Applications for places in Year 10 for September 2023

RDUTC is oversubscribed for places in Year 10. As a result we applied our oversubscription criteria last week to select those students to be offered places (see Admission policy).

Letters have now been posted to parents/carers of students who have been offered places.  Those parents/carers must complete and return the acceptance form included with the letter.

We are really sorry that we are unable to offer places to all students who applied.

Please note:

We only contact parents/carers of students who have been offered  a place in the first instance. We then wait to see if they accept their places.  If any don’t, we will apply our oversubscription criteria to select another student from those who weren’t selected the first time. This can go on for a few weeks.  Once we get to the end of March, we will contact all parents/carers of students who haven’t been offered places and ask if they want to go on the waiting list.

RDUTC will continue to take applications for Year 10 until 31st August.  These applications will be included in the oversubscription criteria selection process should a place become available.

If you would like further information, please contact Mark Ollerenshaw (Vice Principal) by email at mollerenshaw@rondearingutc.com

Ron Dearing UTC students shine on the F1 in Schools starting grid

Ron Dearing UTC students involved in a global Formula 1 racing-inspired competition held an event to celebrate their achievements and introduce more teams to the contest.

Two teams from the employer-led school – Vortex Racing and Mach Racing – entered the F1 in Schools challenge, the world’s largest Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) competition, for the first time last year.

Vortex Racing won the regional finals with the fastest car, progressing to compete at national level, and celebrated their success at Porsche Centre Hull at Bridgehead Business Park in Hessle.

Mach Racing, who won the Star Quality: Verbal Presentation Award for the region in the first round of the competition last year, are racing again in next month’s regional finals in York and tested their vehicles at the event.

The evening also saw two additional Ron Dearing UTC teams – Impulse Racing and Magna Racing – announce their entry into the next F1 in Schools competition later this year and launch a bid for sponsorship from the school’s employer partners, alongside other businesses and invited guests from across the region.

 

The event to celebrate Ron Dearing UTC students’ racing-inspired achievements.

 

The teams pitched to potential sponsors, including representatives from the UTC’s employer partners, other leading businesses across the region and the students’ families and friends, about how their logos would be displayed and promoted on an international stage in the competition.

Based on the official F1 model, the F1 in Schools teams design and manufacture their miniature cars using specialist computer software. They also develop their brand, time management and budgeting skills, build their social media presence and link up with businesses to raise sponsorship for their teams.

The cars are powered by CO2 cartridges and are attached to a 25-metre track by a nylon wire and raced. They are timed by a computer from the moment they are launched to when they pass the finish line.

Glenn Jensen, Senior Assistant Principal – Employer Engagement at Ron Dearing UTC, said: “It was fantastic to see so many people supporting our F1 in Schools students at the event and we’d like to thank Porsche Centre Hull for their incredible hospitality.

“It’s so important for our students to take part in initiatives such as this. It’s about linking them to industry and giving them the best advice and guidance possible, so they can make a difference outside their school lives.

“F1 in Schools really contributes towards this and equips them with skills for life.”

Ron Dearing UTC students presenting to some of the school’s employer partners.

 

As part of their fundraising and networking efforts, the event at Porsche Centre Hull was held for the second consecutive year.

Last year’s event raised thousands of pounds towards offsetting the costs of each team and their potential participation at every level of the competition and the latest teams will continue collecting sponsorship throughout the season.

Dr Bruce Charlesworth, Chief Medical Officer at Reckitt, one of Ron Dearing UTC’s Founding Partners, said: “I’m always impressed with the students’ presentation skills, especially for their age.

“They’ve clearly got some real competitiveness going on, which is nice to see, and it’s great to watch them pitching.”

A raffle was also held on the night to raise money towards sponsorship for the two new teams, with the top prize of a Silverstone driving experience.

Year 11 student Zach Craig, 15, is the manager of Vortex Racing and said the F1 in Schools journey has been positive.

He said: “It’s been great and given me lots of experience in looking after a team, organising, engineering, project management, confidence and public speaking.”

Visit https://www.f1inschools.co.uk/ for more information about F1 in Schools.

Anyone who would like to sponsor a team can email gjensen@rondearingutc.com for further details.

Ron Dearing UTC students to get more hands-on industry experiences

Ron Dearing UTC has launched an exciting new programme with its employer partners to provide hands-on industry experiences and visits for sixth form students as they consider their next steps.

Twelve of the school’s employer partners attended the UTC’s third Employer Breakfast Meeting to hear more about how they can offer Industry Experience Placements (formerly known as work experience placements) to Year 12 students and Industry Insights Visits to Year 12 and Year 13 students.

Employer partners can advertise Industry Experience Placements to Year 12 students from early May.  Students will then complete application forms, interviews will go ahead and offers will be made, enabling them to experience the full application process before starting their placements during the summer holidays.

In addition, two-hour Industry Insights Visits are being organised for groups of Year 12 or Year 13 students during term time, giving them an in-person insight into a company’s brand, values, career opportunities and the technology used in the sector.

Two former Ron Dearing UTC students, Trainee Computer-aided Design (CAD) Technician Oliver Wilkinson and Engineering Apprentice Liam Bowering, are now employed by Spencer Group, one of the UTC’s Founding Partners.

Businesses gathered at the third Ron Dearing UTC Employer Breakfast Meeting.

 

They told the Employer Breakfast meeting attendees about the benefits they gained from work experience, which led to them being employed by Spencer Group, as well as how they are now mentoring the most recent Spencer apprentices from Ron Dearing UTC.

Yvonne Moir, Spencer Group’s HR Director, encouraged other employer partners to embrace the opportunity of meeting and working with Ron Dearing students to bolster their future talent pipeline.

Glenn Jensen, Senior Assistant Principal – Employer Engagement at Ron Dearing UTC, said: “We have extremely gifted young people at Ron Dearing UTC and we want to give them the best possible careers advice and guidance and opportunities, experiencing industry and the workplace to help them choose the right path for them.

“Some Industry Insights Visits have already taken place and we’re encouraging all of our fantastic employer partners to get involved, giving masterclass talks and tours to open our students’ eyes to their industries.

“What we do alongside our employers partners in the classroom is already excellent. But the more opportunities we can give our students, the more they will secure the jobs they aspire to in these sectors and help make a difference.”

Simon Connell, CEO of the Baker Dearing Educational Trust, and Kate Ambrosi, Director of Innovation and Learning at the Baker Dearing Educational Trust, also attended the breakfast meeting before a tour of the UTC’s facilities with Principal Sarah Pashley.

Former Ron Dearing UTC students Oliver Wilkinson and Liam Bowering speaking at the Employer Breakfast Meeting.

 

The school is currently undergoing expansion to increase its capacity from 600 to 800 students following growing demand. Work to remodel the existing school building is now complete and work is underway to transform the former Central Fire Station next door to the school into a satellite school, which is due to open in June.

Simon said: “Ron Dearing UTC has been a success story from day one and it’s really uplifting to be here.

“Employers at the breakfast meeting know what’s being asked of them and what Ron Dearing UTC will do to support that process. It’s fantastic, very prescriptive and authentic and it’s what UTCs were set up for.

“When you’re full and really successful, you want to grow your impact and I’m thrilled Ron Dearing UTC is making more space for young people.”

Sarah said: “Simon was instrumental in helping us to put the bid together for the grant application to increase our student numbers and transform the former fire station into a state-of-the-art creative facility, housing STEAM Studios.

“We’re very grateful to him for his time and expertise. The tour was a great opportunity to show Simon and Kate how the expansion is progressing on the countdown to completion in June.”

Ron Dearing UTC signs up four more Major Partners to further boost students’ prospects

Four more leading organisations have joined forces with Ron Dearing University Technical College (UTC) to open up further exciting career opportunities for students.

Humberside Fire and Rescue Service, Porsche Centre Hull, The 55 Group and Wood are the latest Major Partners of the school in Kingston Square, Hull city centre.

They will join more than 40 other top businesses which help develop and deliver employer-led projects, offer work experience, paid employment and apprenticeship opportunities and lead the UTC’s careers, advice and guidance programme in Founding Partner, Major Partner and Partner roles.

Major Partners also play a key role in helping to develop the Ofsted “Outstanding”-rated school’s unique employer-engaged curriculum.

Humberside Fire and Rescue Service has close to 1,000 staff across the region, including in areas such as ICT and data handling and intelligence.

From left, Andy Long, Senior Manager at Wood, Matt Sutcliffe, Assistant Chief Fire Officer at Humberside Fire and Rescue Service, Glenn Jensen, Senior Assistant Principal – Employer Engagement at Ron Dearing UTC, Sarah Hiles, Showroom and Events Manager at Porsche Centre Hull, and John Martin, Chief Technology Officer at The 55 Group.

 

Work is underway to transform the former Central Fire Station next door to Ron Dearing into a satellite school, which is due to open in June 2023.

Assistant Chief Fire Officer Matt Sutcliffe said: “This exciting new partnership with Ron Dearing UTC provides an opportunity for us to bring some really bright and capable young people into our organisation.

“We already have an affiliation with the school because of its move into the old fire station and we’ve now strengthened that bond.

“We’re planning to bring in a number of apprentices from Ron Dearing and we’ll also be asking students to carry out some project work with us.”

Porsche Centre Hull is based at Bridgehead business park in Hessle and its state-of-the-art showroom is home to a range of Porsche models.

Members of the business’s 34-strong team worked with Ron Dearing UTC students taking part in F1 in Schools, the world’s largest Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) competition.

Students enjoyed a tour of the company’s showroom last year and held an F1 in Schools fundraising event, pitching their plans and ambitions to potential sponsors, ahead of a further event in February.

Sarah Hiles, Showroom and Events Manager at Porsche Centre Hull, said becoming a Ron Dearing UTC Major Partner kickstarts Porsche’s 75th anniversary year, as well as the 60th anniversary of the Porsche 911 model.

She said: “We’re really excited to become a Major Partner. We were so impressed with the students, their presentations and their impeccable behaviour and I was blown away by their confidence and capabilities, which is testament to the school.

Humberside Fire and Rescue Service, Porsche Centre Hull, The 55 Group and Wood are the latest Major Partners of Hull’s Ron Dearing UTC.

 

“Porsche is all about supporting aspirational young people. We want to take on as many students for work experience in the workshop as possible and we want them to experience all departments to give them a good overview of working life.

“We’re also planning an employer-led project to celebrate Porsche’s 75th anniversary, perhaps designing a new interior for one of our models.”

The 55 Group uses a range of dedicated software and web-based applications to enable its customers to evaluate, procure, manage and learn within the construction industry.

The 90-strong team, based in Whitefriargate, Hull, also helps to educate those working in the industry to upskill workers and promote career progression.

John Martin, Chief Technology Officer at The 55 Group, said: “We’re excited to become a Major Partner. We’ve already offered work experience to four Ron Dearing UTC students and one is now working 14 hours per week for us as a Junior Software developer alongside his sixth form studies.

“The industry often loses people to other geographic areas and we’re passionate about keeping the next generation of talent local. We’re also looking forward to getting involved in tech-based employer-led projects involving Ron Dearing students and attending careers expos at the UTC.”

Wood is a global leader in consulting and engineering, helping to unlock solutions to critical challenges in energy and materials markets. It provides consulting, projects and operations solutions in 60 countries, employing abound 36,000 people.

Andy Long, Senior Manager at Wood, which has its Hull office in Craven Street South, east Hull, said: “We’re delighted to have become a Major Partner of Ron Dearing UTC to bring the region’s top talent into our digital engineering talent programme. We look forward to guiding them in various engineering disciplines, potentially up to degree level.

“Ron Dearing UTC’s values fit very well with ours. We need people who live and breathe 3D modelling, maths, data and science and supporting young people in the communities we work in is front and centre of Wood’s core values.”

Glenn Jensen, Senior Assistant Principal – Employer Engagement at Ron Dearing UTC, with Sarah Hiles and Abbie Jackson from Porsche Centre Hull.

 

Ron Dearing UTC caters for students aged between 14 and 19, offering a specialist focus on digital technology, creative digital, art and design and digital engineering. It is currently undergoing expansion to increase its capacity from 600 to 800 students following growing demand.

Glenn Jensen, Senior Assistant Principal – Employer Engagement at Ron Dearing UTC, said: “We’re delighted to welcome four new Major Partners and we’re excited about the opportunities this will open up for our students.

“Our employer partners are a huge part of how we operate at Ron Dearing UTC and they bring an incredible wealth of experience, knowledge and skill to our curriculum, helping to guide and support our students as they prepare for their next steps.”