Post-16 Learning in County Durham
26th August 2022
To make things easy for you CareerWave has provided a handy list of post-16 providers in your local area. We have split these providers into three main groups; Sixth Forms, Colleges of Further Education and Training Providers.
Each has a main focus- Sixth Forms largely do academic subjects. Colleges have a long history of teaching technical courses. Training Providers work with employers to provide Apprenticeships, Traineeships and Employability/Personal Development learning.
However there is also a lot of crossover- Sixth Forms usually offer a selection of Level 3 technical courses. Colleges sometimes have their own Sixth Form and always offer Apprenticeships and Traineeships. Training Providers often offer the same full-time technical courses found in Colleges, notably in construction trades, motor vehicle repair and engineering.
So, below is your list to get you started, although you may also want to take note of the lists for neighbouring areas. For example, we know that lots of students in County Durham access post-16 learning in Newcastle, Sunderland and Tees Valley. Furthermore, please be aware that Training Providers are more difficult to keep a track of and many operate nationally and regionally. We have listed some notable ones, but our strong advice is to use the Find an Apprenticeship website to search for vacancies and identify Training Providers to contact.
Sixth Form
King James I Academy Sixth Form
New College Durham Sixth Form Centre
The Hermitage Academy Sixth Form
St. Bede’s Catholic Sixth Form, Lanchester
Popular Sixth Forms in other areas (please check the relevant article for a full list of opportunities outside County Durham)
Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College, Darlington
College of Further Education
Hartlepool College of Further Education
Popular Colleges in other areas (please check the relevant article for a full list of opportunities outside County Durham)
Other Learning Providers
Kleek Apprenticeships (Hair and Beauty)
DurhamWorks Youth Employment Initiative
Military Preparation College (Gateshead, Stockton and Sunderland)
NDC College (Level 3 Performing Arts in Hartlepool)
Sunderland Engineering Training Association