Shipley College

Shipley College Report following a monitoring visit to a ‘requires improvement’ provider

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Name of lead inspector: Karen Anderson, His Majesty’s Inspector

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Type of provider: General further education college

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Address:

Exhibition Road Victoria Road Saltaire Shipley West Yorkshire BD18 3JW Monitoring visit: Shipley College, 6 and 7 November 2024

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Context and focus of visit

Shipley College was inspected in October 2023. At that time, inspectors judged the overall effectiveness of the provision to require improvement.

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Context and focus of visit

The focus of this monitoring visit was to evaluate the progress that leaders and managers have made in resolving the main areas for improvement identified at the previous inspection.

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Significant progress

Leaders responded immediately to the feedback from the previous inspection and made rapid improvements to enhance their quality procedures. They now take swift and decisive actions to improve the quality and consistency of their provision, including the quality of teaching. Leaders have established a culture of reflection and learning, taking every opportunity to identify further ways to benefit their students and apprentices.

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Significant progress

Leaders have successfully introduced new and improved quality procedures. They have defined roles and responsibilities clearly within an updated quality cycle. They provide frequent training for the middle management curriculum team, many of whom are new to their role. Rigorous evaluations of the quality of teaching are carried out by a well-trained team early in the academic year. These lead to relevant and effective professional development for teachers, including working with advanced practitioners, to develop their craft of teaching.

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Significant progress

Leaders now have comprehensive oversight of all their provision. They have introduced greater depth of analysis and frequency of reporting through, for example, course and department clinics. They ensure that managers and governors have a thorough understanding of all aspects of their provision and use this information to make further improvements. Teachers and managers effectively use data and their knowledge about their students and apprentices, enabling them to take prompt actions to support them to improve.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders are successfully increasing the quantity and quality of work experience opportunities for students on study programmes. They ensure that placements are Monitoring visit: Shipley College, 6 and 7 November 2024 relevant, meaningful and closely aligned to students’ career aspirations. Leaders have appointed dedicated placement officers, who build positive relationships with employers, identifying appropriate placements and matching students to them.

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Reasonable progress

Placement officers plan for students to carry out work experience that corresponds well to their career goals. Students have many opportunities to discuss their aspirations with staff, including at induction, which placement officers use to find relevant placements. For example, students in level 3 art and design with an interest in fashion complete substantial work experience in businesses, such as jewellery stores, where they learn about aspects of the fashion business, including working with wholesalers.

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Reasonable progress

When placements are difficult to secure due to the nature of the sector, leaders put in place effective alternatives. For example, in creative media, students have carried out projects for employers in the space industry. These took place at the employers’ workplace, were set and assessed by employers and had real-world outcomes, including the production of high-quality videos, which were used by the local mayor’s trade mission to the United States of America.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders have improved the quality of careers advice and guidance for apprentices and adult students. They adapt their approach to meet the specific needs of students on different types of courses, such as evening classes and courses taught in the community. Leaders carefully monitor the implementation of the careers guidance that they provide to ensure that all adult students and apprentices benefit fully.

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Reasonable progress

The careers team provide face-to-face sessions for apprentices, which cover the wide range of possible career routes in their sector. The sessions help apprentices to identify what they could aspire to beyond their current role. As a result of these sessions, many teaching assistant apprentices now aspire to become higher-level teaching assistants or qualified teachers later in their career.

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Reasonable progress

Adult students have begun to benefit from face-to-face sessions with the college’s careers team. Staff in the team provide information which is relevant to the sectors in which students work and the range of careers available to students once they achieve their qualification. For example, students on courses for English for speakers of other languages know about the importance of improving their English skills for employment and how to apply for courses for their future careers in areas, such as beauty therapy and midwifery. Students attend job fairs and engage with the National Careers Service, through appointments arranged by college staff. Monitoring visit: Shipley College, 6 and 7 November 2024

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Significant progress

Leaders and managers have taken very effective action to ensure that students know how to identify and stay safe from the risks of radicalisation and extremism. Students and apprentices have a thorough understanding of these topics. They can describe fully and accurately what radicalisation is and how grooming often happens slowly over time. They understand what might make people vulnerable to radicalisation and the signs that may indicate that someone is being radicalised.

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Significant progress

Students and apprentices are taught very effectively about radicalisation and extremism. They develop a fundamental knowledge, which is then deepened through opportunities for frank discussions and exploration of ideas. This learning is reinforced by further teaching in sessions which are planned at frequent points in the curriculum.

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Significant progress

Leaders have established effective methods to evaluate whether students and apprentices understand radicalisation and extremism. These include speaking with nearly 200 students in this academic year to ascertain their understanding. Leaders have introduced frequent tutorial reviews in which staff evaluate students’ and apprentices’ understanding of radicalisation and extremism. Monitoring visit: Shipley College, 6 and 7 November 2024 regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for students 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

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Significant progress

children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Significant progress

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Significant progress

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Significant progress

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