New Year's Honour for College Principal

Macclesfield College Principal, Wendy Wright, has received national recognition in the New Year's honours list with the award of an OBE for services to Further Education.

As Principal of Macclesfield College, Wendy has overseen many major developments which have resulted in the establishment becoming one of the top performing in England. In September 2006 the College was recognised for excellence throughout its service when Ofsted judged it to be Outstanding - achieving a grade profile that put it in the top five colleges in England. In May 2007 the government recognised Macclesfield College's all round excellence by designating it a Learning and Skills Beacon College. This prestigious award celebrates learning providers that deliver outstanding teaching and learning, and are well led and managed.

However, the most exciting development was the construction of the College's brand new buildings as part of the Macclesfield Learning Zone, which was officially opened in 2008 by HRH the Earl of Wessex. This was the culmination of five years of planning with a wide range of partners and represented an investment of £38 million in a state-of-the-art education and training campus for the whole community. The College has enjoyed record numbers of enrolments for full-time courses, attracting learners from across Cheshire and beyond. It now boasts an extensive range of courses for young people and adults from entry to degree level, as well as delivering training to meet the skills needs of local employers.

Wendy has been Principal at Macclesfield College since February 2001, having previously been Deputy Principal of Hugh Baird College at Bootle, Merseyside.
She has spent her career in post-16 education, having worked in universities, as a manager in a major examinations board and, predominantly, in Further Education. Wendy's Further Education career has included colleges in a wide range of environments, from highly disadvantaged inner city areas, to a rural college in Wiltshire and colleges serving mixed urban and rural communities in Hampshire and Cheshire. She is a psychologist by discipline and holds an MBA from Warwick University Business School. She has taught both academic and vocational courses for over 15 years and has been a senior manager in three FE colleges.

Wendy also has extensive and successful experience of the development of policy and strategy at regional, sub-regional and local levels and has served on a wide range of strategic boards. She is currently chair of numerous boards and committees, including: the North West Regional Forum of Aimhigher (a government initiative to widen and extend participation in Higher Education), the Cheshire and Warrington Equality and Diversity Advisory Group, and the East Cheshire Partnership 14-19 Planning Group. In addition, Wendy is also an active member of: the Executive Steering Group of the Macclesfield Local Strategic Partnership, Executive Steering Group of the Cheshire and Warrington Lifelong Learning Network, the Executive Steering Group of the Macclesfield Learning Zone, and the Board of Macclesfield Chamber of Commerce and Enterprise.

Commenting on the award of her OBE, Wendy said, "I am very proud, but also very pleased for the College because all of my achievements have been teamwork." The Chair of Macclesfield College Corporation, Ian Standen, also congratulated Wendy on her achievement, "We are all very much aware of the leadership shown and the fantastic hard work that Wendy has put in to help make Macclesfield Learning Zone such a success. This award is very much deserved."

Wendy's success follows on from another award she recently collected in recognition for her work in encouraging girls and young women into science, engineering and construction careers. The Partnership Award was given to Wendy by WISE, the organisation which promotes science, engineering, technology and construction as a valuable and interesting career option to young women. It was presented in a ceremony at the BT Tower in London by Her Royal Highness Princess Anne, the royal patron of WISE.

The Principal and the College also won high praise in the House of Commons from Sir Nicholas Winterton during a recent debate on Further Education. Sir Nicholas noted, "Macclesfield possesses one of the first learning zones to be established in this country, and Macclesfield College is a major and important part of that. Its Principal, Wendy Wright, and its Corporation are doing a wonderful job."

07/01/2009