Education? It's part of our city's DNA!

BACK in 'the good old days,' school leaving age for most children was 15. A smaller percentage, however, could continue their education until they were 16. This depended on passing the 11-plus exam giving access to a grammar school or a technical school, resulting in gaining a Certificate of Education (GCE), and the opportunity to continue with higher education or finding a specialist job

- Fred Hughes - Historian and author

For the unsuccessful 11-plus candidate, it meant elementary schooling in the second-tier secondary modern school and work in industry, in offices, and in the retail and service sectors. The 'good old days' for me were the 1950s, and with a booming economy, jobs were easy to find. I settled as a non-apprenticed trainee electrician. But it was difficult to plan a long-term future as most boys were resigned to the fact that at 18, most would be called up for two years' compulsory national service.

Happily, during these pre-callup years, many young men were enabled to experience further education by attending what were known as 'technical colleges.' From 1946, this had been facilitated at Cauldon College Shelton.

These days the hugely-populated Stoke-on-Trent Cauldon College and its Burslem-based Northern Campus, prospect a wide range of subjects and qualifications including access to higher education, social welfare, sports coaching, and a wide range of foundation streams.