ben E King’s classic Stand By Me.

Attendees were then inspired by Alumni student Stanislav Ivanov’s story.

Stanislav was working 9-5 and wanted to change what he was doing. He re-entered education at CONEL studying on our Access to higher education level 3 computing course which he got a distinction in. This allowed Stanislav to progress onto Kings College London University, where now in his third year, he’s planning to be a software engineer.

Stanislav told us: “Without the teachers, I wouldn’t have passed the course and be where I am, I am so grateful.”

Last year Stanislav returned the favour to CONEL and returned to help coach students doing the course he studied while here.

The awards were then presented. Congratulations to all of our Graduates.

Graduate, Magdalena Siwek, who studied PGCE Level 7 Teacher Training last year, said “Tonight was really good. It was nice to have a ceremony just after we handed in our final work and see all of my class friends so happy. It was a blast.” 

Interim Principal Kurt Hintz said “Our Graduation ceremony is one of my favourite nights of the year”

“It is an opportunity to celebrate all the hard work our students have put in and remind ourselves of the impact that education has on our lives”

“I’d like to congratulate all our graduating students for their fantastic achievements and wish them all the best in their future careers.”

If you want to be a CONEL graduate one day, your journey starts here: www.conel.ac.uk/courses APPLY NOW.