The college breaking down barriers to motorsport

Motorsport is a notoriously difficult and expensive industry to break into, especially for aspiring drivers who require vast amounts of money to compete the further up the ladder they climb. Even becoming an engineer or a mechanic can prove a tricky path to follow, with a limited number of opportunities, and those chances are further limited by socio-economic factors. But Burnley College is aiming to change that.

Despite being located in the 11th most deprived area in England in 2019, it was named as the country’s highest achieving college the following year. At the heart of that success is a burgeoning Esports department, which has recently acquired two Formula 1 simulator rigs paid for by Burnley Football Club.

Students can now compete in online leagues against other schools and colleges using equipment that would otherwise be unaffordable. This writer visited the impressive set-up, touring two fully kitted out computer rooms and meeting students to hear about the difference it has made to their lives, now and in terms of increasing their career opportunities.

Many students have been inspired to take up sim racing, and the college hopes to give all its students the best possible chance of getting into careers in motorsport, regardless of the challenges they may face. The equipment is not only available to Esports students, either – young people studying any course are able to join thrice-weekly practice sessions.

The college competed in a pilot league, run by the Williams F1 team, as a test for an upcoming national student sim league alongside nine other colleges, including one of the UK’s most prestigious boarding schools. Esports course leader Andrew Chapman says the rigs allow students to “bridge that gap” between themselves and those from higher-income backgrounds.

“Our students then have a connection to those students from a completely different walk of life,” explains Chapman. “But they all have this one big thing in common, which is that on Wednesday evenings they sit down and play against each other, and it removes that barrier for access.”

Burnley College provides opportunities for youngsters to access top simulation equipment funded by Burnley FC

Photo by: Clive Lawrence

Chapman, a former student of the college and an avid sim racer himself, praises the sims for their ability to break down barriers between students, adding: “It gives people the opportunity to sim race without having to spend lots on equipment. You can get sim racing gear now relatively cheap, but that’s relatively cheap for two adults. For us, we could go out and buy a sim wheel because we have full-time jobs. We’re adults, but for a 16-year-old, how are they going to afford a sim wheel?”

The Esports courses are booming. They started with 16 pupils in year one, and there are now 110 students across three levels of qualification. The course encompasses more areas than just gaming, with young people learning about events management, marketing, business and more.

Jac Cowie, who drives for the college team and is a second-year Level 3 Esports student, praises the opportunities it has given him. He began with a plastering course, but he ditched his trowels for a steering wheel and signed up to study Esports in his second year. Kitted out in the college’s Esports kit – also gifted to students by Burnley FC – Cowie is clearly passionate about the course, and had no idea that his enthusiasm for playing F1 games on his Xbox at home would lead him to opportunities in education and beyond.

"It’s definitely given me opportunities that I wouldn’t have had otherwise. If you’d have said to me three years ago what I’d be doing, I’d have said no way" Jac Cowie

“I was surprised to hear that they have this [sim] and how much money they put into it, which is a lot,” he says. “I didn’t know Burnley College was the number one college in the country until a few years ago. I was surprised that it’s Burnley of all places – I’ve grown up here and this is actually a good place. It’s definitely given me opportunities that I wouldn’t have had otherwise. If you’d have said to me three years ago what I’d be doing, I’d have said no way.”

It’s clear from speaking to Cowie and fellow driver Ethan Willis what a difference the programme has made, and their passion for both Esports and the college shines through. Dave Easton, programme leader for games, Esports and media, says the course is a “win-win” for students.

“You can’t be what you can’t see, can you?” he says. “So if they’re seeing people playing online, competing in a Formula 1 official league, there’s just a link. How many students would have had that opportunity years ago? None. It’s that stepping stone. When we spoke to Williams, they were saying there aren’t that many spaces to be a driver, but having the cockpit here opens that door.”

Easton and Chapman have big plans for the department, hoping to become the “leading northern powerhouse”. Whatever happens, the students of Burnley College will have benefited hugely from an opportunity they almost certainly wouldn’t have had otherwise.