A mother-of-four who returned to higher education at Glyndwr University has helped design part of prestigious project redeveloping the sea front in her home town.

Nichola Hilton studied for a BSc (Hons) in Architectural Design Technology at the Wrexham site fourteen years after leaving school.

During her second year she completed an assignment for Conwy Country Borough Council which saw her design proposals used to build a unit that formed part of the Colwyn Bay Waterfront Project.

Nichola, who now works for a construction company in nearby Llandudno Junction, said returning to university was time well spent.

"As a single mum of four, I was unsure if I would manage the pressure and work commitment, but choosing to go back to studying as a mature student has been one of the best decisions I have made - it has been life changing for me and my family," she said.

She added: “Throughout our degree, we were taught to treat each assignment as a ‘live project’ with client meetings, masterplans and presentations. That meant that when the opportunity came to work on a real ‘live project’ with the council arose, all the practice and experience came in to practice. It was my most enjoyable assignment at university – as it was not only a chance to work with professionals in the industry, but also to be working on a project in my home town.

“Now my design is a real building that I drive past it is brilliant."

Nichola, who lives in Colwyn Bay, was nominated for a major industry accolade in the Construction Excellence in Wales awards and now works as an assistant architectural technician for Beech Developments.

She added: “Everything I studied at Glyndwr I have transferred to my job here at Beech. Each module gave me new knowledge and skills that I use everyday.”

Senior lecturer in the Built Environment Dr Colin Stuhlfelder, said: “Treating projects as live helps equip students with the skills they will need in their chosen career – and it certainly worked in Nichola’s case."