Wakefield College

The City of Wakefield sits at the heart of West Yorkshire, and at the heart of the Wakefield district is Wakefield College. The College is the largest college in the District and has an impressive track record, having provided education and training in Wakefield and its surrounding area since 1868.

Today, the College has its base in three major areas as well as delivering learning in community settings all over the district.

Our College is committed to working in partnership with local schools, employers and learning providers to transform learning, attainment, achievement and progression across the district. We have good relationships with schools across the Wakefield district and the College has a broad mix of former pupils from across the region.

The higher education courses available are located in specialist facilities at all three campuses. There are almost 40 university level courses offered in conjunction with Huddersfield University, Leeds Metropolitan University and Bradford University. Every year the College holds its prestigious graduation event, celebrating over 500 awards with its students.

Wakefield College has three main campuses in the Wakefield district:

Wakefield Campus
This site is located at Margaret Street in the city centre and houses the Sixth Form Centre for students studying for AS and A Levels. This campus offers also courses such as ICT and Computing, Office Skills, Hospitality and Catering, Travel and Tourism, Health Studies, Childcare, Animal Care and Languages.

The Wakefield City Centre campus is currently undergoing major re-development works, including the recent completion of a new building designed to house the College's sixth-form, higher education provision and new Library. Current works include the refurbishment of the former Wakefield Museum, which the College has taken ownership of. The College will use the building, on Wood Street, to house its Performing Arts centre

Thornes Park Campus
This site is located in the centre of Thornes Park, Wakefield and offers courses such as Performing Arts and Music, Art, Design, Media and Communications, Business and Management, Sport and Public Services.The buildings are made up of the former Thornes House High School (also known as Thornes House Grammar School) which opened in 1921 as separate sex school. In 1941 it became a mixed school, and the school suffered a fire in July 1951. It was administered by the City of Wakefield Educational Committee. It became a 13-18 comprehensive school in 1972 with 1200 boys and girls. In 1981, it lost its sixth form and became a 13-16 school, and, in 1992 merged with nearby Cathedral Middle School and the newly formed school re-located into Cathedral Middle's buildings on Thornes Road In 1993, it became part of Wakefield College.

Castleford Campus
This is a purpose built site in Glasshoughton which opened in 2008, described by the College as a 'distinctive, iconic structure'. The Castleford Campus was formerly known as the skillsXchange. This site houses courses for construction crafts, practical engineering, motor vehicle, hairdressing and beauty therapy, IT and care. This site replaced the Whitwood Campus, located in Castleford. This now closed campus was the former Whitwood Mining and Technical School, which opened in the 1930s and closed in February 2009. The Whitwood Campus has been redeveloped for housing.

Wakefield offers a rare combination of heritage, countryside, entertainment, culture, shopping and sport. Whatever your interests, we hope you will want to explore the District and its many amenities.

For art lovers, there is the City Art Gallery and the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, one of the world’s leading open-air galleries where a changing programme of international sculpture can be seen in the setting of a magnificent country park. Recent improvements to the Park include an underground gallery, visitor centre, shop and large restaurant - all the ingredients for a great day out. In 2011 the Hepworth gallery will open on Wakefield’s regenerated waterfront and present a major collection of twentieth century British art works, with a collection of sculptures by locally-born Barbara Hepworth and Henry Moore as its centrepiece.

The Wakefield District is rich in historical sites, from the ruined splendour of Sandal and Pontefract Castles to Nostell Priory, a superb eighteenth century stately home packed with fine art and furniture and surrounded by a landscaped park and gardens. For those more interested in Britain’s industrial heritage, a visit to the National Coal Mining Museum is a must, allowing you to take an underground tour, explore the science of mining via interactive models and touch-screen displays, and even meet the pit ponies!

Theatre-goers will want to check out Wakefield’s Theatre Royal and Opera House’s extensive programme of music, drama and dance. Film buffs are also well catered for at the multi-screen cinemas in the District.

If your hobbies are more energetic, you’ll find plenty to do in the Wakefield District, including facilities for golf, bowling, angling and swimming. There are sports centres, including the Thornes Park Athletics Stadium and skate park near our Thornes Park Campus, or you can try out canoeing, windsurfing or sailing at Pugneys Country Park. For the more adventurous, there is a wealth of facilities at the Xscape Leisure Centre at Castleford including a real snow indoor ski slope, indoor skate park, arial assault course, rock climbing zone and more. Alternatively, just stroll through one of the District’s many country parks, taking in the scenery and watching the wildlife.

Those who enjoy shopping will love the Outlet Shopping Village near our skillsXchange campus with its huge range of big name brands at discount prices and numerous places to eat and drink. There are also traditional markets around the region and, in Wakefield itself, a stunning new market hall and the Ridings Shopping Centre, currently undergoing a major refit.

Night-owls will be pleased to hear that Wakefield is famous for its night life, with pubs, clubs, discos and bars to suit all age groups and budgets. There are also numerous country pubs and restaurants which offer quieter evenings out and you can choose from traditional Yorkshire home cooked fare to the cuisine of many nations.

The city commands a position in the centre of country, making it easy to reach by car, bus or train. There are two railway stations, and a regular intercity rail service provides a speedy link between Wakefield and all points of the country, with the journey to London or Edinburgh taking just over two hours. There is an excellent local bus service within the Wakefield District, including a free city bus.