St Edmunds Society was established in 1965, originally as an accommodation project for the young homeless. In 2004 started to consider how preventative work for the less able could act as a means of providing opportunities that had passed them by. We opened our vocational learning hub in 2012, providing an alternative learning environment for young people with few or no qualifications. We support those who have experienced problems in life and the traditional education system.
We provide young people with opportunities in Construction, Mechanics, Catering & Hospitality, Health & Social Care and Hair & Beauty. We also offer functional skills and GCSE’s in English and Maths for Post-16 students.
At St Eds, we pride ourselves on offering a diverse range of training courses for students at both pre-16 and post-16. We never give up on anybody and this has become our mantra. Whether you are a young person looking for training, a parent/carer or guardian, a referral agency or professional looking to place students, we look forward to welcoming you to St Edmunds Society.
Many of the problems young people face arise from issues they have experienced in their lives. We have an excellent Welfare team overseen by a qualified social worker. This allows us to work closely with the young person, their families and professionals to understand and overcome the barriers to learning, which have hampered their progress previously.
We also offer an Outreach Support Programme, working in direct partnership with schools, students, and parents in an attempt to prevent or reduce exclusions. We can offer support with attendance, anger management, engagement in lessons and much more. Some students study academic subjects for most of the week, and the rest is vocational training in an Alternative provision environment. We believe we provide a more tailored approach to individual needs rather than the general “one size fits all”.
We try always to support those in need of our services and as many disadvantaged and vulnerable young people aged 11-25 in the local community as we can. St Eds is an independent charity and receives no direct statutory funding, relying on generation of its own funds and the support of charitable trusts, benefactors and the public at large.
Careers Advice and Guidance
Many young people often do not get the advice and guidance they may need to progress into their chosen career path. At St Eds, we love helping students to be the best they can be!
The CIAG team will provide you with careers information, advice and guidance to help you become aware of the opportunities available in Norfolk and what your next steps should be. They will help to develop your confidence, enabling you to access future career paths applicable to your skills and interests.
The team will help to prepare you for work, explore the opportunities available to you and support you to make the most of your qualifications. They will also support you with Maths and English to compliment your vocational qualifications.
The team, accredited by Matrix, will also encourage you to attend employability days, to enhance your overall learning experience throughout your training course.
“It is amazing to see how the students progress whilst they are here, developing their confidence during one-to-one sessions, helping them feel better equipped to be able to access their next steps.”
Becky Jordan – Interim General Manager
St-Eds is fortunate to have access to nationally recognised sub-contractors such as Taylor Wimpey, with whom our students can develop relationships for work experience and apprenticeships.
“At St-Eds Training Centre they help you to become more independent in your learning and you are encouraged to take opportunities that are available. This enabled me to get the placement at Taylor Wimpey which has given me hands on experience in what the construction industry is really like.”
Tom Kavanagh – Taylor Wimpey
Welfare and Behaviour Management
Studies and past practice have identified that young people will often struggle in education when their emotional, physical and behavioural needs are not effectively being met.
On arrival, you will be given a thorough tour, to show you and your family what St Eds has to offer you and how the team can help prepare you for the future. We like to get to know and understand all of our students.
Specifically, St Eds has developed its Welfare Support Team, to ensure that the safety of all students and staff comes first. Through strong communication and engagement, the Welfare Team will identify any barriers to your learning and work with you to overcome these.
By applying its knowledge and experience, the Welfare Support Team focuses on gaining trust and building lasting relationships, helping you to target and reach manageable training and workplace goals.
“The safety, care and welfare of our students, both physical and emotional, is our number one priority. We focus on connecting with our young people; building close relationships with them based on trust.”
Amy – Welfare Lead
Meet The St Eds Team
Joe
Interim CEO
Joe has recently joined as the Interim CEO of St Eds, having been a trustee board member of the charity since 2018. Joe has worked in the FE Sector for 17 years, specialising in Traineeship, AEB and Apprenticeship provision. His key skills include Funding and Compliance, Business Strategy and Finance Management. In his spare time, Joe enjoys swimming and spending time with his family. He is extremely proud of the work that St Eds has achieved and the difference that staff and tutors have made to the lives of the young people.
Serena
General Manager (Maternity leave)
Serena is the General Manager at St Eds, and is currently on maternity leave. She has recently completed an apprenticeship and diploma in Management and Leadership. She continually reviews and develops the provision to accommodate more young people in need of alternative vocational training. She strives to find new collaborative opportunities, and works closely with our partners and the trustees to develop St Eds. Serena firmly believes that every young person deserves the right to achieve their full potential, irrespective of the social and mainstream educational challenges they may have faced growing up.
Becky
Interim General Manager
Becky is the Interim General Manager at St Eds, covering maternity. She has been part of the Senior Management Team at St Eds for 2 years. She originally joined the team in Marketing and Communications and is still heavily involved in marketing, organising and attending events and fundraising for the charity. Becky is passionate about supporting young people to achieve their potential, and is constantly looking for new opportunities to support the students in this.
Amy
Welfare Lead
Amy manages the day-to-day welfare issues, supporting young people with safeguarding concerns. Amy has a passion for supporting our young people and is keen to expand our Outreach Welfare Support packages, with local schools and young people. Along with her ever growing list of training she really is an asset to our team and to our students!
Amanda
STUDY PROGRAMME MANAGER
Amanda is our Study Programme Manager, who oversees Post-16 courses within the training centre. She has many years experience working with disadvantaged young people to support Careers Information Advice and Guidance (CIAG). She is responsible for student recruitment, as well as attendance of our Post-16 students.
Sharon
IQA MANAGER
Sharon joined the team in 2013. She is now our IQA Manager, who oversees Quality Assurance of our course delivery and ensures we meet the standards of Awarding Bodies of our courses. She also leads student progress meetings, and monitors and supports students to achieve their aims and gain qualifications. Sharon leads on registering new courses and lesson observations. In her spare time, Sharon loves reading non-fiction including biographies, historical events and self-improvement.
Mick
TUTOR MANAGER
Mick is our Tutor Manager at St Eds, and has a great passion and talent for this subject, especially in Carpentry. Before he joined us, he worked as a Horticulture tutor, as well as a grounds maintenance operative. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time in his garden, and fishing. Mick is passionate about sharing his knowledge and skills with young people, that will benefit them throughout their lives and their professional careers.