STUDENTS from Wiltshire College celebrated their achievements with a graduation ceremony held at Salisbury Cathedral on Friday.

The 192 students who attended the ceremony, watched on proudly by friends and relatives, had completed courses including Honours Degrees, HNDs, NVQs and Postgraduate Certificates in Education.

The event, which started with a formal procession through the city for staff, VIPs and graduands from City Hall, was followed by a welcome address from principal Amanda Burnside.

Speaking to a total of 700 guests, she said: “I am very honoured to be here and sharing the day with you in this impressive setting with just some of the 12,000 Wiltshire College students and representatives of the college’s 1,000 strong staff body including some of the higher education teaching staff on stage.

“We have more than 700 higher level students and the college’s range of higher education courses is impressive, increasingly reflecting employment led demand such as our degrees in early years and motorsport engineering for example.

“Several of our students have had notable achievements this year – we are proud of you all and wish you every success in your future careers.”

This year’s guests of honour included Navy Secretary, Rear Admiral Simon Williams, and Salisbury MP John Glen, who gave the keynote address.

In his speech, Mr Glen said: “Everyone here can be justly proud of their achievements: achievements that leave you well placed to embark on or build even more successful careers after your graduation.

“My message to you today is keep going and don’t lose sight of your goal. Don’t let setbacks and disappointments rob you of your dreams, but have the attitude that your successes will be all the more sweeter for having achieved them after battling through adversity.”

College students shared the ceremony alongside those from the Royal Navy who completed CMI management courses in challenging working environments on board ships or submarines.