Look knock-out at knock-down prices. MAXINE GORDON checks into York College’s Hair And Beauty Spa for a spot of pampering.

DEEP heat floods my upper body and my only wish is: “Please can this go on for ever”. I’m having a hot stone massage which, as my therapist Kim Simpson explains, will reach the parts other types of massage cannot.

“It can release deep tension because the heat can penetrate the muscles. Also the pressure when using a stone is three times more than just using your hands,” she says.

She identifies a tight spot below my neck and between my shoulder blades – typical of anyone who sits hunched at a computer for hours on end.

Expertly she pounds away, first with her hands, then with the smooth, flat stones, sometimes using their edges for extra kneading. She taps the stones together, like a stonemason with a chisel, sending gentle shockwaves through the muscles.

After I get dressed, she recommends I come back, next time for a deep-tissue massage. She recommends a treatment once a fortnight to really loosen up the tightness in my neck and shoulders.

Ordinarily such a programme would be out of the question on sheer financial grounds. An hour’s massage in a high street salon or swanky hotel spa can cost upwards of £40.

But here at York College, prices are a fraction of that. A simple back massage costs £6, or £8 for a full-body one. Aromatherapy massage costs £10; the hot stone treatment is £18.

The reduced rates apply throughout the spa, which offers a full range of other beauty treatments such as waxing (from £3); electrolysis (£3); facials (from £12) and microdermabrasion (from £25), which is an exfoliating treatment ideal for people with skin problems.

There is a hairdressing salon (cut and blow dry from £7.50) and nail bar too (offering manicures and pedicures from £6.50).

So what’s the catch?

Well the therapists are all students, although all are trained before they are let loose on clients – and discreetly supervised by expert tutors.

Over to Jill Sissons, of York College. “They will take longer to do treatments – and the prices reflect that.”

What the students do need, however, are more clients.

Jill says: “It is essential the health and beauty students have clients to work on, not only so they can be assessed, but so they can build up a rapport with customers. We want to replicate industry as much as possible, where they can build a relationship with clients and practise their treatments.”

The college spa seeks to replicate the reality of a real-life beauty salon, from the central reception where clients book in to the beauty rooms and salons.

There are three beauty rooms – with 12 beds in each, including a hydraulic model which can be used for people with mobility problems. Each bay has its own curtains for privacy. The lighting is turned low and relaxing music fills the air. It’s not quite the intimacy of a private room in a mainstream salon, but it does afford you the chance to switch off from the world – and perhaps even nod off.

The nail bar – the first in the country for a college – is a bright room by contrast. Treatments on offer, besides manicures and pedicures, include luxury exfoliating hand or foot treatments and hot oil manicures as well as nail art and acrylic nails.

In the hair salon, there are 40 stations, where trainee stylists get the grips with everything from cutting and colouring to perming.

Students are encouraged to get jobs in industry alongside their training, which again helps them make the adjustment from classroom to salon, explains Jill.

Therapist Kim Simpson has done just that. Kim, 24, trained as a beauty therapist seven years ago at the former York College site. She now works at Aldwark Manor part time and has resumed her studies, this time undertaking a foundation degree at the college. She hopes to become a tutor in the beauty department.

Olivia Alexander, 18, is studying for a Level 3 NVQ. As she begins a pedicure, carefully filing my toe nails, cutting cuticles and buffing away rough skin, she tells me of her career dreams.

“I want to do a foundation degree in beauty therapy and spa management next year. Hopefully, I will be able to go into spa management or work with a big company.”

At weekends, Olivia works at the threading station and nail bar at Fenwick, York.

As she paints my nails, other students practise microdermabrasion on each other, or a spot of back massage – keen to hone their treatment skills at every chance.

As Olivia finishes painting my nails, she instructs me to sit tight for 20 minutes or so while they dry.

It’s the perfect way to finish off an afternoon of pampering that hasn’t cost the earth.

• A timetable and price list of treatments at the college is available from the spa reception by telephoning 01904 770254. Bookings are essential.