A Team of A Level students from the College have taken part in a prestigious Mathematics competition – the Senior Team Maths Challenge at Lancaster University.

The competition is organised by The Further Mathematics Support Programme in partnership with the UK Mathematics Trust and in 2013-14 the competition has been sponsored by Rolls-Royce plc.

Competing in the regional heats held at Lancaster University, the College’s Team, made up of second year A Level students Ashleigh Haythornthwaite and Umair Asif, who have applied to study Maths and Maths with Theoretical Physics at universities including Lancaster, Manchester and Cambridge, plus first year AS students Charles Choyce and Kyle Quinn who also intend to apply for Mathematics degree courses next year.

Nelson and Colne College Sixth Form has an outstanding reputation for its Mathematics education and each year sees students progress onto Mathematics and related degree programmes at some of the best universities in the country, including the University of Oxford, Lancaster University and the University of Manchester. The College is also recognised as a STEM Assured centre, an accolade awarded by the New Engineering Foundation which acknowledges excellence in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics subjects. The College is one of a small minority of Colleges in the country to have achieved this accolade and is the only College in East Lancashire to be recognised in this way.

Maths tutor Paula Jackson said, “This is the first time the College has entered this prestigious competition, in which our students competed against a majority of private, selective schools. Our students came 7th out of 21 teams which is an amazing achievement and the aim for next year is at least a top 3 placing, if not 1st! The students really enjoyed the whole experience, both the competition and the preparatory work which will help their study of Maths.”