Posted 23 July 2019

Kirklees College puts learning at the heart of all it does and makes it their mission to ensure all its students are given the chance to create opportunity and change their lives.

Whether that be through study, delivering work placement opportunities or enabling each student to reach and fulfil their potential through extra curriculum activities, support from outside organisations or simply being given guiding hand.

Every student has their own success story and a goal they want to achieve… this is Luke’s story.

From an early age former Kirklees College Public Services student Luke Raynor knew he wanted a career within the Police force and although the journey may have been somewhat challenging, he never let anything get in the way of his dreams.

Now a Police Community support officer based out of Dewsbury Police Station, Luke serves the communities of Saville Town, Thornhill Lees and the Thornhill area of Dewsbury providing reassurance, and ensuring people within these communities feel safe.

Luke was not naturally academic and found school hard due to his dyslexia. Despite these potential set-backs, he did not let this affect him and after finishing school, enrolled at Kirklees College. It was through the support of his Public Services tutors and the varied course structure that enabled him to fully understand and embrace the role of a police officer and set him on the path to move forward in his career choice.

After receiving a triple distinction, Luke enrolled on a Criminology course at the University of Huddersfield, attaining an impressive 2:1. After graduating Luke joined the West Yorkshire Police and is currently working towards becoming a police officer.

Luke said: “My time at Kirklees College enabled me to gain the foundation skills I needed to move forward with my career choice and it ultimately led to me enrolling at university. Without the support and commitment of the tutors and the attention and help they provided throughout the course, I might not be where I am today. I love my job and am looking forward to the exciting challenges it will bring in the future, as I work towards my goal to become a Police Officer.”

Matt Robinson, Curriculum Area Manager, said: “Luke was a very determined student who had a goal that he wanted to achieve and through sheer commitment and hard work is making amazing progress towards achieving this. It goes to show how someone who finds learning tough and isn’t stereotypically academic, can, with a supportive network and a drive to succeed, get to where he wants to be. We focus our learning towards the student and tailor our approaches to teaching based on the individual, and we’re extremely proud of how far Luke has come.”

 

Helen Rose, Director Of External Relations, Kirklees College