Milton Keynes College gets into the festive spirit

Throughout December, a series of festive events have taken place across MK College’s two campuses in Milton Keynes and Bletchley. From charity appeals to Christmas choirs – take a look at what we’ve been up to!

The Brasserie’s festive menu

Over at Bletchley campus, the festive spirit was in full swing at the Brasserie. Throughout December, the Brasserie has been serving its festive menu to a wide range of guests, including ELT members, exam invigilators, parents of students, as well as loyal customers from the neighborhood.

The three-course menu, created by Level 2 and 3 Professional Cookery and Hospitality students in collaboration with the Chef, was cooked and served by the students. It includes two different options for mains and desserts, with a vegan main available.

Corina Nina, Front of House Assessor at the Brasserie, said: “It’s lovely to see the students gain valuable experience with the festive menu this season. It’s wonderful to see the Brasserie flourishing again, and I’d like to thank everyone for their support – whether they’ve sat down for an afternoon tea, indulged in the festive menu, or just popped in for a quick coffee.”

Performing Arts students’ festive plays

Based on the short story “Lamb to the Slaughter” from Roald Dahl, our performing art students have added a festive twist to a devilish murder story where Mary Malony seeks revenge against her husband Patrick in a Christmas story that is “to die for”. Expect a cheeky Greek chorus, movement of madness, a visit from the angel of death and a murderous turkey.

Colin Bloxham, Course Team Leader for Performing Arts, says: “This piece has been collaboratively written by the students who have done an excellent job at piecing together the story. Our set is a Christmas bombshell with an attempt to dazzle and slightly overwhelm our audience.”

There are two groups of students performing the same story: creative changes and interpretation have been mixed up to provide unique and fresh twists to each performance.

Student Christmas design competition

A few weeks ago, we received our annual MK College Group-branded chocolate bars, featuring this year’s design created by Melody, a Level 3 Graphic Design student at the College. The marketing team reviewed a variety of submissions and were impressed by the high quality of the entries. The winning design depicts a Nutcracker, a classic festive symbol, set against a vibrant red background.

Melody shared her thoughts on the process of creating her Nutcracker design: ‘My favourite part about creating this design was the creative freedom and how fun it was, and just seeing my design come to life.’

The chocolate bars will be sent out to a range of partners that the College Group works with as a festive ‘thank you’ over the Christmas period.

MK Foodbank’s Christmas appeal

This month, the College took part in MK Food Bank’s Reverse Advent Appeal to support their crucial work in addressing the growing issue of food insecurity in Milton Keynes. We collected food items for the Food Bank and received a lot of donations from a number of staff teams across the College, including Marketing & Communications, Reception and People Services.

Rebecca Myrie, Head of Community Engagement at the College, said: “With a staggering 44% increase in food bank usage this year compared to 2023, getting involved is more crucial than ever. This initiative not only helps the most vulnerable families in our community but also demonstrates our value of Belonging in action.”

Louisa Hobbs, Operations Manager at MK Food Bank, said: “We are so grateful that MK College has once again chosen to support MK Food Bank this Christmas. The Reverse Advent donation delivered by the Inclusive Learning team was not only very generous, but also beautifully presented. The donations will support many individuals and families this year, both in the form of Christmassy food parcels and hampers.”

”This very welcome support comes at the end of a year from close partnership – from picking, packing and splitting at College on the Community Day to taking part in the Logo challenge and the sterling efforts of Public Services students at our MK Can Quest. Our very grateful thanks and a merry Christmas to you all!”

Christmas Jumper Day

The College took part in Save the Children’s Christmas Jumper Day on Thursday 12 December. In the countrywide campaign, the Christmas Jumper Day has raised over £30 million for children in the UK and around the world since 2012. Both fun and meaningful, the campaign contributes to Save the Children’s mission to help children facing serious issues such as war, hunger, and poverty.

Ben Dawson, Lecturer for Digital at MK College, said: “It’s that time of year again – time to dig out our most festive (and possibly cringeworthy) knitted jumpers and take part in Christmas Jumper Day! Not just to have some fun and holiday cheer, but also to raise money for those who need it most this season. There are many who don’t have a warm meal, a roof over their head, or even loved ones to share what is, for many, a joyful time of year. Please do what you can by donating through the link, or text MKC to 70050 to give £5.”

You’re not too late – the appeal is still open! Follow the link to donate: Christmas Jumper Day MK College is raising money for Save The Children!

To find out more about MK College’s work in the community, visit https://mkcollege.ac.uk/community/