About the College

West Suffolk College is on a mission to be the best college in the UK – we believe our community deserves nothing less.

We’re making history at West Suffolk College in a place famous for it. On a stunning campus in the heart of historic Bury St Edmunds, we’re advancing ambitious plans to become a leading vocational and academic college, serving our students outstandingly, and supporting the success of businesses and the regional economy.

We provide an outstanding education to every one of our students. Our ethos is to put our learners’ success at the heart of everything we do. That means we do everything we can to help our students succeed and be the best they can be.

We have an impressive range of courses, high quality facilities, inspiring tutors and incredible opportunities to open up a career or succeed in higher education. We believe in engaging with our students as young adults in a supportive and encouraging environment and we aim to give the best opportunity to develop, grow and become passionately involved in their own education.

We also have strong links with business and industries in the region to make sure our students develop skills that will increase their employability. We are a large local employer with 786 staff and a turnover of £30.5 million.

A message from Nikos Savvas, Chief Executive

At West Suffolk College we make excellence a habit. What sets us apart is our undying commitment to support our community to grow, prosper and succeed.

At the centre of our work is the value we place on putting our students at the heart of everything we do. A core part of this is to create fully engaged citizens. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to achieve this. Qualifications, experience and skills are part of a bigger picture. Cultivating qualities such as resilience and optimism also play a huge role – equipping our students with the ability to make long-lasting contributions to society

It’s an exciting time to join us. As the economy shifts and we recover, education beyond school will play an even bigger role in society.

We have access to global knowledge with leading national and international partnerships. Our varied, innovative courses are shaped by employers; with employment in mind. We give our students real-world opportunities to flourish and help build the local and global economies of the future.

As I hope this prospectus shows, we are the elite but not elitist – actively shaping our communities by offering everything our community needs, from degrees, diplomas, Apprenticeships and T-levels through to adult learning courses.

Our campus is home to state-of-the-art facilities, with a leading team of renowned experts delivering high quality learning – including the wrap-around support that we all need to thrive.

West Suffolk College is part of a family – the Eastern Education Group – that includes Abbeygate Sixth Form College and One Sixth Form College that offer extensive A-Level and diploma programmes too. This partnership gives us unique opportunities to collaborate and work together towards one goal – to make people’s lives better. I am immensely proud of our colleges and everything we achieve for you.

Strive for excellence for your future, with us.

Dr Nikos Savvas
Chief Executive
Eastern Education Group

16 -19 Study Programmes

At West Suffolk College, we have designed our study programmes in line with the requirements of the Education and Skills Funding Agency.  Our study programmes are flexible, built around the needs of individual students, which supports their development and builds upon the College’s Three Pillars.

Students on a 16-19 Study Programme will:

1. Have a substantial qualification that stretches them and prepares them for education at the next level or employment
2. Continue to study English and maths where these have not yet been achieved at GCSE grade 4 or above
3. Undertake a period of work placement and/or work-related activity to apply the skills from their chosen course in the real world of work
4. Develop their character strengths and broader knowledge and skills that are designed to help students to prepare for working and living in modern Britain

University Studies

University Studies at West Suffolk College offer dozens of degrees. Lecturers passionate about their subjects. Courses designed in partnerships with industry leaders to ensure they’re completely relevant to securing graduate employment. Specialist academic staff to provide all the support you need. We’ve set up everything here to help you succeed.

When you complete your course the degree you’ll receive is awarded by the University of East Anglia, so as a USWSC graduate you’ll have earned a red-brick award from a top-25 UK University that’s recognised the world over.