South West College has been announced as the winner of the prestigious Beacon Award in the category of Education for Sustainable Development. The prize was presented at a special ceremony in the Houses of Parliament in Westminster on Monday, 3rd March.

Billed as the ‘Oscars of Further Education’ the AoC Beacon Awards recognise excellence in the sector across the diverse aspects of college life. The awards, celebrating their 30th year, celebrate and showcase best practice and highlight innovation and excellence in the sector. The awards also illustrate the relationships between colleges, businesses and professional and voluntary bodies and promote the far-reaching impact of colleges on their students and the communities they serve.

South West College received the Beacon Award for its Climate Action Campaign, a multi-faceted initiative which has been designed to integrate sustainability into every aspect of the college’s operations. This included the publication of a comprehensive Net Zero Action Plan and Sustainability Action Plan and providing Carbon Literacy training to all staff and students. To highlight the college’s commitment to climate awareness and the promotion of female participation in sports, the College incorporated the climate stripes into it’s Ladies GAA jerseys.

Supriya Foster, Sustainability Officer at South West College, said;

‘The Beacon Award is a validation of the work that South West College has been doing in Sustainability over the past few years. We are very proud to receive this award which recognises the time and effort that has gone into the development of our Net Zero Action plan and our desire to have all staff and students trained in Carbon Literacy.

We are only too aware of the challenges that our world faces and we will continue to tackle these challenges through our operational practices and the delivery of innovative and sustainable education programmes.

Celine McCartan, Principal and Chief Executive Officer, added:

'This is a fantastic achievement for South West College and illustrates the time, effort and resource that has been devoted our to our sustainability initiatives over the past decade.

With the opening of the world’s largest Passive House Premium rated building, the Erne Campus in 2021, the college’s participation at COP26, the roll out of the Carbon Literacy programme and initiatives such as the walled garden project delivered by our SEN students in Enniskillen, South West College has positioned itself as a champion for sustainable practice this award is a welcome reflection of that.’

For further information about the Beacon Awards visit Beacon Awards 2024/25 | Association of Colleges