Celebrating our students’ success – GTA Awards Ceremony 2016
On Tuesday 22 November 2016 we had the pleasure of celebrating over 150 local students’ success at the GTA Awards Ceremony at St James. It was a particularly special day for our students, and for us as November 2016 also marks the GTA’s 20th anniversary of serving the Bailiwick.
Chief Executive, Simon Le Tocq said:
“The Awards Ceremony is a fantastic occasion – a time to cheer and celebrate the successes of our students with their families and employers. All too often in our busy lives we don’t take the time to pause and to recognise our achievements but it is important we applaud hard work and celebrate success. By celebrating what we’ve accomplished it gives us the confidence to know we can face up to future challenges – it shows us the growth mindset we are nuturing”
In addition to our students and their families, we were also pleased to welcome:
- The Lieutenant-Governor, His Excellency Vice Admiral Sir Ian Corder KBE CB and Lady Corder
- Professor John Vinney, Vice-Chancellor of Bournemouth University
- Nick Griffin, Chief Commercial Officer at sponsors Generali Worldwide
- Advocate David Thompson – the first GTA law graduate to be called to the Guernsey Bar.
His Excellency Vice Admiral Sir Ian Corder warmly congratulated our graduating students and recognised the GTA’s “agility” in responding to the Baliwick’s changing training and development needs. The GTA is a small institution but we certainly punch above our weight; since 1996 more than 8,000 programmes and courses have been facilitated on behalf of the bailiwick and we have seen more than 80,000 students come through our doors. We have delivered 13 different higher education programmes partnering with six different universities and have seen 335 individuals gain higher education qualifications without leaving the island. We look forward to our continued service to all islanders, regardless of their training and development needs, and hope to be as relevant in 2036 as we are today. Learning and development will always be at the heart of the most successful businesses and the GTA will be here to serve them. Take a look through our 20 year history below; November 2016 is an important milestone for us here at the GTA University Centre as we are celebrating our 20 year anniversary. Join us as we look back over our 20 year journey which has taken us from being a specialised financial training agency back in 1996, to today where we have grown into an accredited university centre offering training and development across a huge range of industries.
1996 - Twenty years ago, on 5 November 1996, saw the launch of the Finance Training Agency, the precursor to the current GTA University Centre. The Agency was set up in response to local industry demand for professional training, and represented a significant investment in the local workforce on behalf of the States of Guernsey and the Guernsey Financial Services Commission. The Finance Training Agency was originally housed in Nelson Place, Smith Street, in rooms that are now used as a gym.
1997 - The facilities at Nelson Place provided two training rooms, some office space, and a small study centre. Every room was on a different level with steps either up or down! During the first full year at the Agency we ran 9 professional courses, with 15 students joining the first cohort of the MSc Corporate Governance / Grad ICSA.
1998 - This year the Training Agency was set up to mirror the work the Finance Training Agency (FTA) was carrying out - but focussing on the non-finance sectors within the island. It immediately offered a postgraduate diploma in personnel management through Portsmouth University which recruited 14 students. The 15 FTA students completed the MSc Corporate Governance that they had started in 1997, cementing our long-standing relationship with Bournemouth University.
1999 - The Finance Training Agency and the Training Agency merged this year to form the Training Agency, under the executive chairmanship of Keith Corbin. The Agency took on the licence for Investors in People, and 295 training events were recorded for the year, an increase of 17% over the previous year. This picture shows the lecture room at Nelson Place - note the cutting-edge technology with the ohp on wheels!
2000 - The millennium saw the Agency launching the Institute of Directors Company Direction programme in the island. Since its introduction we have seen 289 delegates complete the programme, with many of them progressing to Chartered Director status. This picture shows our administration office in Nelson Place.
2001 - The very first GTA Presentation & Awards Ceremony took place with just over 20 graduates participating. Since 2013 we have had 60 students graduate from postgraduate courses, and a further 89 graduate from senior professional programmes, and we look forward to celebrating with them at our Ceremony later this month. The GTA has been very fortunate over the years to work with universities and tutors of a very high calibre and has maintained these partnerships as this quality is one of the key benefits that we provide to our students. This picture shows Stephen Platt tutoring a group in compliance frameworks.
2002 - Richard Conder was appointed the first Chief Executive of the Training Agency. Advisory groups were set up for the finance and commercial sectors to provide information on training requirements. With the focus on training within the finance sector, the International Compliance Association was set up with the Agency facilitating its courses; and the Bailiwick Prevention of Financial Crime conference took place attracting over 250 delegates. This picture shows one of the smaller lectures rooms at Nelson Place.
2003 - The Training Agency was formally re-named the Guernsey Training Agency in this year, and the advisory groups developed to include the IT and retail sectors. The Agency also achieved Investors in People accreditation, and moved into its new administrative offices in Richmond House (pictured). New programmes launched included an Masters in E-Commerce with the University of Plymouth and a Masters in Business Administration with the University of Southampton.
2004 - Our Advisory Groups were instrumental in helping us develop training matrices for the key economic sectors, and which are still important reference tools today. We have worked closely with many businesses and industries locally, setting up qualifications ranging from a Certificate in Retail Practice to a masters in Strategic Human Resource Management. This picture shows our 2004 Chartered Institute of Marketing cohort.
2005 - The GTA has had three websites over the years, each with a particularly distinctive look to them. Our website at www.gta.gg allows HR managers to make multiple bookings on behalf of colleagues, and tracks delegates' individual training history. This picture shows how our homepage looked in 2005.
2006 - This year saw the GTA awarded recognition by Bournemouth University as an accredited University Centre, in acknowledgement of the high standard of support provided by the Agency in respect of the delivery of its postgraduate programmes. This picture shows the cohort of IoD students graduating in 2006, in the company of the then Lieutenant-Governor, His Excellency Vice Admiral Sir Fabian Malbon KBE.
2007 - The GTA was very pleased to secure new training rooms at St Peter Port House. Much work was undertaken to create three bespoke lecture rooms, and an IT training suite. The picture shows our entrance to our admin offices on Union Street, with the entrance on Sausmarez Street takes you to our training rooms.
2008 - In this year Keith Corbin stepped down as Chairman after 12 years contribution, and Martyn Mann was elected to the position. We were also able to open a new library and study centre at Morningside House in Le Marchant Street. This facility provides a quiet space for study, accessible 14 hours a day, to all islanders. This picture shows the upstairs study and reference library.
2009 - This year saw the launch of our first accredited law programme - the Graduate Diploma in Law/Common Professional Professional Examination. Over the years we have had 29 students complete this course, and many of them have gone on to careers in the legal profession. Earlier this year one of our alumni, David Thompson, was called to the Guernsey Bar, and will be giving the address on behalf of our students at the Ceremony next week. This picture shows staff relaxing at a GTA Awards Ceremony.
2010 - In partnership with Bournemouth University we launched our first undergraduate foundation programme - FdA in Business & Management - with 11 students. This three year programme provided local students with the opportunity of achieving a recognised degree on-island. We were very proud to see them graduate in 2014 as shown in this picture.
2011 - Professor Richard Condor retired this year after 9 years at the helm of the GTA, and Fiona Naftel was appointed Chief Executive. We worked in partnership with Highlands in Jersey to deliver a Chartered Institute of Marketing programme. We also launched a new programme with the University of Southampton - the Postgraduate Certificate in Digital Marketing. In conjunction with the States of Guernsey and Bournemouth University we designed a postgraduate programme for graduate trainees within the civil service, the Postgraduate Certificate in Professional Studies. These new programmes were set up in response to market demand for an increasing range and extent of qualifications. The picture shows the cohort for the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants professional qualification, a course we set up with Specsavers.
2012 - The GTA has been an accredited examinations centre from the start, and over the years we have worked with many institutes and universities in offering examination facilities, trained invigilators, and student support. Amongst the many we have worked with are the Institute of Fire Engineers, the Chartered Banker Institute, and for many years we have worked with the Royal Court in facilitating the Guernsey Bar examinations. More and more examinations are moving online and we are supporting this move with the acquisition of high spec equipment. After a busy year the team like to have fun at Christmas - as shown in this picture from 2012!
2013 - This year saw the GTA move its administraive offices to St Peter Port House. Being in the same building as the training suite and being able to meet our delegates and students much more easily has had huge benefits. Dr Elaine Monkhouse was appointed as interim Chief Executive to the GTA in September of this year.
2014 - Since 2000 the GTA has facilitated the IoD Company Direction programme and we are pleased to have supported just under 300 delegates through the course. In addition to the modular Company Direction programme, we have run more specialist courses in social media, and executive PA, as well as introducing the accelerated company direction programme. After completing the programme delegates can proceed to Chartered Director, and the island has one of the highest number of Chartered Directors in the British Isles. In this year we also worked on our values - and to show our commitment to them we put them up on the wall (pictured).
2015 - Simon Le Tocq was appointed Chief Executive in March this year. In making the next generation aware of what we can offer we attend the annual Higher Education Fairs and Careers Fairs. Many of the students attending the Fairs are considering studying off the island, but we can offer them continuing professional development should they decide to return. This picture shows one of our Programmes Managers speaking with young students.
2016 - This year has seen the continued development in the range of training and development we offer with the establishment of our Coaching Centre. Businesses and delegates are taking a much more individual and tailored approach to learning - and coaching is a tried and tested effective way of developing people. For a confidential discussion, contact us on [email protected]. This picture shows that studying with the GTA takes you places! As part of the MBA programmes, students spend a week in Maastricht, working with other international students and studying the working practices and culture of global businesses.