Gloucestershire College has been shortlisted as a finalist for the Apprenticeship Programme of the Year Award by TES Awards.

The awards celebrate the dedication and expertise of the people and teams who make a significant contribution to improving the skill levels of young people and adult learners. The winner will be announced at an awards ceremony in London in March.

Gloucestershire College has delivered successful apprenticeships for over 30 years, with 2017-18 success rates considerably above the national average at 68%.

Innovative new ways of working have resulted in a 17 per cent increase in the number of employers the college works with - now up to over 1,300. The college's primary goal is to make apprenticeship delivery more flexible, personalised and responsive to meet local skills needs.

Gloucestershire College promotes apprenticeships as a choice for all, through school and community engagement, and has seen an increase of 32 per cent in apprenticeship starts since August 2017.

The college won the 2017 AoC Beacon Award for the Delivery and Promotion of Successful Apprenticeships, and Training Provider of the Year in the Gloucestershire Apprenticeship Awards.

Matthew Burgess, principal at Gloucestershire College, said: "We are delighted to be shortlisted for Apprenticeship Programme of the Year by the TES Awards. We are very proud of the apprenticeship programmes that our fantastic apprenticeship team run here at the College and it is great to be recognised for it."

Stephen Exley, TES FE editor, said: "Excellent practice exists right across the further education sector, and those shortlisted for the TES FE Awards are the cream of the crop. Our judges were extremely impressed with the calibre of entries.

"We had more entries for this year's categories than ever before, and the standard was higher than ever. To be shortlisted is an extraordinary achievement."