Support For Students

Student Services

SupportThe support we give is not just geared towards your studies. Through Student Services, we have a number of well-qualified and trained staff who are here to help you. During the college's recent inspection, Ofsted found that students liked the, "good support - financial, childcare, personal, advice and guidance" provided by Student Services.

We are situated on the first floor in the Whitemoor Building above the Engineering block. Our opening times during term time are as follows:

Monday  8.45 am - 5.00pm
Tuesday - Thursday  8.45 am - 7.30 pm
Friday  8.45 am - 4.30 pm

During college holiday periods we close at 5.00pm from Tuesday to Thursday.

Call into Student Services for:

  • Information, advice and guidance about courses, career planning and higher education*
  • Financial advice e.g. university finance, EMA, ALG and Learner Support Fund
  • Child care queries
  • Health advice
  • Counselling support
* In addition to College students this service is also available to members of the public.

Telephone number 01282 440209

Email: learnerservices@nelson.ac.uk

Statement of Service

Click here to download the Statement of Service [large download]
Click here to download the Statement of Service [smaller download]

Careers Information, Advice and Guidance

If you would like guidance on planning your next steps, applying to University, pursuing a particular career, or if you are unsure of what to do when you leave college then experienced staff are available to help.

One-to-one guidance appointments are available for members of the public as well as current, past or potential students. We offer impartial advice with up-to-date accurate information. Telephone 01282 440220 or email learnerservices@nelson.ac.uk to arrange an appointment with a qualified practitioner from the Student Services team.

A guidance interview can:

  • help build your self esteem and confidence
  • help you identify what is available to you in the future
  • help you identify your skills and abilities
  • give you valuable pointers on how best to use those abilities

The interview will focus on your needs and interests and help you to make the right decisions for your future.

Within Student Services there is a careers library and browsing area containing a range of relevant literature. This includes university prospectuses, careers books and job skills workbooks. Information is available on a variety of topics including taking a gap year, preparing CVs, improving your interviewing skills and job hunting.

If you are unsure of which career or course may be suitable for you, there is also careers software package, Adult Directions, available to all clients and students to help you match your interests and abilities. The software is available in Student Services. If you would like guidance on using the software, please book an appointment either by calling into Student Services or by ringing 01282 440220.

Financial Support

Support

Education Maintenance Allowance

This is a national scheme which provides young people aged 16-18 with financial support to help them to stay in full-time education. It is a weekly payment worth between £10 and £30 for eligible students based on a requirement of excellent attendance and behaviour. The grant is means-tested.

For further information - click here

Application forms are available from:

  • Nelson & Colne College (contact Student Services)
  • Your local Young People’s Information Centre
  • The Learner Support helpline – 0800 121 8989

If you need help completing your application, please call into Student Services. Early applications are recommended.

Adult Learning Grant

Students aged 19 and above studying more than 12 hours per week in college may be entitled to the Adult Learning Grant (ALG). ALG is means-tested and the weekly payment varies from £10 and £30. The course must be the first full Level 2 or Level 3 qualification taken by the student.

Application forms are available from:

  • Nelson & Colne College (contact Student Services)
  • The Learner Support helpline – 0800 121 8989

Help completing your application is available from Student Services. Early applications are recommended. Call in for advice.

Additional Financial Help

We have a Learner Support Fund to help full and part-time students who may need help with the costs of coming to college. Certain courses will have higher costs than others for specialist equipment and/or uniforms.

If you are aged 19 and over, studying either full or part time, you may be eligible for assistance from the Learner Support Fund to help towards exam or registration fees for your course.

Eligibility for the grant is based on household income.

For information about eligibility, please contact Student Services

Childcare

Although we do not have a nursery of our own, we work closely with local nurseries and childminders. There are different schemes to help students of all ages fund their childcare costs. These include Care to Learn (for students aged 16-19), the Free Childcare for Training and Learning for Work scheme and the College Learner Support Funds, both for students aged 20 and above.

Contact Student Services for more information.

Early applications are recommended.

Please note: the College cannot make any contribution for childcare unless it is with a registered childcare provider.

Health and Wellbeing

Student health and wellbeing is of great importance at Nelson & Colne College. We have a Health Development Practitioner working full-time within the college as part of the Student Services team. Deborah Walmsley is a registered nurse and qualified public health specialist with experience of working with children, young people and families in both health and education settings.

Deborah has a drop-in service based in Student Services. Advice can be given on a number of different issues including:

  • general health concerns
  • sexual health
  • smoking cessation
  • eating disorders
  • bereavement
  • anger management

This list is not exhaustive!

There will also be a number of health awareness and promotion campaigns taking place in college throughout the year.

In addition to the service provided by Deborah, we provide a confidential counselling service to all our students to help them with any personal issues affecting work, self esteem, relationships, mental health or general well being.

Call into Student Services for more information.

Sport & Recreation

All full-time students have the opportunity to take part in a wide range of sport activities during lunchtimes and after college. These include basketball, football, netball, badminton, table tennis and much more. The activities are free and all full-time students are encouraged to participate for fun or to improve sports performance to a competitive level.

The college has a range of teams who compete against other colleges on Wednesday afternoons. The teams are men's football, girl's 7-a-side and netball. Many of our students participate in these fixtures and also the British Colleges Sport regional competitions where there are 15 different sports on offer.

For students interested in joining one of the college sports teams, times and venues of the sports will be given to you at the Freshers' Fair at the start of term and can also be found on the notice boards around college. You can also contact Catherine Stanworth on 01282 440221.

Students can also access the Fitness Suite in the Deerstone building. It consists of a range of free weights and a variety of cardiovascular work stations including running machines, cross trainers and rowing machine.

Finally, if there is a sport or activity you are interested in which we don't yet offer, or you would just like some information on how to take part in sport, then speak to our FESCO (Further Education Sports Coordinator) Alan Stanworth on 01282 440221.

Enrichment

Full-time students have the opportunity to take part in a range of additional activities which enable you to develop new skills, meet other students and make the most of your time as a student at college. Our enrichment programme, Nelson & Colne College Extra, contains a wide range of different activities which change each year according to student interest and demand.

Details of all the activities on offer will be available at the Freshers' Fair at the beginning of term along with instructions on how to sign up. If you miss this event, posters will be displayed on various noticeboards around college throughout the year.

Some activities will require a regular commitment, for example the Duke of Edinburgh Award or a five week First Aid course. However. other activities are run on a 'drop-in' basis, for example the daily multi-sport sessions.

Examples of the kind of clubs and societies run in the past year include:

  • Acting Skills
  • Beauty Tips and Techniques
  • Big Band
  • Choir
  • Climbing Club
  • College Magazine
  • Dance Workshops
  • Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award
  • First Aid
  • Food Hygiene
  • Multi-sport drop in sessions
  • Personal Safety and Self Defence

Activities are available at various times in the week to enable you to fit enrichment into your weekly timetable.

Faith Service

There is a Multi-Faith room for the use of both students and staff within Student Services. This light and airy room can be used by anyone for worship, prayer, meditation or quiet reflection.

Members of the College Chaplaincy team, consisting of Christian and Muslim representatives, are available to provide support and encouragement to all students during their time in College. They can be contacted through Student Services.

Travel Information

Nelson & Colne College is conveniently located just off Junction 13 of the M65 motorway; on the periphery of Barrowford village and close to Nelson town centre.

Nelson is well served by public transport and the majority of services mentioned in our guide stop at the Nelson Interchange (bus and rail) which is approximately 10 minutes walk to the college site.

Alternatively some services stop outside the college on Scotland Road.

We have worked with local transport companies to map the routes available to ensure that you can get to and from college safely and speedily.

… Read more about getting to and from Nelson and Colne College

Learning Support

Click here for Disability Support