Students on the hair and beauty course at Ely College are worrying how they will complete their course work after having no full time qualified teachers since September.

Both the hairdressing and the beauty technician teachers left after the summer term last year and since then the college have relied on supply teachers.

The college has recently taken on a hairdresser for the BTEC diploma course but she is not qualified to teach or mark course work, a parent said.

The students have had no beauty teacher for five months and have only just started covering course work for that element of the work needed for their final grades this summer.

Mum Hayley Neighbour said: “The girls are worried about getting their grades. It is all course work based with no exam so if they do not get this done they will not get their qualification.

“My daughter wants to go into a career in hairdressing but how will that happen without her qualification? It is so unfair and feels like such a battle.

Mrs Neighbour has been in contact with the college vice principal since last year who assured her the problem would be resolved but they still do not have full time qualified teachers, she said.

“It feels like the girls have been left to their own devices.

“The last thing any of them want is to have to re-sit a year simply because their school has not provided the teachers needed to get them through.

“They are all capable of passing. I hate complaining it is not something I would normally do but this needs sorting and quickly for the sake of the future careers of these girls.”

Vice principal Martin Serrao said: “Since September 2015 the college has been working with Cambridge Regional College (CRC), the main providers for this course. “We have employed a member of staff to deliver the ‘hair side’ of the course this academic year, the member of staff has previously taught at CRC. “The beauty element of the course had not been previously covered in the first year of the course, our priority is to ensure the beauty element is completed satisfactorily and we are in the process of working with CRC to establish a timetable to complete the beauty element over the remaining academic year. “Representatives from CRC are overseeing the course and will be verifying the completed coursework.

“The new timetable for the beauty element will be finalised and issued to parents/carers in the remaining five weeks of the Spring Term.

“We would like to reassure parents/carers that we have done, and are doing, everything we can to ensure students can complete their course on time and with high quality provision.”