Essential Student Support

GCSE Exam Dates – Buxton Campus, Leek Campus and Derby Campus (Kedleston Road)

Thursday 16^th May 2024 – GCSE Maths Paper 1 (non-calculator) don’t forget your maths equipment – you are not allowed a calculator for this exam

Thursday 23^rd May 2024 – GCSE English Language Paper 1

Monday 3^rd June 2024 – GCSE Maths Paper 2 (Calculator) don’t forget your calculator and maths equipment

Thursday 6^th June 2024 – GCSE English Language Paper 2

Monday 10^th June 2024 – GCSE Maths Paper 3 (Calculator) don’t forget your calculator and maths equipment

For the Buxton and Leek Campus

If you are taking your GCSE with us,  all GCSE exams start at 9.30.am (please arrive at your exam room for 9.15.am). You will receive an email and SMS with your exam,  location,  dates, and room numbers closer to the time.

If you are unable to attend your exam for whatever reason please email ExamsAbsence@blc.ac.uk

The awarding bodies have collectively agreed a contingency day for several years now which is always scheduled at the end of the GCSE, GCE AS and A-level exam timetables.

The contingency day is in the event of national or significant local disruption to exams in the United Kingdom, being part of the awarding bodies’ standard contingency planning for exams.

Following the Covid-19 pandemic, further resilience was needed within the exam timetables. A single contingency day was not felt to be sufficient if a national event or incident had a significant effect on the exam timetable. For example, summer exams could be affected by extremely high temperatures.

For the June 2024 exams, the awarding bodies have therefore introduced two additional half-day contingency sessions. These are on Thursday 6th June – pm and Thursday 13th June – pm. The standard contingency day remains at the end of the timetable being scheduled on Wednesday 26th June – am and pm.

Colleges should ensure candidates and parents are aware of the contingency arrangements on these three days. They should consider the contingency day of Wednesday 26th June 2024 when making their plans for the summer. Candidates should be encouraged to remain available until Wednesday 26th June 2024 should examinations need to be rescheduled

If you’re feeling worried or anxious about your exam results, take a look at our Managing Worries about exam results information here to find some useful tips.

There are two types of Financial Support you may require as a learner at Buxton and Leek College.

Tuition Fees – Further Education Course

Understanding whether you need to pay for your course or qualify for a discount depends on various factors such as your age, residency status—whether you’re from the UK, the European Union (EU), or an international student—and other eligibility criteria.

Please check our webpage here which is dedicated to taking you through how it works: https://www.blc.ac.uk/financial-support/will-i-pay-course/

 

Funding towards additional course costs such as Transport, Meals, Kit, Uniform, DBS, Childcare etc.

Buxton and Leek College receives a limited allocation of government funds each year to distribute as Bursaries and the Free College Meals Scheme.

These funds help cover additional costs associated with participating in eligible Further Education programs that may otherwise hinder learners from attending.

Please check our webpage here which is dedicated to taking you through how it works: What financial support is available? – Buxton & Leek College (blc.ac.uk)

 

Further Information:

Learners interested in Higher Education should refer to the University of Derby’s Undergraduate fees and finance page for information about university funding.

If you are considering an apprenticeship and are seeking information on available funding, please visit our apprenticeships funding page.

Opening Doors, Investing in Futures.

 

Buxton & Leek College offers a high-quality, impartial careers information, advice, and guidance (CEIAG) programme. Delivered by skilled and experienced professionals, our service meets the National Matrix Quality Standard and complies with the Gatsby Benchmarks for CEIAG in schools and colleges.

Following an Inspection in February 2019, OFSTED had the following to say about Buxton & Leek Colleges careers support:

‘Very effective careers education, information, advice and guidance help students and apprentices select appropriate next steps’

We provide:

• Accurate careers and course information, utilizing labour market insights to support your career decisions.
• Impartial CEIAG throughout your time with us.
• Personalized one-on-one career advice and planning.
• Assistance in securing meaningful work placements to develop workplace skills.
• Guidance on progression options, including further studies, higher education, apprenticeships, or employment.
• Opportunities to engage with employers to inform your career aspirations.

Our support includes:

• Confidence-building and motivation for your studies.
• Assistance in overcoming learning and progression barriers.
• Confidential one-on-one appointments in private spaces.
• Detailed action plans from your sessions for reflection.
• Exploration of higher education, including personal statement writing and student finance applications.
• Interview preparation and job application support for apprenticeships and employment.

Appointments are available between Monday to Friday 9am – 4pm (subject to availability).

You can book an appointment using this link link https://forms.office.com/e/cJY0tP7Th0 or scanning the QR code. Your Progress Coach can support you with this.

 

 

 

 

 

The Careers and Employment Service will continue to support you for up to 12 months after you’ve completed your course.

MEET THE TEAM

Kayleigh Goodwin

Careers & Employment Advisor

k.goodwin@derby.ac.uk

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sarah Thompson

Careers & Engagement Manager

s.thompson1@blc.ac.uk

 

 

 

You can view our Library opening hours here.

Is the Library/HUB open for me to use?

The Devonshire Library and Leek HUB are open for students that want to browse our books or use a PC/study space. For information about our opening hours and to make a booking, please visit our website. If you need any help or support, please contact the Library on 01332 591215 or email us on library@derby.ac.uk

Do I need to return my Laptop?

As you will be studying on campus and at home, laptops that were loaned out in December/January will continue to renew automatically each week, unless you receive an email recall notice from the Library service. If you receive a recall notice from the Library service, please return your laptop to the Library/HUB. If you have any queries about your account, please contact the Library on 01332 591215 or email us on library@derby.ac.uk

You can find the Subject Guides via this link – look for your subject in the list.

Each Guide has information on using books and eBooks, using our search engine, Discover to find articles and more, and provides links to useful websites. There is also help with using Harvard referencing.

If you have further questions, there’s a web-chat icon in the bottom right corner of every Subject Guide page that students can click on and ask a question. You can also book places at Academic Librarian Clinics for specific queries (on the calendar, look for the ones called ‘Buxton and Leek students’).

You can take a look at our virtual tour here.

You can now also access our library FE subject guides by following this link https://libguides.derby.ac.uk/blc

For all enquiries about Chaplaincy, please email the Rev Adam Dickens at Chaplaincy@derby.ac.uk