Durham-UK

Home > Education

Education

by

East Durham College Celebrates Top 10 National Apprenticeship Ranking as Employer Partnerships and Campus Investment Drive Growth

Heleana student East Durham College

East Durham College has been recognised as one of the country’s leading apprenticeship providers after achieving a 75% apprenticeship achievement rate, significantly above the national average of 65.7% placing the college among the top 10 college providers nationally for apprenticeship achievement.

The latest Department for Education National Achievement Rate Tables also come as East Durham College continues to expand its apprenticeship offer, becoming the fastest-growing college provider of apprentices in the North East based on apprenticeship starts between August 2025 and January 2026 compared with the same period in the previous year.

The achievement reflects the college’s commitment to delivering high-quality training that equips apprentices with the skills, experience and confidence needed to succeed, while helping employers develop the workforce they need for the future.

Scott Bullock, Principal and CEO of East Durham College, said:

“These results are a fantastic endorsement of the hard work and dedication shown by our apprentices, staff and employer partners. To be recognised among the top-performing colleges nationally while also being the fastest-growing college provider of apprentices in the North East demonstrates the strength of our apprenticeship provision and the impact it is having across the region.”

The college works with employers across a wide range of sectors, creating opportunities for learners to gain valuable workplace experience while earning and developing industry-recognised skills.

One example is the college’s Developing Futures partnership with Robertson Homes, which provides students with access to industry masterclasses, mentoring and work experience opportunities across the construction sector. The initiative has already helped learners progress into apprenticeships in areas including brickwork, joinery, electrical installation, painting and decorating, supported by a network of employer partners and supply chain businesses.

The college is also committed to widening participation in apprenticeships and supporting learners into sectors where they have traditionally been underrepresented, including creating opportunities for women pursuing careers in skilled trades such as painting and decorating.

The impact of the Developing Futures Programme can be seen through learners like Heleana, the first Painting and Decorating apprentice recruited through the programme with Paul Bertram Painting & Decorating. Through the programme, she accessed a supported route into industry-led learning, gained valuable hands-on experience, and secured a pathway into a skilled profession.

Reflecting on her journey, Heleana said: “The Developing Futures Programme gave me the opportunity to start a career in painting and decorating with the support and experience I needed to build my confidence. It’s opened the door to a future I’m excited about.” Her success demonstrates how the programme is helping talented individuals access sustainable employment while meeting the skills needs of local employers.

The success comes as East Durham College continues to invest in the future of technical and vocational education through significant developments at its Houghall Campus.

Houghall Campus has already benefited from a previous multi-million-pound investment, completed in 2016 and officially opened in 2017, which delivered industry-standard facilities including specialist animal care centres, agricultural training facilities, STEM laboratories, veterinary nursing facilities, IT suites and one of the region’s leading equine centres. Building on this investment, East Durham College is now transforming Houghall Campus for the future of green and rural skills through a major redevelopment programme, due for completion in April 2027.

The project will create modern, industry-standard learning environments for agriculture, animal management and science, floristry, and environmental management, alongside enhanced agricultural training resources and a new teaching and learning facility.

Designed to reflect the evolving needs of employers and the region’s growing green economy, the redevelopment will strengthen skills, sustainability and opportunity across the North East by supporting training in sustainability, agri-tech and environmental skills that will equip the future workforce.

Scott added:

“Apprenticeships are one of the most effective routes into skilled employment, allowing people to earn while they learn while gaining invaluable workplace experience.

By working closely with employers and continuing to invest in facilities such as those at Houghall Campus, we are ensuring our learners have access to the skills, opportunities and environments they need to thrive.”
 
East Durham College offers apprenticeships across a broad range of sectors, supporting learners at every stage of their career journey while helping employers develop and retain skilled talent. www.edc.ac.uk

 

by

Durham University rises to 85th in prestigious QS World University Rankings 2027

People walking down the stairs

Durham University has been ranked 85th in the QS World University Rankings 2027, up nine places from last year.

The QS World University Rankings are widely acknowledged as the most influential university rankings globally. The 2027 rankings, assessed 8,808 institutions, saw Durham enhance its position in the employer reputation, academic reputation, and citations per faculty categories of assessment. 

Durham performed particularly strongly for reputation with employers, ranking 49th – up 15 places. Its reputation for academic excellence was also acknowledged, rising three places, as was its position among the world’s leading universities for sustainability – being placed joint 24th. 

Durham is The Times and The Sunday Times University of the Year, and ranks in the UK’s top five universities. In the Complete University Guide, announced earlier this month, 31 of 32 subjects at Durham were ranked in the top ten in the UK.  

Professor Karen O’Brien, Vice-Chancellor and Warden at Durham University, said: “To rise nine places to 85th in the QS World University Rankings is a tremendous achievement, in an outstanding year for Durham University. 

“That employers rank us among the world’s top 50 universities is particularly important for our students and graduates, indicating the exceptional value that a Durham degree holds in equipping students for work and preparing them for career success.” 

As well as an outstanding education, Durham provides students with exceptional opportunities to enhance their employability through developing their leadership skills and starting new businesses. Its Hazan Venture Lab helps Durham students develop their entrepreneurial skills and incubate new ventures.  

Durham’s top category in the QS World University Rankings 2027 is Sustainability (joint 24th), through which the social and environmental impact of universities as centres of education and research is assessed.   

Durham research is helping society understand and address the pressing challenge of climate change, from ice sheet melting to harnessing geothermal energy; from decarbonising shipping to unlocking the potential of hydrogen.   

by

New partnership to boost careers in low carbon energy

Main image shows an aerial view of the Dock90 wind farm, with a ship alongside. Image credit: Principle Power

We’re launching a new regional project designed to strengthen the future workforce for North East England’s growing low carbon and offshore wind industries.

The Low Carbon North: Sustainable Futures initiative is being delivered by our Careers and Enterprise team in partnership with Newcastle University and The Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult. 

ORE Catapult is the UK’s leading technology innovation and research centre for offshore renewable energy. 

Funded through the Northern Net Zero Accelerator, the one-year programme will run from May 2026 until the end of April 2027. 

The project aims to improve graduate retention in North East England while helping businesses build the skilled workforce needed for the transition to employment in the region’s flourishing low carbon economy.  

It will also support long term regional growth by creating a model that could be expanded across the wider higher education sector. 

Supporting regional growth 

The programme will connect Durham and Newcastle students with businesses working across offshore wind, subsea industries and the wider low carbon sector. 

Virtual, employer-led group projects will give students the chance to work on real industry challenges and gain valuable experience.  

Students from a wide range of degree subjects, including Business, Finance and the Sciences are invited to take part. 

The project builds on existing links with industry partners connected to the leading offshore energy sector here in North East England.   

This will help students gain a better understanding of the real world opportunities available in the North East region. 

Helping students explore low carbon careers 

Alongside industry-based projects, the programme will include careers forums, employer panels and networking opportunities.  

These events will help students learn more about careers in low carbon industries and the skills employers are looking for. 

We also want to challenge the idea that low carbon careers are only linked to STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). 

The sector needs people with a wide range of skills and experiences, from project management to communications and finance. 

Student interns from both universities will help shape the programme to make sure activities reflect what students want and need. 

Creating a lasting legacy 

The project will also support university staff and careers advisers from across North East England.  

Colleagues from five regional universities will be invited to take part in careers education events focused on the future of the low carbon sector. 

By bringing together universities, employers and students, we hope to create stronger regional partnerships that continue beyond the life of the project. 

The long-term goal is to create a tested model that improves graduate employability, supports business innovation and helps drive sustainable growth across North East England. 

Main image shows an aerial view of the Dock90 wind farm, with a ship alongside. Image credit: Principle Power

by

Acclaimed actress Charlotte Riley reflects on her time at Durham

Charlotte Riley

Charlotte Riley has enjoyed a distinguished acting career since she first discovered her love of performing at Durham University. She’s appeared in the hit TV series Peaky Blinders, starred alongside Tom Cruise in The Edge of Tomorrow and won critical acclaim for her breakout role as Cathy in a 2009 TV adaptation of Wuthering Heights. This summer she’ll star in the multi-Emmy-nominated show, Ted Lasso, alongside fellow Durham alum Nick Mohammed.

Born in Stockton-on-Tees in North East England, Charlotte studied English and linguistics at Durham. She was a member of St Cuthbert’s Society and graduated in 2003. We caught up with Charlotte to hear more about her time at Durham, the experiences that shaped her and the memories she still holds dear. 

What made you choose to study at Durham? 

Durham always had a special pull. I’d spent time there as a child and, honestly, I don’t know anybody who’s been to Durham and not been wowed by it – you’d have to be cold-hearted not to fall in love with it. The sense of history you feel as you walk along the cobbles, surrounded by ancient buildings, you feel like you’re a part of something special. Staying in the North East was also important to me, as I wanted to be close to home at the time. I loved the idea of a collegiate university in a small, beautiful city. So, Durham really resonated with me. 

You were a member of the Durham Revue, which provides a springboard for many talented performers to enjoy successful careers in the Arts. What did it mean to you? 

It was transformative. There’s this wonderful tradition at Durham of students creating their own theatre which feels incredibly empowering. With the Revue, everything was student-led: writing, performing, producing. You do the sound, the lighting, the props, everything. So, you just throw yourself in and find your feet. If you fail, it’s absolutely on your shoulders, and that’s quite terrifying and liberating all at the same time. It was the turning point for me, I think, in my decision to want to be an actor. 

Beyond the Revue and your studies, what else did you enjoy about life at Durham? 

I did a lot of musical theatre – productions like Guys and Dolls and Oklahoma – and Durham gives you the opportunity to get involved in so many different activities. There are always multiple productions and societies running at once, so you can try new things and develop skills you didn’t even know you had. The collegiate system offers a supportive, welcoming community from day one. And the city itself is unique. You can go from a peaceful, riverside walk surrounded by nature to a lively urban centre within minutes. 

As someone from the North East region, what was your experience of Durham University? 

I felt incredibly proud to be at Durham. It’s one of the most prestigious universities in the North East so I was really chuffed at getting in. Even back then the University was trying to attract more local students so there were quite a few of us there. But what I loved most was meeting people from different backgrounds from all over the country and the world. That diversity is such a big part of the Durham experience. The collegiate system really helps too. I wasn’t just mixing with people who were studying English, I was meeting people with varied interests, from all walks of life, and you quickly find your place. 

What memories of Durham still stay with you?  

It’s those small, vivid moments. Early mornings after a show, sitting on the grass by the Cathedral with friends after a night out and feeling completely in the moment. There’s something magical about being surrounded by such history while living those formative, carefree years – it creates memories that truly last. And I just loved spending time with my friends, whether that was performing, going to gigs in Newcastle, or just going out in Durham. It’s a brilliant place to grow, socially as well as academically. It really is a special place. 

by

Durham University plays key role in world’s most detailed 3D map of the universe

Star trails over the Mayall Telescope that houses DESI. Credit: Luke Tyas/Berkeley Lab and KPNO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA

Researchers from Durham University are playing a central role in one of the most significant global astronomy projects to date, contributing to the creation of the world’s most detailed 3D map of the universe. 

Working alongside international partners, Durham’s experts are helping to map the large-scale structure of the cosmos with unprecedented precision,strengthening the North East’s reputation as a centre of excellence for space science and advanced research.

The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) survey, one of the most extensive surveys of the cosmos ever conducted, finished all observations for its originally planned 3D map of the universe.

DESI has completed its planned five-year mission and mapped more than 47 million galaxies and quasars, creating the largest high-resolution 3D map of our universe to date.

Because of the instrument’s excellent performance and hints that the dark energy responsible for the accelerated expansion of the Universe might be evolving, DESI will continue observations into 2028 and further expand the map.

UK scientists have played a significant role throughout the project, including major contributions to data analysis, cosmological modelling and instrumentation.

Professor Carlos Frenk, the Ogden Professor of Fundamental Physics at the Institute for Computational Cosmology, Durham University, and a member of the DESI institutional board said:

“Only 10 years ago I would have thought that measuring the rate at which the Universe expands with an accuracy of one percent was just fantasy. Yet, DESI has done it! The amount and quality of the DESI data and the analysis carried out by an international team of very talented scientists is behind this achievement. The rewards are huge: the data suggest an unexpected behaviour of the dark energy that may upturn the currently accepted view of how our universe evolves.

“Durham has played a major role in DESI with Durham researchers leading major parts of the analysis, including the determination of the mass of neutrinos, elementary particles that make up a small fraction of the Universe’s dark matter.”

Professor Rita Tojeiro, School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of St Andrews, and member of the DESI collaboration said:

“What is fantastic about DESI, in addition to being a revolutionary cosmology survey, is that this new three-dimensional map is enabling world-class legacy science. Each of the 47 million galaxies and quasars that DESI observed tells a unique story. We can collect these individual stories to reveal the overarching narratives of how galaxies form and evolve through cosmic time. Because DESI is revealing the three-dimensional cosmic web in which galaxies live with unprecedented detail, we can now study how galaxies respond to cosmic structures around them in ways that have not been possible before.”

by

Magnitude Biosciences: How a Durham spinout is driving health innovation and regional growth

Magnitude Biosciences: How a Durham spinout is driving health innovation and regional growth (Image : Russell Group)

When Durham University researchers Dr David Weinkove and physicist Dr Christopher Saunter launched Magnitude Biosciences in 2018, they did so with a clear ambition: to transform how the UK accelerates drug discovery.

Just a few years later, their company is proof of the benefits that research-intensive universities can help innovators deliver — not only for science, but for public health, the NHS and regional economies.

Magnitude Biosciences is a specialist contract research organisation based at NETPark in County Durham, where its team uses tiny Caenorhabditis elegans worms – organisms with neurons, skin, gut, muscles and other tissues similar in genetics to those in humans – to rapidly test the effects of different compounds on ageing, neurodegeneration and overall health. NETPark is a Durham County Council site, managed by the local authority’s business support service, Business Durham.