Norfolk County Council - Adult Learning has been named as the winner of this year's Further or Higher Education Provider of the Year award at this year's Norfolk Education Awards.

Norfolk County Council is the largest provider of further education to adults in Norfolk.
Delivering to over 5,000 adults across Norfolk every year, it reaches out to residents in most need of support. 

Learning is taken to learners, delivered in community venues, libraries and at the council’s new, dedicated training centres.

It delivers apprenticeships, qualifications, non-accredited learning, including support for cost-of-living issues, family learning, health and wellbeing, and wider personal development opportunities. 

The council has been responsive to the needs of Norfolk’s Ukrainian guests, with over 330 on its programmes, and also delivers training to refugees from Syria and Afghanistan.

The judges were extremely impressed with the breadth of education offered by Norfolk County Council, recognising that those who teach on its wide range of programmes are supporting adults with often complex needs. 

Its commitment to providing education across a rural county within community venues and libraries – as well as those with English as an additional language or arriving into Norfolk having been displaced from their home – was particularly commendable. 

The judging panel recognised that delivering further education to such a diverse community is not easy, but praised the council’s “excellent success rates” and the “demonstrative impact” on its learners. 

Dale Edwards, business development and learner recruitment manager at Norfolk County Council, said: “The reason we get out of bed every morning is because there are so many people in Norfolk that need help, support and education. 

“When we hear stories of somebody getting a job because of our support, and how it’s made such a big difference to their family or wellbeing, that’s a real win for us. 

“It’s never about money, it’s about the lives that we are able to change, and this award is hopefully some validation that we’re on the right track.”

For more information on the Norfolk Education Awards, please visit the website.

To find out more about all of this year's winners, please click here.

The finalists

City of Norwich School sixth form

The 420 students at City of Norwich School (CNS) Sixth Form are fully integrated and act as role models to the 1,300 students in the lower school.

CNS truly values its sixth form and invests in providing a broad curriculum of 33 different subjects, with teaching time well above the national average.

The judges were impressed with the focus on increasing understanding and knowledge of different cultures, the charities that the Sixth Form supports, and the wider engagement with the extra and super curriculum. 

East Norfolk Sixth Form College

Based in Gorleston, East Norfolk Sixth Form College has a total commitment to supporting young people in their next steps, whether through learning, professional or personal development. 

Staff are also supported with free wellbeing activities at every inset day, including massage and reflexology.

The judges were impressed by East Norfolk Sixth Form’s provision of additional activities for students, and its focus on wider global awareness and integration with global society.