Fashion

My interest in fashion came from it essentially being an art form. I'd been studying art since GCSE and had become a bit bored of it, I was looking for a new way to express my art and fashion became that.

I'm definitely happy I'm studying fashion instead of art - although it's still sort of the same, instead of a final piece you've got a garment.

My tutor, Fiona has a lot to give. She's trying to make us be all we can be. It was also through her and Lewisham College that I got involved with Fashion Awareness Direct - it's a charity that aims to bridge the gap between education and industry. They also run a course and competition for young designers like me - and I was lucky enough to make it into the finals.

The jacket that I made won me a two week work placement at River Island.

I'm really glad I came here now instead of going straight on to university. Now I know what I want to do - go on to university to study Fashion Design.

Anyone looking to come to Lewisham College should be willing to learn and come with good ideas. If you want to go on and pursue fashion seriously at university, I'd recommend Lewisham College. It's a great place to start.

All our students get the benefit of expert and specialist tutors and access to dedicated workrooms equipped to a high specification. We have current industrial machinery and work to manufacturing standards.

I graduated from St. Martin's School of Art with a First Class Honours Degree in Fashion & Textiles. I worked for a while in the fashion industry and I spent some time doing freelance work before teaching in the Textile Departments of two south London schools and now as a fashion lecturer at Lewisham College.

Since I've been teaching I have also been concentrating on exhibiting my textile work. I have exhibited with the British Council in Scandinavia & Australia. I regularly exhibit in this country and I've had exhibitions in San Francisco and New York. And as a member of the 62 Group of Textile Artists I've shown at the Victoria & Albert Museum.

I am however, first and foremost a designer / clothesmaker.

We have excellent facilities and resources in the Fashion Department at Lewisham College. The students work in a realistic working environment and they have wonderful opportunities to visit exhibitions, galleries and museums in London for inspiration.

We have a celebratory fashion show at the end of each year. Every student in the Department is encouraged to show their work - it's the highlight of the year for us. The students find the models, work with the students from the Beauty Department on the make-up, choose their music and choreograph the showing of their work on the catwalk.

Students who complete the BTEC National Diploma course like to move into Higher Education. There are many courses to choose from nowadays. Over the years many of our students have gone on to the London College of Fashion and other Universities and followed successfully, Degree courses in a range of fashion related subjects.

Every year we have an end of year fashion show to celebrate the achievements of all students in the department. We work closely with the charity Fashion Awareness Direct to help you establish contacts with potential employers through live industrial projects and competitions. This year we have students on work experience with River Island, Jenny Packham and The Royal Court Theatre.