Latest announcements for current students and parents

Latest Information for current students and parents/guardians

Here we will keep you up to date on latest updates and announcements from across The Cornwall College Group.

HPV (Human Papillomavirus) vaccination catch-up campaign

There is an important public health initiative being carried out by the NHS in partnership with the Royal Devon University Healthcare (RDUH) Vaccination Team. As part of the HPV (Human Papillomavirus) vaccination catch-up campaign, students in post-16 education settings and workplaces are being offered the opportunity to receive this vital vaccination which they may have missed during their earlier school years. This programme will run from 1st January – 31st March 2025 as it has been identified a larger number of this group did not take up their offer as part of the school immunisation programme.

Who is Eligible?
This catch-up campaign is targeted at students:

  • Females 16 – 25
  • Males 16 – 18 provided they were born after 1/9/2006.

What Do You Need to Do?
Parents / Guardians please discuss the vaccination at home: There is no need to complete a consent form, see the details below, however it would be helpful if you could chat through and discuss the benefits of receiving the HPV vaccine.

If you are eligible and would like to receive the vaccination:

Please see the following information regarding consent, due to their age, young people can self-consent to treatment if they are considered competent to do so by one of our nurses; this is known as Gillick competency. If you require any further information in this regard, please contact us or go to https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/consent-to-treatment/children/

The RDUH Vaccination Team will be visiting Bicton College on;

Wednesday 12th February 9:00am – 1:00pm – EPO Break Out Room

Vaccinations will be administered in a designated area within the organisation or within our mobile vaccination unit, to ensure privacy and comfort.

If you have any questions or concerns about the HPV vaccine, please visit the NHS website here or contact the RDUH Vaccination Team directly at 07729 300349 or email rduh.exetervaccinationcentre@nhs.net. Our staff are available to provide additional information and support.

Thank you for your cooperation in helping to protect the health of our young people. This vaccination catch-up campaign is a vital step toward reducing the risk of HPV-related cancers and ensuring long-term well-being.

Letter from NHS Royal Devon University HealthcareNHS HPV Vaccination Information Leaflet

The Career College

As The Career College we are not only helping students get career ready qualifications but we are also helping to develop their skills for the personal and professional futures.  This includes their wellbeing as well as employability skills.  Our EMPOWER programme is part of this and activities in lessons and outside of lessons helps our students to develop a range of skills. 

Employers are helping us too by telling us the skills they want to see in their future employees. Take a look at this video where employers tell us why attendance is so important.

You can find out more about EMPOWER and our Careers Programme here: Full Careers Programme – Cornwall College

Supporting Mental Health

Check out this helpful guide on well-being for young people ( click here ).  We also offer a range of support via our Student Experience Team on campus and remotely for the safety and wellbeing of our students.  Students can also independently access an online space on Moodle with an extensive range of links, guidance and resources to support positive mental health.

Being Safe Online

We continually undertake activities and provide resources on our campuses aimed at helping our students to be safe online, as well as in the wider community.

Parents can also get support here: Online safety guides and resources centre | Internet Matters

Please click here to read a letter about financially motivated sexual extortion or, as it is more commonly known, ‘sextortion’, and how you can support your child.

Safeguarding

Support is available for our students to ensure that they are safe.  Students can talk to a teacher or support in class or an Engagement and Progression Officer if they have a safety or wellbeing concern and we can help.  They can also email safe@cornwall.ac.uk during normal college hours. 

If there is an immediate risk of harm or abuse, or you need support out of hours,  then please refer directly to the police on 101 or 999 or local authority safeguarding teams.

For further safeguarding information please go to Safeguarding at Cornwall College

Absence Text Messages

When a student is absent from any lesson we will send a text message alert to inform their emergency contact. This is so that parents and guardians are aware of the absence but also to ensure the safety of our students. Please see below some frequently asked questions and the answers.

Are you sending this absence SMS to all parents?
Messages will be sent to the parent contact details received at enrolment and will be sent in relation to any student who is aged under 19 on 31st August on the year they started college or aged 19-24 with an EHCP. The message will be sent within 10 minutes of the register being completed.

Why do I get a text message for every lesson they miss?
Each lesson is a different register and activity. Students have a break in between each lesson and we need to be sure that they are where they should be during their timetabled activities.

I phoned in the absence in the morning to tell you my child would be absent
Some students phone in their own absence and parents may not be aware so we have made the decision to inform of all absences. If you were already aware of the absence then you can ignore the message.

I expect my child to be in lessons, I know they got to college OK, so where are they if they are not in a lesson?
We expect students to be in lessons too.  However, post 16 education is a choice, not mandatory and we are not a school with mandatory attendance.

The vast majority of our students are independent and it is why they have chosen to attend college.  Unless a post 16 student has a specific care plan with us, we will not supervise them throughout the day other than in lesson time. They are free to come and go as they like (as post 16 education isn’t mandatory, it is their choice).  We do however, ensure that students have a safe environment in college and safe spaces to go if they feel unsafe.  Despite this, we cannot guarantee where a student is at all times or that students do not leave site.  If a student is not in a lesson we are informing parents via text message so that they can make contact with their student to find out where they are.    Where a student has a specific safety need we will know this and we will prioritise all available team members to identify the location of the student where possible, as well as calling anyone as identified in their safety plan. 

We are reinforcing with our students that, being where they should be, or notifying someone if they are somewhere else, is an important part of their safety and a good employability skill.

My student is nearly an adult, I don’t need to know if they are absent.
We do aim to treat all our students as young adults but the safety of our students is really important. We would rather you know the whereabouts of your child so that you can make an informed decision rather than be unaware. If you really don’t want the messages you can opt out by contacting our Customer Services Team on 0330 123 2523, but we strongly discourage this.

I want to talk to someone about the absence or update my contact details.
Please contact the Programme Manager of the course. If you are not sure who this is or do not have their contact details, please call 0330 123 2523 and select option 1 and ask for the Programme Manger or let them know the campus and course your student is studying and they can direct your call.

Related Pages

Information for Parents of Prospective Students