Glazing Films & Blinds Sponsor Rail Academy Awards

Glazing Films & Blinds has sponsored Newcastle College’s inaugural Rail Academy Student Awards 2015, celebrating the achievements of students during the past academic year.

Newcastle College Rail Academy is a customer of Glazing Films & Blinds and was looking for a range of sponsors from the regional business community to support the awards, which included several innovative categories. As Glazing Films & Blinds have a commitment to support young people in their achievements, the business decided to sponsor the 'Pandrol Challenge Award' which was an award given to a team of 5 students for a teamwork task. The quality of the work produced by competing teams was exceptionally high, and the awards, which were presented on the 8th July, went to students, Ryan Dale, Brandon Foster, James Gowland, Liam McLeod and Liam Barrass. This team were set a task, which promoted teamwork and communication through problem solving and finding efficient methods of working.

Ken Brown, Managing Director of Glazing Films & Blinds commented on the awards: ‘We work with a wide range of education providers and want to show our support for the vital work they do, developing talent and creating a workforce for the future of the economy. The Rail Academy is especially important in a region like the North East as we prepare young people for the industry opportunities and skills required for our future infrastructure development in the region. The work produced by the teams in the Pandrol Challenge was great and demonstrates the high quality of work being produced at the college.’

The multi-million pound Rail Academy opened in Gateshead last September to help secure the future of rail engineering in the region. The first of its kind in the country, it is a regional hub for training and development in railway engineering and is designed to respond to the Government’s ambitious plans to create a world-class rail network.

The academy serves a wide range of students, from young people looking to develop a career in the rail industry, to those looking to change job direction and existing workers who are wishing to upskill.

Commenting on the support of Glazing Films & Blinds, Newcastle College’s Head of Rail, Marc McPake said: “We are grateful to Glazing Films & Blinds for their commitment to helping us develop the next generation of rail engineers by helping to reward and inspire them. These awards celebrate the outstanding achievements of our students, and Glazing Films & Blinds support is helping to make the Rail Academy the leading training hub for rail engineering in the UK.”