New partnership means better access to agricultural learning for rural students

Date Published:: Monday 20 March 2017

Teesdale School and Sixth Form and East Durham College have announced an exciting new partnership that aims to make land based-agricultural courses more accessible to students.

East Durham Colllege’s Houghall Campus, in Durham, is offering post-16 students improved transport options as well as flexible timetables and developments to the curriculum to allow more young people to access their agricultural courses. In return, Teesdale School plans to enable parts of the courses to be delivered at school in Barnard Castle. Plans are also being developed to offer pre-16 students agricultural teaching in school and on placements at the Houghall campus, which has recently undergone a £12.75 million redevelopment including a brand-new small animal care centre, agricultural centre, equine centre, brand new science labs and IT suites. The new way of working would great a complete agricultural education pathway from pre to post -16 study for students at the school.

Janice Gorlach, Executive Principal at Teesdale School and Sixth Form said: “This unique agreement will mean that our post-16 students have easier to access this excellent facility. By offering flexibility, East Durham College are opening up a new avenue of learning opportunities in one of the finest agricultural learning facilities in the country.”

Suzanne Duncan, Principal at East Durham College, added: “We believe it is vital to offer young people, who live in the west of County Durham and the Dales, the opportunity to study agriculture up to Level 3 right here in Durham.

“Houghall had a long tradition of training the sons and daughters of our hill farming community; and with the redevelopment of the Houghall facilities and the introduction of our new level 3 advanced technical extended diploma in agriculture Houghall is once again able to meet the training needs of this community.”

Full time courses available to post-16 students at Houghall included Level 1- 3 qualifications in agriculture, animal care, arboriculture & forestry, countryside management, equine studies, floristry, horticulture & gardening and veterinary nursing.