Popular Etc. CFO, Fiona Sharp, retires after 26 years

Mild mannered but with a fierce head for numbers, Fiona Sharp is retiring after 26 years with the colleges that now make up the Education Training Collective (Etc.).

As chief financial officer, hers is a face that will be familiar to many after almost three decades helping balance the books, first as a part-time finance officer at what was then believed to be the smallest sixth form college in the country. Today she heads up the finances for the group that incorporates four Outstanding Tees Valley colleges.

“It is both scary and exciting to be stepping away, and there’s more than a little sadness,” said the Billingham mum who has built her life’s career around a passion for numbers.

Yet, counting the years since she started at Bede Sixth Form College, still takes Fiona by surprise. But, as she knows, the numbers don’t lie.

“It was by complete chance I spotted a job advert in The Gazette for the role at Bede,” she said.

Having previously worked at Halifax Building Society and Cleveland County Council, followed by some part-time roles after the birth of her son, Tom, she explained that working in education finance was something new and she was quickly hooked.

“I loved the cyclical nature of the academic year, but no two years, or even two days, are ever the same. Then there is that feeling of being part of the college community and making a difference to students’ lives.”

In those days Bede was an old building situated on Hale Road, Billingham. And, despite a fondness for her tiny office, often referred to as “the cupboard”, Fiona can’t deny it had seen better days.

In 2008 a merger with Stockton Riverside College was instrumental to securing funding for the “new Bede”, the multistorey state-of-the-art facility on Marsh House Avenue it is today.

By then a full-time finance manager, keeping on top of the numbers catapulted Fiona into the group’s senior leadership team.

Since then, she has seen many more changes, not least navigating the group’s finances through further mergers and acquisitions with NETA Training, Redcar and Cleveland College, and Innersummit in Gateshead, all becoming part of the group, but each maintaining their individual identities.

Looking back, she said: “It is something to be proud of.” But, up until her impending retirement, she added: “You don’t tend to sit back, reflect, and think of it like that.”

In 26 years, it’s fair to say, she has packed a lot into her career and built friendships that are more like a second family.

But now, after relocating to Northumberland, Fiona and her husband, Les, are looking forward to more time for country walks, playing their part in the community, and with plenty still to offer, perhaps some volunteering.

Born and bred in Billingham, Fiona said: “The Etc. has been a huge part of my life.  It was always going to take something big to pull me away and perhaps the move to Northumberland has made it a little easier.”

Leaving the college group just months after it was graded Ofsted Outstanding feels like a happy coincidence.

One thing is for sure; Fiona will always hold on to her passion and pride for the college group and its continued success. You can count on that!

NETA Training shares plans for new £14m facility in Thornaby

NETA Training has unveiled plans for the development of its £14m purpose-built centre in Thornaby.

A flagship project of the Thornaby Town Deal, the new campus will further enhance the delivery of quality engineering and construction training, within the borough, for young people and adults.

“After many months in the pipeline we are excited to be bringing the brand-new NETA Training site to Thornaby,” said the Education Training Collective’s chief operating officer Phil Hastie.

“NETA has a long history of meeting the skills needs of employers in our region and beyond, this development will now bring together NETA’s industrial heritage with fantastic new facilities.”

Artwork for new NETA Training development
Artwork for new NETA Training development in Thornaby

Made possible with £4.5m from the Government’s Town Deal fund, and delivered in partnership with Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council and with the support of the Thornaby Town Deal Board, the new building will be situated on the Stockton Riverside College site, with work expected to start late in the summer.  

Further funding has been secured from the Department for Education and investment from the Education Training Collective (Etc.).

Maintaining its strong identity and brand, NETA Training will have its own access point off Princeton Drive and continue to deliver its full range of training services, including commercial courses, testing and certification, apprenticeship training and full-time engineering programmes for school-leavers. 

The 5,000 square metre facility will comprise bespoke industry workshops for the delivery of engineering skills, including welding, electrical, mechanical, pipefitting and rigging and lifting.

Investment will see some of the latest high spec industry-standard equipment sitting alongside traditional heavy-duty machinery, maintaining NETA’s unique character and appeal.

Phil said: “A new building for NETA has been on our wish list for a number of years, it is incredible, thanks to the Thornaby Town Deal, to finally be able to make this happen.”

Working with employers, the local and combined authorities, this is the latest in a series of improvement projects delivered by the Etc., a group of Teesside colleges and training providers which includes NETA Training and Stockton Riverside College, to increase opportunities and create better facilities in which to learn.

Development of the new building in Thornaby will run alongside the creation of the NETA-led All Access Academy at Redcar and Cleveland College, announced in March, delivering training in the likes of scaffolding, rope access and rigging and lifting.

NETA director Sean Johnston said: “These are exciting times for NETA, our staff, learners, delegates and all the employers that we work with.  We can’t wait to see both our new centre in Thornaby and the All Access Academy in Redcar up and running.

“Engineering and construction skills have a massive part to play in Teesside’s industrial future.  We want to help create a workforce on our doorstep with the knowledge, talent and abilities to ensure our communities benefit from that.”

The relocation of NETA is one of the priority interventions that are set to bring long-term change and investment into Thornaby as part of its town deal.  The interventions were identified by the Thornaby Town Deal Board, a group of local stakeholders who support the town investment plan, made up of key public and private sector bodies.

Mark White CBE DL, chair of Thornaby Town Deal Board and chair of Stockton-on-Tees Strategic Education Board, said: “The opportunity for NETA’s relocation highlights how our Town Investment Plan will unlock fantastic opportunities for Thornaby-on-Tees.  It allows communities to prosper, employers to find staff that will help their businesses and the local economy to grow and flourish.

“Bringing a campus of such scale and significance to Stockton Riverside College is testament to the quality of ambition for the interventions and the hard work of the Town Deal Board.

“This is a very important step in making our ambitions for the Thornaby Town Deal a reality.”

Iain Robinson, assistant director for town centres development at Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council, said: “The Thornaby Town Deal is part of the council’s exciting regeneration programme that will help the borough to be recognised for its thriving economy at the heart of the Tees Valley and as a place where everyone has the opportunity to succeed.

“The plans for a new NETA Training facility, as well as our ambition to create the nationally significant Tees Valley Care and Health Innovation Zone, will help to breathe new life into Teesdale Business Park and bring a host of wider benefits for the borough.”