Author Archives: Spiderman

Manchester University supports Educate North Awards

The Masood Enterprise Centre (MEC) at The University of Manchester has become the first higher education institution to join up as a patron of the Educate North Awards, which take place in April 2020.

Hosted by Carm Productions, the event takes place on 23 April 2020 at Manchester’s Hilton Deansgate.

For more details, visit the Prolific North website.

Educate North Awards – winners announced

The North West’s education sector was celebrated at the Educate North Awards, held in Manchester on 25 April. Over 400 people witnessed a total of 23 awards handed out to competing education organisations and individuals. University of the Year went to the University of Newcastle.

Dr John Kennedy CBE was patron of the Educate North Awards and sponsor of the pre-dinner reception.

For the full story, see the Prolific North news page.

Radio partners announced for 2019 Educate North Awards

Radio stations Smooth North East, Smooth North West and Heart Yorkshire have all returned as official partners of the 2019 Educate North Awards.

The Awards will be sponsored by the Communicorp Ltd owned companies for the second year running and will highlight the best achievements of Universities throughout the region.

“Radio is a fabulous medium for Educate North,” said Dr John Kennedy CBE, Patron of the Awards. “The awards represent a tremendous opportunity to showcase the North in the middle of uncertain times.”

For more details, visit the Prolific North news story here.

Educate North Awards returns for 2019

The Educate North Awards – the leading event for the University and Higher Education sector – returns on Thursday 25th April 2019, at The Hilton Hotel in Manchester.

The awards celebrate excellence and the world-class success of the North’s University and Higher Education sector as well as rewarding success in Further and Sixth Form Education.

Launched in 2014 by John and broadcaster and producer Rob McLoughlin OBE, the Awards have gone from strength to strength.

For more information, visit the Prolific North news story.

Bertie Ahern to deliver 11th John Kennedy Lecture

Bertie Ahern, the former Irish prime minister, will deliver the 11th John Kennedy Lecture in Liverpool on 22 November, 2018.

Bertie Ahern retired as Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) in May 2008 having enjoyed the unique distinction in modern Irish politics of being the first person in over sixty years to have been elected to that office on three successive occasions.

He served as a member of Dáil Éireann (the Irish Parliament) for almost 35 years. He was first elected to the Dáil in 1977 for the constituency of Dublin-Finglas and he represented Dublin Central from 1981 until 2011.

He was Minister for Labour from March 1987 to November 1991 and was appointed Minister for Finance on three separate occasions from November 1991 to December 1994. During this time he was one of the Irish representatives to sign the Maastricht Treaty, having been heavily involved in its negotiations. Bertie Ahern was first elected Taoiseach in June 1997, he was re-elected in June 2002 and again in May 2007. In 1997 his party was elected to government in coalition with the Progressive Democrats. This minority administration was supported by a small number of Independent members of Parliament. Bertie Ahern received widespread praise for his political skills in ensuring that this administration served its full five year term and delivered on real political and economic progress for the Irish people.

On the wider world stage during his Presidency of the European Council from January 2004 to June 2004 Bertie Ahern presided over the historic enlargement of the European Union to 27 member states including eight countries from Eastern Europe. He led Ireland to take leadership roles on key global issues such as increasing aid to developing countries and tackling the spread of HIV AIDS.

Bertie Ahern’s achievements as a leader at home and abroad have been recognised internationally. He has been conferred with honorary degrees by several universities and is one of only five people to enjoy the great distinction of having been invited to address both the Houses of Parliament at Westminster and the Houses of Congress of the United States in Washington D.C.

The defining moment of this period and a defining moment in Irish history was the successful negotiation by Bertie Ahern and Tony Blair of the Good Friday Agreement between the British and Irish Governments and the political parties in Northern Ireland in April 1998.

The Good Friday Agreement transformed relations for the better between Ireland and Britain, between Ireland, North and South, and between different traditions within Northern Ireland. It instilled a new ethos of tolerance and respect into politics on the island of Ireland and between diplomatic relationship between the islands of Ireland and Britain.

Educate North Awards 2018

Hundreds of academics, students, executives and business people from across the North and the UK celebrated the region’s thriving education sector at the Educate North Awards on 26 April.

The Radisson Blu Edwardian Hotel proved a suitably splendid setting for a night that championed success and brought together leading vice-chancellors, principals from the FE and Sixth Form sectors as well as some of the most talented staff in the North’s higher and further education institutions.

Delivered in association with RM Productions, Don’t Panic Events and Prolific North, a total of 17 categories were awarded, culminating in the prestigious University of the Year title which this year went to Newcastle University.

The Lifetime Achievement award, meanwhile, was awarded to Jim Keaton MBE of Liverpool Hope University. A full list of winners can be found below.

Entries had been up almost 40% this year following a major radio campaign with partners Smooth Radio North West, Smooth North East and Heart Yorkshire following a tie-up with parent company Communicorp UK and The Ministry of Results.

You can read more about the event and see photos of the winners on the Prolific North website here.