The Engineering Education team at South Eastern Regional College (SERC) has received the esteemed Silver Pearson National Teaching Award.

The 2024 Silver Award for Further Education (FE) Team of the Year celebrates the dedication of the 30-member team, comprised of both full-time and part-time lecturers and support staff. This team brings industry-specific qualifications and experience to more than 1,000 engineering and manufacturing students at SERC.

The SERC Engineering team is one of 102 deserving teachers, lecturers, leaders, support staff and institutions named as silver winners in this year’s awards. They will now be in the running for the coveted Gold Award, which will be announced at a prestigious awards ceremony later in the year.

The Silver Pearson National Teaching Award highlights their innovative approaches to transforming education and the industry. They have implemented several programs to enhance students' educational experiences and address key workforce gaps at both the national and local levels.

Since 2021, the "We Can Engineer It" initiative has engaged women and girls to promote engineering as a career choice. Team members have volunteered as STEM Ambassadors to help young people, especially females, excel in the industry. Additionally, the female lecturers have supported the Career Ready post-16 program by mentoring aspiring female engineers.

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The Team has established an Employers Forum to ensure students are 'work ready' for the industry; helped develop the Project STEM units shared with the Manufacturing & Engineering Growth and Advancement (MEGA) network of businesses; and Thales UK has invested in an engineering skills academy to train 15 higher-level apprentices, five of which are studying at SERC.

By developing strategies for learner engagement, the team ensures SERC students benefit from project-based learning (PBL), practical scenarios and engagement with the broader engineering community through competition participation. Classes regularly feature guest speakers, live projects and mentorship in establishing the student-led SERC Engineering Society. They also connect with the local community and industry to promote engineering to hard-to-reach groups.

Their industry networks include a 10-year international partnership with the National Institute of Technology in Toyama College, Japan, which enabled exploratory visits that exposed SERC students to the robotics industry.

Ken Webb, Principal and Chief Executive of SERC said: "This Pearson National Silver Teaching Award is testament to the work of the Engineering team at SERC. They have worked to highlight the opportunities in the industry, especially to females, and to ensure all students have the opportunity, the inspiration, and the ambition to succeed. This is what makes SERC – and further education – an integral part of the economy. We are all immensely proud of this achievement for the Engineering team, for the College and wider SERC community."

SERC is celebrating two additional awards: the Culinary Arts and Hospitality team received a Bronze Award for FE Team of the Year, and Lizzie Buick, Deputy Head of the Enterprise and Entrepreneurship team, was Highly Commended in the FE Lecturer of the Year category.

This is the third time SERC have been awarded a Silver Pearson National Teaching Award for Further Education Team of the Year since 2019, when the Science team won the award, followed by the College’s Enterprise, Entrepreneurship and Environment team (2023). The College’s Little SERC creche team won a Silver Early Years Team of the Year Award in 2023. In addition, since 2021, individual lecturers have achieved Silver Awards for FE Lecturer of the Year: Paul Mercer (2021) and Aine McGreeghan (2023); and Stefanie Campbell (2021), won a Gold National Teaching Award for Digital Innovator of the Year.