3 Star Accredited Football College

This award recognises the College’s outstanding football provision coupled with our deep-rooted commitment to fostering community relationships through sport. BTC is one of only four colleges in the UK to achieve this elite status.

Andy Berry, Principal and CEO made CBE in King's Honours

This prestigious accolade recognises his significant contributions to the field of education and his impact on community development through innovative educational practices and partnerships.

Somerset Business Awards Large Employer of the Year 2024

The largest and most prestigious awards in Somerset are a highlight of the local business calendar and recognise the achievements of Somerset’s highly vibrant and varied business community. BTC stood out as an outstanding, £62m business with a clear vision, a common culture and a strong ethos across campuses in Taunton, Bridgwater and Cannington, where it sits at front and centre of skills development for the South West region, addressing identified workforce needs through training programmes that are innovative, employer-led, and highly effective.

Beacon Award for Exceptional Support for Students

The AoC Beacon Awards capture and celebrate the best and most innovative practice among UK further education colleges. The aim of the awards programme is to demonstrate and promote the far-reaching impact of colleges on their students and the communities they serve. BTC has been recognised for their unwavering commitment to supporting students through innovative and inclusive educational pathways.

Queen's Anniversary Prize 2023

BTC is proud to have been awarded a Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Education in November 2023. This distinguished award recognises the College’s unparalleled commitment to addressing the critical workforce challenges faced by the NHS through its University Centre Somerset nurse training provision.

UK Social Mobility Awards

The UK Social Mobility Awards were set up to recognise organisations that are prioritising social mobility, through recruitment processes and progression programmes, outreach within the local community, or by developing innovative ways to create change.

BTC were honoured to receive the Silver Award for School/College of the Year in 2023.

TEF Silver Award

In 2023, the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) panel judged that at University Centre Somerset, “very high quality and outstanding features apply to all groups of students and courses,” in relation to both student experience and outcomes. UCS consistently exceeds rigorous national quality requirements for UK higher education.

AoC Beacon Award

The AoC Beacon Awards recognise high-quality technical and professional education and training excellence – highlighting the best and most innovative practice across the UK.

BTC were honoured to receive the City and Guilds Award for College Engagement with Employers 2021.

Taunton Deane Business of the Year Award

The Taunton Deane Business of the Year Award is awarded to the business who has demonstrated proven sector leaderships, shown evidence of investment and has stood out in the local community.

Taunton Deane Digital Innovator Award

This award recognises the use of digital advances in business. With the support of funders Ufi Charitable Trust and Edge, our National College for Nuclear – NCfN, Southern Hub features a virtual reality (VR) room and flow rig, replicating a nuclear plant in microcosm, and bringing theory to life.

College wins prestigious SEMTA award

Bridgwater & Taunton College’s National College for Nuclear, Southern Hub (NCfN) has won the SEMTA award for Skills Innovation of the Year, beating stiff competition from Jaguar Land Rover and Toyota Manufacturing.

The Skills Innovation of the Year category examines the ways in which organisations have harnessed the latest technology to improve their delivery of skills training, and the positive impact this has had on the workforce.

TES FE Awards 2019: Apprenticeship Programme of the Year Winner

Bridgwater & Taunton College won the Apprenticeship Programme of the Year at the annual Tes FE Awards 2019 after responding quickly to help develop the skills apprentices need to pursue a career at one of the country’s biggest construction projects for a generation – Hinkley Point C.

Chair of the Board receives MBE

Bridgwater & Taunton College’s Chair of Governors has been recognised with an MBE, presented by The Prince of Wales at Buckingham Palace.

Derek Randall has directed transformational change to see the College become one of the largest and most successful in the country. Derek’s commitment to excellence has also directly resulted in the College’s sponsorship of the Bridgwater College Trust, a Multi Academy Trust supporting a number of local academies, transforming the educational experience of over 1,500 local pupils.

Beyond the College, as Chair of the Association of Colleges’ Regional Committee, he has elevated standards of college governance in the South West, mentoring many new chairs of corporation and supporting colleges through challenging periods.

Lion Awards 'Centre of the Year'

Having been awarded a 2017/18 Medal for Excellence, a fantastic achievement in itself, the College was then selected as the City & Guilds Lion Awards ‘Centre of the Year’. Winning this prestigious award demonstrates that the College has displayed exceptional achievement and is at the very top of its field of expertise.

Winner of Michelmores Property Awards 2018

The National College for Nuclear, Southern Hub based in Cannington includes a virtual reality environment, a reactor simulator and training rooms, sports facilities and student accommodation. The new facilities will develop the UK’s nuclear curriculum while creating career opportunities and delivering economic growth in the South.

The awards celebrate outstanding property and construction projects in Devon, Somerset, Bristol, Dorset and Cornwall, across ten categories.

Institute of the Motor Industry Outstanding Achievement Award 2017

The Automotive Engineering Department at Bridgwater & Taunton College was awarded ‘Centre of the Year’ at the Outstanding Achievement Awards 2017, by the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI). The awards recognise outstanding individuals as well as the world-class training being delivered across the UK.

Queen's Anniversary Prize 2015

The Queen’s Anniversary Prizes for Higher and Further Education are awarded to relatively few universities and colleges in the UK for outstanding quality and innovation at a world class level. This award recognises the College’s commitment to energy sector skills training for local and regional businesses.

TES FE Awards 2016 - Pearson Silver Teaching Awards

A number of highly successful colleges entered in this category, but the judges felt our submission stood out from the rest. The college has sustained its outstanding performance over many years, and has built exceptional partnerships with employers and the local community.

The Computing and Games team were described by the judges as being “an inspiring and highly motivated team who are strong individually, but formidable as a whole. All the team’s activities have a core aim of enabling the student to thrive and flourish by being relevant and engaging.”

Beacon College Status

Bridgwater College was presented with Beacon College status in 2002 from the Learning and Skills Council, in recognition of our outstanding practice across all areas of the College. Disseminating good practice to other colleges is an important aspect of this award and something we regularly participate in.

Beacon Awards

• A Beacon Award for Employer Engagement for its training partnership with DHL/Morrisons.
• A Beacon Award for College/School Partnerships in recognition of the excellent working relationships we have with our partner schools.
• A Beacon Award for Inclusive Learning in acknowledgment of the College’s commitment to matching each student’s learning needs with an tailored programme of study.
• A Beacon Award for Innovation in Improving Quality and Standards for effective quality assurance processes to cover all aspects of provision.
• A Beacon Award for Staff Development for our high quality staff development programmes, leading to committed staff providing the best possible opportunities for learning.
• A Beacon Award for Meeting Employer Needs to the Automotive Centre for providing outstanding vocationally relevant training in Automotive Engineering.
• A Beacon Award for Early Years, along with Early Excellence Centre status awarded by the Government, for high quality childcare provision and on-site Early Years training.
• A Beacon Award for Employer Engagement awarded to the Business Development Unit.
• A Beacon Award for Innovation in Science in recognition of the College’s commitment to developing Forensic Science as part of its curriculum.
• A Beacon Award for International Student Support to celebrate the College’s good practice and caring approach to all its international students.
• A Beacon Award for Sustainable Community Development in recognition of our provision for carnival training.
• A Beacon Award for Functional Skills, celebrating the College’s good practice in this area.
• A Beacon Award for Students with Learning Difficulties and/or Disabilities for supporting high needs students to develop employability skills and to become independent through work experience, volunteering and personal learning opportunities.