13 September 2010,
DOCKLANDS, LONDON – West End College London officially
opened a new college campus in the Docklands area on Monday
13 September.
Special guests attended to celebrate the opening of West End
College London including Professor John Wilson from the
Accreditation Service for International Colleges (ASIC), who
officially opened the campus, along with Dr Janet Hannah
from the Coventry University London Campus, and director for
West End College London, Dr Naeem Aslam.
West End College London, which also has campuses located
near London Bridge, hopes to further its mission of
providing high quality education to local and international
students with the acquisition of the Docklands campus, which
was formerly the University of Gloucestershire London
Campus.
“West End College London already prides itself on delivering
high quality accredited courses to students,” says college
director, Dr Naeem Aslam.
“The Docklands campus will provide university-standard
teaching facilities so our students will be better equipped
to learn and therefore more prepared for the real world once
they complete their studies.”
The Docklands campus boasts four large lecture halls /
classrooms, library and learning resource centre, high-tech
computer lab, conservatory, courtyard and garden, faith
room, conference room and admin offices.
The opening of the Docklands campus will see college student
numbers double over the next year with places available for
both local and international students.
“The college has a very diverse student body and we are
hoping to continue that diversity by expanding into new
markets both locally and internationally and expanding the
high calibre choice of courses on offer to our students,”
continued Dr Aslam.
“West End College London has already put in place a
partnership with Coventry University London Campus to
deliver a guaranteed progression route to university for our
students studying selected courses. It’s very exciting and
we know that this partnership, along with others currently
in development, will ensure our college continues to grow.”
For more information about West End College London and
course information, including the guaranteed progression
route to Coventry University London Campus, visit http://www.w-e-c-l.co.uk/topup.html.
“Professor John Wilson (ASIC), Dr Naeem Aslam (WECL) and
Dr Janet Hannah (CULC) officially open the West End College
London Docklands Campus.”
History of the Dockland Campus
The Dockland Campus, formerly known as the Urban Learning
Foundation (ULF), was established thirty years ago with the
aim of enhancing the quality of initial teacher training.
The roots of the Dockland Campus lie in a joint initiative
of the College of St. Mark & St. John in Plymouth and the
Clouste Gulbenkian Foundation which was originally launched
in 1973. An early priority was to harness the energy,
idealism and talent of teachers whose own educational
experiences were often far removed from what goes on in
inner city schools. Students keen to gain urban experience
came from all over the country and many opted to stay in the
area, providing for the first time a regular supply of
committed suitably qualified and experienced teachers for
schools in east London.
In 1977, the government proposed that some part of the
reorganised teacher training system ‘might make their
special contribution in areas of concern to teachers
generally, such as the problems of inner city schools or
children suffering deprivation, or education for life in a
multicultural society’. The 1980 report ‘Teachers for the
Inner City’ confirmed the success of the principles and
practices tested and recommended that other colleges be
invited to join. Following the Brixton and Liverpool riots
in 1983, the Archbishop of Canterbury established a
commission whose report ‘Faith in the City’ included a
recommendation that the Church itself should seek to sponsor
centres for training which had an urban focus.
As a result, Christ Church College in Canterbury, King
Alfred’s College in Winchester and St Martin’s College in
Lancaster joined. The Dockland Campus was incorporated and
became a registered charity in 1984. At this time, there
were a number of unprecedented challenges facing those
involved in teacher training, in particular a severe
shortage of teachers in east London caused by a growth in
school population.
In 1990, the Dockland campus raised funds to appoint a
Development Officer and launched an appeal for a first phase
development. Over £2 million was raised and the Foundation’s
current headquarters, Bede House, was opened in 1992. A
fifth college, Cheltenham and Gloucester College of Higher
Education (now the University of Gloucestershire) joined the
consortium.
Since then, the Dockland Campus has developed its work with
the colleges and offered Primary PGCE course and is the base
of the Graduate Teacher Programme (Primary) for North East
London.
In September 2003, the Dockland Campus became part of the
University of Gloucestershire as London Campus. The values
underpinning the vision are essentially Christian, but not
exclusively so. They include excellence, inclusion,
localisation, collaboration, service and accountability.
The Dockland Campus enjoyed very good relations with a large
number of local partnership schools and its trainees have an
excellent employment record, both in gaining their first
appointment and in making good career progress.
Travelling to the Dockland Campus
Public Transport
From central London you can take the London Underground to
either Tower Hill (District/Circle Lines) or Bank
(Northern/Central/Waterloo & City Lines) stations. Then take
the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) to Westferry. (All
eastbound trains go to Westferry).
Westferry Station to Bede House
When you arrive at Westferry turn left at the bottom of the
stairs and cross over the dual carriageway (there are
pedestrian crossings) to a pub called the Oporto. The Oporto
is the corner of a street called Birchfield Street — walk to
the end of the street and you will emerge on East India Dock
Road. Turn right and Bede House is approx. 50m on the right
hand side. The walk from the station takes three to four
minutes.
Or
Take the London Underground to Mile End station
(District/Central/Hammersmith & City Lines). Turn left
outside the station and left again at the traffic lights
into Burdett Road. At the first bus stop take the bus to
East India Dock Road (D6 or 115).
Or
Take the London Underground extended Jubilee Line, which has
interchanges with the DLR at Canary Wharf, Canning Town and
Stratford. Check the route as this may involve a change on
the DLR if you are going to Westferry according to the
station where you join the DLR.
Also
The 115 bus runs from central London along East India Dock
Road.
The nearest British Rail station is Limehouse (Shoeburyness
& Fenchurch Street Line), which is approximately one mile
along Commercial Road. Buses run from the station down East
India Dock Road. Limehouse is also a DLR station.
By Road
Commercial Road (A13) is the main eastbound route in/out of
London, joining East India Dock Road at the Burdett Road
interchange. The Rotherhithe and Blackwall tunnels are
nearby. Approximately five to six miles further east along
the A13 is the A406 North Circular Road leading directly on
to the M11 towards Stansted Airport and Cambridge. The M11
joins the M25. The A13 is linked directly with M25 at
Junction 30/31 (Dartford Crossing). This junction provides
easy access on to the M25 to the M1 to the north; the M23 to
the south; and the M40 or M4 to the southwest.
Address
Foundation Court, 58 East India Dock Road,
London
E14 6JE |
