Colleges Week – Focus on Community

Behind every successful college is a strong community of dedicated staff, volunteers, partners and organisations that come together to create opportunities for all. Today, we’re paying tribute to all those who work in colleges, as well as the key partners and stakeholders who support learners across local communities.

Here are just examples of the fabulous collaborations.

#LoveOurColleges #CollegesWeek2026

WeAreCRC  

The last day of Colleges Week focuses on the communities that colleges serve, support and create and we’re incredibly proud to be part of these communities and to help building, strengthening and enabling them. Here are some highlights of the communities we support.  

Our Local Communities  

St Neots Citizen’s Hub  

The St Neots Citizen Hub is a vital part of the local community – bringing together citizens, businesses, and services under one roof. They create the right conditions for the community to thrive by providing support, guidance, opportunity and a sense of belonging.

Grace and Jason from the Hub tell us more about the services they offer, and how CRC works with them to provide essential training to help local people build confidence, develop skills, and gain experience to enter or re-enter the workplace.

Arbury Carnival  

We’re big supporters of the Arbury Carnival, organised by a passionate group of Volunteers who bring the Carnival to life every June in Arbury.

Our students, alongside Chesterton Community College and North Cambridge Academy, are taking part in the Poster Competition to be selected for the promotion of the carnival. The Poster Exhibition for the 2026 Carnival takes place on Wednesday 11th March, 4:30pm- 6pm – come and join the Arbury team and view the amazing range of posters!

Huntingdon  

Our teams work with partners and stakeholders across Huntingdonshire, including:

• Supporting the Huntingdon in Bloom Award Winning entry
• Helping Hinchingbrooke Park
• Volunteering and work experience at local employers
• Hosting the annual Careers Fair connecting local people with employment opportunities.  

Creating Community Connections  

FE College of Sanctuary

We’re an FE College of Sanctuary, recognising CRC’s work in welcoming and providing education and training for asylum seekers. We had wonderful celebrations bringing the whole college community together with ESOL (English as a Second or Other Language) and sanctuary-seeking students sharing their cultural heritage with the wider college community.

One World Orchestra

We’re working with the One World Orchestra, building connections and confidence with our ESOL students, music and creative industry students are working together to create music.  

International Community  

Norwegian Link Programme

CRC has been delivering educational programmes for international students for many years and today marks a special anniversary for one of our international partners as we celebrate 20 years of our Norwegian Link Programme. Since its inception, the Norwegian Link Programme has welcomed over 1,000 students to CRC. The most recent cohort are completing their six-month placement right now.

The Norwegian Link Programme is a six-month international study experience that enables students to continue their national curriculum in English while living in the UK and studying at Cambridge Regional College.

Beyond the classroom, students embraced the opportunity to experience UK culture first-hand, with organised trips to cities such as London and Edinburgh – with some even travelling further afield to France and Cyprus.

USA-UK Technical Exchange Programme

Cambridge Regional College (CRC) is proud to be part of the pioneering US-UK Community College and Technical Education Exchange Programme, which aims to strengthen international collaboration in vocational education with a focus on green technology and sustainability coordinated by the Association of Colleges (AoC) and the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT). 

As part of this initiative, delegations from both parties, Linn-Benton Community College (LBCC) in Oregon, USA; and CRC have had student exchanges for learners to explore innovations in green automotive technology and sustainable engineering. 

Our WeAreCRC staff community  

All of this work is underpinned and delivered by our amazing WeAreCRC staff community of over 800 dedicated professionals, committed to making a difference.

Thank You!

Thank you to everyone who makes our region such a great place to be!

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