Brooklands College

Brooklands College Monitoring visit report

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Type of provider: General further education college

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Address:

Heath Road Weybridge Surrey KT13 8TT Monitoring visit: Brooklands College, 11 May 2018

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Context and focus of visit

Brooklands College is a large general further education college that serves the population of Surrey and the neighbouring county of Middlesex. The two main campuses are located close to the town centres in Weybridge and Ashford.

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Context and focus of visit

The proportion of pupils in Surrey schools attaining English and mathematics GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 or A* to C is above the South East and national averages. The proportion of residents qualified at all levels in Surrey is higher than the regional and national averages.

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Context and focus of visit

The college provides full-time and part-time education and training across a wide range of subjects and course levels. The college has around 1,500 learners aged 16 to 19 years on study programmes, 1,600 apprentices, 875 adult learners and 90 learners attracting high-needs funding. The vast majority of students attend the Weybridge campus.

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Context and focus of visit

Two of Her Majesty’s Inspectors completed the visit in one day. They focused on the ways that college leaders and managers meet their responsibilities under the ‘Prevent’ duty legislation and safeguard learners from radicalisation and extremism.

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Reasonable progress

Senior leaders and managers improved safeguarding procedures at the start of this academic year. As a result, staff know whom they should contact to report safeguarding concerns. Senior managers have expanded their team of safeguarding officers to ensure that all staff can easily contact them should an incident occur. Staff and governors received effective refresher training this year about ‘Prevent’ duties. They now know how to protect learners from radicalisation and extremism. Most staff understand the topics well and are able to advise students clearly. However, a few staff are unable to recall this training sufficiently well and are not clear about the content and how it applies to their roles. Safeguarding officers and progression tutors complete additional training including about sexting, logging and recording safeguarding concerns and child protection. Leaders and those responsible for safeguarding have developed close and valued

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Reasonable progress

working relationships with local authority safeguarding leads and the regional ‘Prevent’ coordinator. Materials used for staff and student training and tutorials are current but do not always reflect topical or regional events. For example, materials do not deal with Monitoring visit: Brooklands College, 11 May 2018 female genital mutilation and forced marriages. Additional training for staff has been scheduled with the regional ‘Prevent’ coordinator for the end of this academic year to make sure they understand and recognise the differences between religious and right-wing extremism. College managers have implemented a robust and effective risk assessment process that they use with their ‘high-risk’, unaccompanied asylum-seeker learners who are aged 16 to 21.

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Reasonable progress

Learners value the warm and welcoming environment at the college, where they feel safe. Learners benefit from the effective use of a wide range of interesting safeguarding training activities during their induction and first term in the college. These develop their understanding of how to protect themselves and others from radicalisation and extremism. Most students and apprentices know how and to whom they would report any concerns. Posters and visual displays around the college remind learners where to go and what to do if they have any safeguarding worries. However, not enough students and apprentices have a clear and well-developed understanding of how the ‘Prevent’ duty applies to their everyday lives. Staff do not reinforce these topics sufficiently well to make sure that students and apprentices develop their knowledge and appreciate how it applies to living and working in their local community.

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Reasonable progress

Apprentices, subcontractors and employers have differing levels of knowledge about the ‘Prevent’ duty. One subcontractor covers ‘Prevent’ at induction, and then tests apprentices’ knowledge through an online learning module after 6 months. Another subcontractor uses ‘Prevent’ learning booklets provided by college staff. These enable the testing of apprentices’ learning but not the checking of their knowledge. Assessors ask apprentices questions about safeguarding and ‘Prevent’ at frequent review meetings, but there is little evidence of a consistent approach to this. Apprentices questioned have little understanding of how the ‘Prevent’ duty applies to their lives and work.

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Reasonable progress

All learners complete mandatory induction and tutorial sessions that include information about the dangers that they may face online. As a result, most students and apprentices give examples of what to avoid and know how to stay safe online. The large majority of students questioned recalled having covered this topic and could talk about using password protection and not sharing personal information. Apprentices questioned could give examples of how they used online safety as part of their everyday work. Second and third year learners do not have sufficient update Monitoring visit: Brooklands College, 11 May 2018 training. Those questioned during the visit could not recall clearly information given to them in their first year. Managers have installed a new information technology safety system that enables staff to monitor internet use well. Managers chose this system because it is sensitive to the ‘Prevent’ agenda.

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Reasonable progress

Monitoring visit: Brooklands College, 11 May 2018 the guidance ‘Raising concerns and making a complaint about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . Learner View Learner View is a website where learners can tell Ofsted what they think about their college or provider. They can also see what other learners think about them too. To find out more go to www.learnerview.ofsted.gov.uk .

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Reasonable progress

Employer View Employer View is a website where employers can tell Ofsted what they think about their employees’ college or provider. They can also see what other employers think about them too. To find out more go to www.employerview.ofsted.gov.uk .

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Reasonable progress

regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to

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Reasonable progress

the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Reasonable progress

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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Reasonable progress

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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