National Esports Performance Campus Trip
Recently, some of our esports students and staff enjoyed a two-day skills bootcamp in partnership with the British Esports Federation at their National Esports Performance Campus.
Going head-to-head with Sunderland College’s team, our students put on a spectacular performance and walked away with the top spot. Congratulations to the team on their well-deserved victory!
What is the National Esports Performance Campus?
More than just a venue for playing games, the NEPC is a dynamic, cutting-edge ecosystem designed to foster the entire UK esports industry. It is a large investment comprising multiple zones, including:
The Place: A hub featuring modern classrooms, high-tech performance and training rooms, and innovation suites.
Gaming Houses: Luxurious on-site residential accommodation where teams can hold intensive, focused bootcamps to train and strategize
The Arena: A versatile esports and entertainment complex equipped with 5G connectivity, a dedicated esports stage, broadcasting facilities, and seating for spectators to host major live tournaments
The NEPC is nurturing the next generation of British talent and is at the forefront of this booming global esports industry.
Below is what our staff and students had to say about the two-day boot camp experience!
Quote from Lee Bowes, Esports tutor
‘We felt quite privileged that we had been asked to go up to the Performance Centre again with some of our learners. We went up earlier in the summer as guests of the British Esports Federation. So, whilst we were up there in the summer, we decided it was too good of an opportunity for our students to miss. It was important for us to get a cohesive college Esports team up there so they could bond, improve their performance in the boot camp, get to know each other, spend quality time together in a quality environment, and that’s exactly what occurred. We were seeing behaviours there that we wouldn’t have seen in college, looking out for each other, caring for one another, just really bonding in terms of working together as a team.
In terms of the environment, BEF provided us with a fantastic place to socialise and to do all the things we couldn’t do in our college environment. To actually see the growth of all our students, from their starting point to now, was amazing. So just in the space of two days, we saw learners develop knowledge, skills and behaviours that will set them up for life. Friendships and bonds were formed that I can see working for a long time.
Once again, I want to extend my gratitude to the BEF and the staff at the Performance Campus made us feel really welcome. The time spent with Sunderland College was also valuable because the young people realised that even though these learners were from Sunderland, their backgrounds, interests and motivations were pretty much identical.
To finish on a good note, Sunderland are going to come down to visit our college! When we showed them our campus online, they were blown away by it! All in all, a highly successful two days, and we are taking up another team in March, who hopefully will have a similar experience.‘
Luke, Esports Student
I have also spoken to some of the students who went on this bootcamp, and this is what a student had to say about the experience:
‘I felt that the NEPC campus was really good and I was impressed by how clean everything was. It stood out because it was decorated with memorabilia and had many different decorations around the outside of the building. This was very different from the college environment because it felt a lot more personal. The staff were also really helpful, and you could ask them questions about the area, and they had discounts on places around Sunderland City Centre. As well as that, I felt a certain scene of freedom when I was there, it was very different to college.
The main skill I learned from the whole experience was to be more independent outside of college, but also in a classroom environment. The main transferable skill I learned was teamwork, which was really important to me and the team in general, because with good teamwork, we can win the competition we are a part of. Overall, it was a great experience to learn these transferable skills.
It has further inspired me to want to become a lecturer in a college environment because I personally want to help people achieve their goals. This experience was a very good opportunity to learn about teamwork and how other people operate.’
Huge thanks to the British Esports Federation for inviting us to participate in this bootcamp! It was an incredible opportunity for both our learners and staff to develop their skills and gain industry insight.