The Sandwell Colleges are proud to announce they have been honoured with the highly prestigious King’s Award for Enterprise in recognition of their pioneering project on work experience for young people and their partnership with hydraPower dynamics.
The accolade celebrates the impressive impact of the Colleges’ ground-breaking collaboration with the global leader in hose and tube manufacturing solutions, and their jointly developed programme ‘Go Further’ which is transforming opportunities for young people and strengthening the region’s engineering talent pipeline.
Working together, they have co‑designed a programme of substantial industrial placements for T Level and Level 3 vocational students with access to facilities, machinery, and live projects, giving learners unparalleled exposure to modern engineering environments.
The Sandwell Colleges and hydraPower dynamics are two of the three organisations in the West Midlands, receiving awards for promoting opportunities through social mobility. Nationally, there are just 22 organisations selected for promoting opportunity.
The Lord-Lieutenant of the West Midlands, Mr Derrick Anderson CBE, said: “The awards for promoting opportunities through social mobility were a great credit to their organisations’ leadership and workforce. The King’s Award for Enterprise stands as one of the most respected and globally recognised marks of excellence. These three organisations are united by a shared determination to lead, to innovate and to excel. The assessment process they have experienced is rigorous and exacting – and it is this thoroughness that gives the King’s Award for Enterprise its international prestige helping recipients to open doors to new markets, partnerships and opportunities in the UK and across the world.”
The ‘Go Further’ award-winning initiative was developed and designed to tackle a long‑standing challenge: many young people in the local area, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds, struggled to transition from education into meaningful careers and lacked the confidence or opportunity to do so. Despite completing vocational qualifications, students often lacked the chance of real‑world experience required to secure roles in competitive sectors such as mechanical engineering.
Results have been transformative with more than 100 learners completing industry placements, and eight young engineers employed over the last eighteen months with six students progressing directly from placement to full‑time engineering roles at hydraPower dynamics. The Colleges work with a range of employers to give students opportunity to progress into good jobs or Higher Education, Higher Apprenticeships, or related STEM pathways.
CEO and Principal of The Sandwell Colleges, Lisa Capper MBE, said: “We are deeply honoured and immensely proud to receive the King’s Award for Enterprise. This award reflects the strength of our commitment to enabling young people to succeed and progress no matter what their background or starting point. Our ‘Go Further’ project with hydraPower dynamics has shown the power of partnership in preparing and getting young people into good jobs in industry, and reflects our shared passion for transforming opportunity for all young people from Sandwell and across the region. Together we are creating innovative pathways into industry, raising aspirations, and growing the pipeline of vital skills for the future and reinforces the impact that true collaboration can achieve. We are privileged to celebrate this award alongside the achievement of our learners and colleagues, and our partner hydraPower dynamics.”
The partnership programme, which has also previously received a regional Employer and Skills Recognition Award from Skills West Midlands and Warwickshire last year has become a model college-and-employer initiative, supporting students from diverse and disadvantaged backgrounds and helping to build a skilled, future‑ready workforce for the region.
The King’s Award for Enterprise recognises not only the success of the approach but also the shared vision behind it: to create meaningful, long‑term opportunities for young people and to support the growth of a skilled, diverse engineering workforce that reflects the local community.
hydraPower dynamics HR Business Partner Sonia Smalling said: “We are incredibly honoured to have been recognised with the King’s Award, one of the most prestigious accolades in UK business. This achievement reflects the dedication, innovation, and commitment of our entire team, as well as the strength of our partnership with The Sandwell Colleges over the last three years, which has been instrumental in supporting skills development, building a strong talent pipeline, and creating meaningful job opportunities for local learners. We remain truly committed to continuing this journey of collaboration, innovation, and sustainable growth with The Sandwell Colleges.”
