Colleges Week: MPS for Dewsbury and Batley and Spen offer support to Kirklees College for annual event

The annual campaign, run by the Association of Colleges, celebrates the Further Education sector and encourages colleges to come together and receive support from the Government.

Around 1.6 million students are educated in further education colleges in the UK, and the event is an opportunity to showcase the wide range of opportunities that colleges provide.

For 2025, the celebrations have been moved to the spring, in recognition of a likely general election in the autumn. As part of the week’s theme of influencing, engaging and celebrating, Kirklees College has rallied the support of the local MPs - Kim Leadbeater and Mark Eastwood - to highlight the importance of funding for relevant and current vocational skills needed in sectors across the country.

Ms Leadbeater, MP for Batley and Spen, said: “As a former lecturer in Further and Higher Education, I know first-hand just how vital the work of colleges such as Kirklees College is in improving the lives of the people in their communities.

“With over 10,000 students in Kirklees, including many from my constituency of Batley and Spen, Kirklees College provides the kind of varied, vocational curriculum that can help people of all ages and backgrounds prepare for their next steps in life.

“Colleges Week is a great occasion to celebrate the work of Kirklees College and the wider FE sector in improving skills across our region and offering educational opportunities to all.”

On Thursday, February 29, Dewsbury MP, Mark Eastwood, will be hosting his third apprenticeships fair at the college’s Pioneer Higher Skills Centre in the town. The event invites students from local schools to Kirklees College to learn about all things apprenticeships, including CV writing, interview skills workshops and an employer fair with the college’s partner companies from a range of sectors.

To find out more about Colleges Week, please visit https://www.aoc.co.uk/