News: A fond farewell to Maid Marian Way and Clarendon campuses
With our newly built and recently opened City Hub campus, the time has come to say final goodbyes to two of our oldest, yet much loved College campuses Maid Marian Way and Clarendon as staff and students move to their new homes. We couldn’t say goodbye without paying our respects and thanks to two campuses that, between them, have served many tens of thousands of students, over the years, and given our staff many happy memories.
Both campuses have so much individual history, both founded well before the merger of our former colleges. In fact, Maid Marian Way, previously The People’s College, is the oldest Further Education college in England, having been founded in 1847. Clarendon’s history, whilst not as long, is also impressive. Clarendon College became an FE college in 1948, with the current site opening in 1960.
Whilst both campuses have indeed come to the end of their natural life, so to speak, both sites have been earmarked for future development. In the interim, MMW will be home to a temporary sixth form centre for Bluecoat School, before being developed as the new ‘gateway to the castle’ and Clarendon will be developed as a new free school.
We are proud to be able to offer an improved experience for our students at our new sites but it does not take away from the many fond memories that so many of our staff, former and current students, and wider communities have of the two campuses.
Clarendon established a regional reputation for its hair and beauty provision, with onsite commercial salon, its catering and hospitality provision that has trained some of our region’s most renowned chefs, and our performing arts provision which has nurtured the talents of acting legends and award-winning West End performers.
At Maid Marian Way we established a successful and renowned science department, launched Focus Central, our commercial photography studio and of course our very own life-sized aircraft cabin.
We spoke to some members of staff who were keen to share there memories and received a flurry of fun and sentimental memories including Phil’s below.
Phil Tomlinson (Faculty Area Manager — Catering, Travel & Tourism)
Phill started his catering journey as a Clarendon student studying a BTEC Diploma in Hospitality Management. He began teaching at the College in 2004. Being a student at Clarendon was amazing! The setting seemed very different to school – ‘softer’ surroundings. I remember thinking how imposing the building was when walking up to the campus for the first time. Clarendon has always had a certain ‘feel’ about it, as a student; as a teacher and now managing my own team.
Saying goodbye to Clarendon is the end of an era, but the start of something new and exciting at the City Hub.
— Phil Tomlinson
If you want to read more fond memories then please visit our Facebook page and browse the post below to enjoy some great memories, or even add your own.
Published on:
- 11th March 2021 (4:00 PM)
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