Setting

Aviation House 125 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE T 0300 123 1231 F 020 7421 6855 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Ms S Duncan Vice Principal City of Sunderland College Success Road Philadelphia Houghton le Spring DH4 4TL

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Ofsted 2010 11 best practice survey: safeguarding in colleges

Thank you for your hospitality and cooperation, and that of your staff, during my visit on 13 October 2010 to look at your provision for safeguarding students.

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Ofsted 2010 11 best practice survey: safeguarding in colleges

The visit provided valuable information which will contribute to our publication about best practice in safeguarding in colleges. The publication will include case studies about individual providers. If City of Sunderland College is included as a case study, you will have an opportunity to comment on the text prior to publication. Individual institutions will not be identified in the main text without their consent.

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Features of good practice

 Well-established and highly effective safeguarding arrangements to ensure learners’ safety and well-being which are implemented across a large general further education college based over five separate city-based college sites and which caters for a highly diverse community of learners.  High priority given to safeguarding of learners by all staff, reinforced by senior managers and governors with a relentless focus on supporting and safeguarding individual students well.  Comprehensive and thorough procedures for the selection and recruitment of staff and for undertaking and recording safeguarding checks on all the people who work at or are involved with the college.  Longstanding and strong links with numerous external welfare and support specialist agencies, including actively encouraging productive information sharing and developing ways of effective working.  A strong focus on health and safety education to promote safeguarding

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Features of good practice

and encourage students to take responsibility for their own and others’ safety.  Thorough and comprehensive bespoke staff training which takes place regularly for all staff and governors. Training materials are developed in- house and contextualised to the college’s setting and use college-based examples to ensure relevance and effectiveness.

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Features of good practice

I hope that these observations are useful as you continue to develop safeguarding provision in the college.

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Features of good practice

As explained previously, a copy of this letter will be published on the Ofsted website. It may be used to inform decisions about any future inspection.

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