Northern College students wow with their creative writing

We are really excited to share the wonderful news that Northern College students have had their writing published as part of a national Association of Colleges project. Our students’ work has been featured across many of the project’s genres including poetry, non-fiction, and science fiction.

This follows the creation of a collection of work from the GCSE English Language class of 2020-21. This work was a happy product of the pandemic when, due to Covid-19, all exams were cancelled, and students nationwide were graded by their teachers instead of sitting exams.

Many of our students come from a wide variety of backgrounds, sometimes without former qualifications. With the added pressure of Covid-19, this year’s group also experienced the additional stresses of lockdowns: online classes, children to home-school, isolation, financial worries, illness and more.

Ruth North, lead tutor, had the fantastic experience of reading students work that would otherwise have been submitted to an examiner and compiling the anthology.

The students produced such a high-quality body of work in the face these challenges that, with hard work, commitment, and support from college, 100% of them achieved grade 4 or higher (equivalent to grade C or above).

At Northern College, we run English and Maths courses for adults, to support them to re-enter education to gain employment, change careers or access university. These run at flexible times to suit learners’ needs, including during the day and at weekends.

Download and read the full anthology (PDF 1MB)

Did you know you may be able to study English and maths for free?

Functional skills and GCSE qualifications in English and maths are free to anyone who doesn’t already have either a grade 4, or a Level 2, in the specific subject. This means, if you’re aged 19 or over, the government will fund your English and Maths studies until you achieve either of these grades whether you are in work or not.

• If you are interested in studying English and maths and would like to know more visit our webpage here

• Listen to our student Michelle (pictured), an author of one of the pieces of creative writing, about her own experiences of studying English, Maths and Digital Skills at Northern College here