Jackie Mitchell, Head of School for Business and Accountancy, centre, with colleagues Evelyn Murray-Smith, Adu Boansi, Ahmed Dakissaga, Jacqueline Dyett, Ubaydul Haque and Nazia Khaliq.
The College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London (CONEL) has been recognised by a charity helping disadvantaged young people gain careers in accounting and finance.
The College was named an Education Partner of the Year by Leadership Through Sport & Business (LTSB), the official partner of its Accountancy Academy.
LTSB works with football club foundations and high profile companies to provide accountancy Apprenticeships, while also offering apprentices professional and personal development opportunities to prepare them for the business world.
CONEL has worked with the charity since its inception in 2012 and was its first education partner, which led to the development of the Accounting Academy.
The Academy offers a Pre-Apprenticeship for 14 weeks leading to a Level 3 Apprenticeship, with the model since being extended by LTSB to other colleges in London, Birmingham and Manchester.
CONEL has now seen five groups of learners successfully complete the programme and gain employment.
One of the Academy’s biggest success stories is Bola Lawal, who was recently named among the winners in LTSB’s Apprentice of the Year awards.
She began her Apprenticeship with Berg Kaprow Lewis LLP, now BKL, in Finchley, before landing a job as a Group Reporting Accountant at Santander UK’s head office in Euston.
During that time she gained her AAT Level 2 and Level 3 qualifications at the College where she also received an Excellence Award in 2016.
Jackie Mitchell, Head of School for Business and Accountancy, and Nazia Khaliq, Accountancy Recruitment Consultant, accepted the Education Partner of the Year award on behalf of the College at a ceremony at Sackers LLP in Central London.
CONEL was described as “an exceptional educator and training provider” ahead of the award being presented by LTSB Founder David Pinchin and Trustee Sarah Ebanja.
Jackie said: “We are extremely proud of the work we do as an Accounting Academy, which is a real team effort.
“We work closely with LTSB to support and provide our learners with coaching and mentoring, and develop their leadership skills to give them the confidence to secure employment at some of the most prestigious financial companies in the world.”