Get to know...Ian Hookway, our Director of Human Resources & Communications

“At NSCG, I am ultimately responsible for all aspects of the recruitment, deployment and development of the 800 staff members who work for NSCG. I also oversee the College’s Marketing & Public Relations and Schools Liaison activities as well as the Gordon Banks Sports Centre team.

“I haven’t always worked in Further Education (FE), but my career has mainly included working in Human Resources. I joined the old Newcastle-under-Lyme College back in 1998 and at the time, I knew nothing about how FE colleges worked, but they all seemed like nice people at the interview and 22 years later, I’m still here.

“I haven’t always lived in North Staffordshire either. I was born and grew up on the North Devon Coast, in Ilfracombe, and I attended Ilfracombe Comprehensive School (as it was called in those days) where I also studied for my A Levels. Growing up in a tourist area, my first job was a Kitchen Porter during the summer holidays in a local restaurant. To this day, I can still fry chips and flip burgers with the best of them! After finishing my A Levels, I joined the University of Southampton to study Modern History & Politics. Living in Southampton really suited me as I got to experience city life whilst still being close to the coast.

“After finishing university, I moved around quite a bit with various roles and organisations as I was worked through the ranks in my Human Resources career. I ended up in North Staffordshire quite by accident in the 1990s and then never left!

“After over 20 years at the College, I still really enjoy the variety of my role. I still find that there are new challenges that come my way. Some of them – like dealing with complexities of running the College at a time of COVID-19 – aren’t always ones I might choose, but it certainly makes life interesting. I still also get a real sense of satisfaction from being part of an organisation that makes such a positive difference to so many people’s lives – even if I’m only the person pottering around in the background.

“Outside of work and in my spare time, after studying the subject at university, I’m still a history geek, so I like to buff-up on my knowledge as and when I can. I’m also into watching any kind of sport you can think of, except football or rugby league. Neither count as proper sports when you grow up in North Devon!”