Edinburgh College, Scottish Rugby Union, NHS Scotland and Queen Margaret University win prestigious partnership award
Edinburgh College has won a prestigious industry award for an innovative partnership with private and public sector partners, which aims to enhance the student experience and provide routes into employment.
The College won the Partnership Award at the Herald Higher Education Awards ceremony in Glasgow on Tuesday (28 May) for its Sports Rehabilitation Degree Programme, in partnership with Scottish Rugby Union (SRU), NHS Scotland and Queen Margaret University (QMU).
The recognition comes off the back of two years of hard work by the College’s Sport and Fitness team, who have endeavoured to create innovative new partnerships with local employers to enhance students’ learning experience and help them gain employment or move on to further study upon completion of their course.
The project provided the opportunity for year one and two students to work with the medical department at SRU to provide soft tissue massage support to the Men’s and Women’s National Rugby teams.
As a result, the students got the opportunity to work with both teams during their Autumn Internationals in 2022 and 2023 and Six Nations tournaments in 2023 and 2024, in addition to helping with the men’s Rugby World Cup in September 2023.
The College’s Sport and Fitness department also partnered with QMU, who accredited the third and fourth years of the programme, and developed placements with NHS Scotland, to ensure students studying on the third and fourth year of the BSc (Hons) Rehabilitation programme would also have the opportunity to further develop their practical skills while working as rehabilitators in the public health sector.
We are delighted to win this award. What started as an initial trial has grown immensely over the past two years for the benefit of so many of our students. This unique partnership has been transformational in the way our students learn their craft. By working under the guidance of sports and health professionals at the top of the game, they have been able to level up their skills and experience, enabling them to enhance their knowledge and skillset, and ultimately become more effective and confident sports therapists and rehabilitators. I would like to give a big thank you to our partners Scottish Rugby Union, NHS Scotland and Queen Margaret University for all their support in making this project the best it can be.Edinburgh College Sport and Fitness lecturer Del Williams
We’re thrilled to see this unique partnership given this well-deserved recognition at such a prestigious awards ceremony. Huge congratulations go to our Sport and Fitness team and all three of our amazing partners for all their hard work on this project, which will see students benefit for many years to come. Congratulations also to all of the other winners on the night!Edinburgh College Principal Audrey Cumberford