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Parade to Open Ceremony

Walsall College students paraded through Walsall in their caps and gowns on Friday 28th November to open their Higher Education Awards Ceremony, held at Walsall Town Hall. Accompanied by Town Crier Cyril Richardson, students set out from the Crossings at St Paul’s at 1pm and paraded through the town centre, arriving at the Town Hall to begin the ceremony at 1:30pm.

Over 300 attendees were present at the ceremony, including students, family and friends and tutors. The high achieving students received certificates for success on such courses as Higher National Diplomas (HNDs), Higher National Certificates (HNCs) and Foundation Degrees in a range of subjects, including Business, ICT, Engineering and Creative Arts. Special awards were also presented to students for outstanding achievement.

Many of the students will now be going on to top up to Degree level at university or to put their skills to use in the workplace. Walsall College Principal and Chief Executive Amarjit Basi said, “By choosing to study Higher Education at Walsall College our students have equipped themselves with the skills, knowledge and experience to succeed, as they go on to study at university or gain employment in their chosen industry.

“All students picking up their certificates should be extremely proud of their achievements and I speak on behalf of everybody at Walsall College when I wish them every success in the future”.

Also present at the ceremony included Walsall College Governors and guest speaker John Woodward, Co-founder of Busy Bees nurseries. John enjoyed a successful career in the education sector in Walsall before co-founding Busy Bees in 1983. The company has now gone on to become the UK’s largest provider of childcare and John’s speech provided inspiration for students about to embark on their careers or entrepreneurial ideas.

Speaking to the students at the ceremony, John Woodward said, “This is your opportunity to shine – be brave, if you have the ambition and set your standards high, you can achieve great things”.


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  • Department od Children Schools, and Families