Wigan organisation congratulates students with graduation ceremony

Kingsbridge Teacher Training celebrated the success of more than 50 trainee teachers who completed their year-long Initial Teacher Training programme in July 2021.

Trainees and the group of over thirty Wigan primary and secondary schools that support trainees during their training year gathered at Alberts of Standish on October 21 for a graduation ceremony to recognise their achievements.

Friends and family were also invited to attend the event and trainees were given the opportunity to have graduation photographs.

Sue Darbyshire, CEO of Community First Academy Trust, of which Kingsbridge Teacher Training is a part of, said: “At Kingsbridge Teacher Training, we are committed to recruiting, training and retaining the very best home-grown teachers and are proud to offer tuition and apprenticeship school-led routes into the profession.

“All our trainees are treated as a valued member of staff from day one by our partnership schools and receive first-class training and wellbeing and workload support, which includes a combination of classroom teaching and off-the-job training as you work towards the award of Qualified Teacher Status.

“With a 100 per cent employability rate and 85 per cent of our trainees achieving the ‘Outstanding’ grade, we have a strong track-record of success.

“We have also been really pleased to start work with new qualifying employers this year who can use their Apprenticeship Levy to support existing employees to train with us.”

Jen Machaj – Director of SCITT delivered the keynote speech. “Teaching is a great passion,” she said. “I am so glad that you have joined us on this journey during time of great challenge and difficulty because of the continuing Covid-19 pandemic.

“I want to give you my heartfelt congratulations on completing your training year and embarking as Early Career Teacher’s on the greatest career.”

One of the trainees graduating, spoke of the strong emotions she felt: “If there is one thing, I will take with me in my future years of teaching to follow, it’s the power of listening to a child and the impact this can have. It’s an amazing feeling when you break down the barriers to learning for a child.”

Thanks for reading. If you value what we do and are able to support us, a digital subscription is just £1 for your first month. Try us today by clicking here and viewing our offers.