Two former City of Westminster College students were among 100 young people honoured at a Helena Kennedy Foundation awards ceremony held at the House of Lords recently.

The event, which was sponsored by awarding body OCR, recognises students from disadvantaged backgrounds who have progressed onto Higher Education courses by awarding them a £1,500 bursary to assist with their study and living costs and providing ongoing training, mentoring and guidance.

The City of Westminster College students who received awards were former Access to Higher Education in Business student Siobhan Aziz, now studying Marketing Communications at University of Westminster, and Bruna Carinhas, who has progressed from a BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma in Health & Social Care to a Health & Biosciences extended degree at University of East London (UEL).

Bruna, 21, from Westminster lived in Portugal and Angola until the age of nine and her interest in studying health began when she acted as a carer for her grandmother. She studied Health & Social Care for four years at City of Westminster College and her ambition is to work in nursing or paediatric medicine. She says: “The award is really valuable in assisting with university expenses such as books. What’s also great is that the Helena Kennedy Foundation provides ongoing support and a network to assist with my studies and future career. The ceremony at the House of Lords was exciting – and it made me feel very special.”

Baroness Helena Kennedy QC, President of the Foundation and host of the awards ceremony, says: “Each student who receives an award has been selected because they are special and have shown real talent and determination.”

Director of Customers, Curriculum and Qualifications at OCR Clara Kenyon, adds: “OCR supports the Foundation in its mission to enable pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds to overcome many hurdles. The mentoring, training and support it provides within Further Education is, I believe, as important as the funding in helping young people gain access to Higher Education.”