By James Bonthron
Found at the top of Broadstairs is the town’s most established college, having opened in 1970. Now, it’s modernising what it delivers.
Leading the charge is Angharad Sanders, the first female principal in Hilderstone College’s history.
Having started there as a teacher, she then took on the role of teenage course coordinator. For the last four weeks, she’s been in charge.
Angharad has had a long history of working in education, having started 25 years ago teaching business English abroad to adults. She then pivoted to teens, teaching them at Kingsgate College. Her next job was being the director of studies in Canterbury. Teaching at a place like Hilderstone made sense as the next career move. On top of this experience, she has a master’s degree in educational leadership.
Considering why she was first hired to work at Hilderstone, she said: “I was brought in here because of my experience teaching teen groups.”
So, what does a principal spend their time doing?
Angharad said: “It’s a lot of working with people. I’m liaising closely with our head of marketing to devote more time into it, as well as building relationships with educational partners.”
As Winter is the low season, paperwork is the priority. All the behind-the-scenes work is done and planned for, such as booking courses and arranging accommodation for students via host families. Students come from around the globe, from Europe to Ecuador. Despite the time of year, the town is still attractive to those abroad.
Angharad said: “We always tell the students in Winter that they have the town to themselves!”
Once the students are there, they focus on skills, including speaking and grammar, with the delivery of lessons changing. With technology aiding the process, teachers are constantly updating how teaching is delivered to ensure they get the best experience possible.
Aside from direct action to gain more students, Angharad would like more governmental support for language schools. Being more supplementary education, such centres can get overlooked. Language schools like Hilderstone are outside the state system, so aren’t always supported by grants or aid schemes.
What changes will the new leadership bring?
One of the big ones is streamlining operations, including a smaller staff.
Angharad said: “Before, where we may have had two people, we have one. We’ve always been a strong team, but a lot of the new team have relished the opportunity to have greater freedom to get on with what they want.
“In some places, there’s a divide between academic and administrative staff. As a smaller team, there’s more communication.”
There are now four main staff members. In effect, some staff members have received a promotion as a result of the restructuring.
More focus on marketing and increasing student numbers are also included in the new vision: “We will continue the positive image that is Hilderstone, through fostering international friendship and keep delivering the high quality lessons that we’re known for.”
The restructuring has also affected the gender ratio outside of just the principle, with most current staff being women.
Angharad said: “There is a strong history of influential women here at Hilderstone, I just happen to be the first principal.”
The Head of Accommodation and Welfare, Rianna, is pleased with how it’s going.
She said: “We’re making the transition to more and more students and I think Angharad will be able to support growth fantastically. As a young woman working here, it’s nice to see [a mostly female staff]. There’s a lot of girl power here!”
A large part of the Hilderstone experience is accommodating students. Using local host families, the college can ensure the stay is as comfortable as possible.
Part of the deal is choice. A family can choose to host teens or single adults. The advantage of hosting adults is that they can blend more seamlessly into family life as both sides have more freedom.
Rianna said: “Working here, it’s so nice to see what local families are like. Hosting adults means you can recommend things, and a lot of them are university students abroad or workers, meaning it’s easier to create friendships.”
More information about the college can be found here: www.hilderstonecollege.com. To find out more information about hosting by emailing [email protected].
One of the reasons I moved from Broadstairs was because of foreign students! They move around the town mob handed, blocking the pavements, so locals are forced to walk in the road! They block take away cafes in the road, as well, they do not have any consideration for the elderly. One time two groups thought it was fun to throw a football across the high street, between traffic. I caught the ball as it bounced off NatWest, and as I was going in there anyway, took the ball with me! None of the students followed me, so I kept the ball, after first puncturing it, and throwing it away! These students may bring money to guest houses, but they are a PUBLIC NUISANCE!
There will always be individuals with narrow and negative views, unfortunately. However, language schools in Broadstairs have existed for decades, helping to put the town on the map globally. Beautiful stories emerge here, lifelong friendships between local families and students, and bonds formed between students from different parts of the world in this charming small town. Students bring immense positivity to Broadstairs, while also boosting the local economy, supporting local shops, providing income for host families, and creating employment opportunities. Broadstairs is a vibrant, joyful town that attracts tourists from across England and around the world, and we can be rightly proud of it.
So you don’t live in Broadstairs then Joy?
I do and have been for the past 10 years :)
I moved out to Ramsgate, which is pedestrianised, 13 years ago, and much happier walking in town! I did hold discussions with some language schools, but they couldn’t have cared less about problem mob handed students creating dangerous chaos in Broadstairs!