King’s Ely was strongly represented in this year’s Young Fashion Designer UK Awards!

Ofelia Keenan, who is in Year 10 at King’s Ely Senior, attended the Finals of the national competition, held at Kent College Pembury in Tunbridge Wells on October 8th, as did JohnOswald Crichton and Richard Brown, who both left King’s this summer having completed their A-Levels.

The Young Fashion Designer UK contest was launched in 2010 by the former Head of Textiles at Kent College Pembury, Karen Wintle. The need was recognised for GCSE, BTEC and A-Level Fashion and Textiles students to have their work recognised and judged by industry professionals in an annual national competition.

More than 400 students from Years 7-13 entered this year’s competition. In July, we received the news that Ofelia, who was in Year 9 at the time, had won 1st Place in the Year 9 and Year 10 Category of the competition. King’s students, Iris Warriner, Benjamin Alderton, Zion Noble, Rose Tisi, Gracie Holmes, George Long and Matthew Chippington, were all Highly Commended in the same category.

We later discovered that JohnOswald, who is now studying Fashion Design Innovation at the University of Leeds, and Richard, who is now studying an Art Foundation Course in Cambridge, both achieved Highly Commended in the Year 13 element of the competition. Only seven students were shortlisted for the Finals in this category.

As a result, Ophelia, JohnOswald and Richard attended the Finals on October 8th – what an achievement!

Speaking before the Finals, JohnOswald said: “I am elated to have made the Finals for this year’s Young Fashion Designer UK competition. I am particularly excited to see the work of the other students as I am sure their work will be really inspiring. I always enjoy events such as these and feel very proud to represent King’s Ely’s strong Textiles Department.”

From October 6th-9th, a stunning variety of projects completed by our GCSE and A-Level Fashion and Textile Design students were also on display at the Knitting & Stitching Shows at London’s Alexandra Palace.

This exhibition not only showcased King’s and our students’ talents to more than 20,000 people over the four days, but it also enabled lots of new connections to be made. In the forthcoming weeks, we hope to have Textiles Designers, Alysn Midgelow-Marsden and Marian Jazmik, coming into school to share their expertise with our A-Level students!

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