KITE College

Name of lead inspector: Roland White, His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection dates: 22 and 23 January 2025

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Type of provider: Independent specialist college

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Address: Unit 1 Eurolink Business Park Bonham Drive Sittingbourne Kent ME10 3RY Monitoring visit: KITE College, 22 and 23 January 2025

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Context and focus of visit

Ofsted undertakes to carry out monitoring visits to independent specialist colleges newly funded by the Education and Skills Funding Agency. This monitoring visit was undertaken as part of those arrangements and as outlined in the ‘Further education and skills inspection handbook’, especially the sections entitled ‘Monitoring visits’ and ‘Monitoring visits to providers that are newly directly publicly funded’. The focus of these visits is on the themes set out below.

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Context and focus of visit

KITE College is in Sittingbourne, Kent. It opened in September 2021. At the time of the visit there were 106 learners enrolled on programmes from entry level 3 to level 2. Learners study employability and vocational pathways leading to qualifications in areas such as motor vehicle, construction and hair and beauty. Learners have a range of special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) including social, emotional and mental health needs, autism and speech, language and communication needs. All learners have an education, health and care (EHC) plan and are in receipt of high needs funding.

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Reasonable progress

Trustees, leaders and staff have created learning programmes that help learners with a range of SEND to acquire essential employability and life skills successfully. They have closely aligned vocational programmes to learners’ ability and aspirations and that reflect local skills needs. Leaders have created an appropriate personal development curriculum that prepares learners for life after college and adulthood well. This helps learners understand the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle and safe, respectful relationships.

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Reasonable progress

Staff work closely with external partners, such as community organisations and businesses, to enable learners to learn about the world of work and apply their emerging skills in real-life situations. Learners participate in work experience placements, deliver services such as catering and maintenance in community venues and visit business organisations. This helps learners apply and value the knowledge, skills and behaviours they acquire at college.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders use high needs funding carefully to help learners overcome barriers to their learning successfully. They provide specialist therapies that are integrated into learning programmes seamlessly. Speech and language therapists, occupational Monitoring visit: KITE College, 22 and 23 January 2025 therapists and counselling staff provide support that helps learners gain valuable communication and self-advocacy skills and become more confident.

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Reasonable progress

Staff regularly talk to learners about what they have learned. This ensures that most learners know what they are good at and where they need to improve. Leaders have recently introduced processes to enable them to track learners’ progress more closely. Leaders rightly recognise that these systems are not yet applied across the curriculum consistently. This limits opportunities to recognise learners’ success and identify where they may need additional help easily.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders know the strengths of the provision and address weaknesses swiftly and effectively. They use data, such as learners’ achievement of qualifications and their next steps after college, to inform their actions sensibly. The board of trustees use their extensive expertise to support and challenge leaders very effectively.

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Reasonable progress

Teachers and learning support staff work together skilfully to enable learners to overcome challenges they face and participate in learning fully. They create calm, purposeful environments focused on learning. Staff ensure learners know how to work safely in vocational settings. They set learners challenging activities that extend their learning beyond that required for the qualification. Construction learners read technical site drawings confidently, and IT learners use 3D printers skilfully. This contributes to learners gaining valuable employability skills and knowledge.

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Reasonable progress

Staff check what learners know and can do before they start college thoroughly. They ensure that learners study programmes that are achievable but challenging. Staff tailor learning activities to reflect learners’ needs and aspirations precisely. For instance, they provide additional vocational learning to help learners progress into their chosen career. In this way, most learners complete their programme and pass their final assessments well.

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Reasonable progress

Staff support learners to develop their knowledge and skills in English and mathematics successfully. Leaders have recently added new qualifications and recruited specialist staff to enable learners to study these essential subjects at a level appropriate to their needs. It is too soon to assess the success of these actions.

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Reasonable progress

Staff know learners well. They develop appropriate, positive relationships based on trust. This encourages learners to participate in learning and not be fearful of failure. Most learners are resilient to setbacks and learn from their mistakes. Staff set them short-term targets that help learners achieve the outcomes in their EHC plans. This Monitoring visit: KITE College, 22 and 23 January 2025 contributes to most learners growing in confidence and making substantial progress while at KITE.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders ensure that teachers have suitable vocational and subject expertise. They support those new to teaching to develop their classroom practice and acquire relevant teaching qualifications. Leaders arrange regular staff development activities that provide staff with the knowledge and skills to support learners well. This helps teachers provide interesting lessons that learners enjoy.

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Reasonable progress

Trained and experienced safeguarding staff ensure that learners are kept safe. They use a risk-based approach skilfully to identify where learners need help and ensure this is put in place promptly. They work with external agencies to provide learners with specialist support. Safeguarding staff record concerns diligently and follow up actions to ensure their effectiveness. Leaders ensure staff are safe to work with learners.

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Reasonable progress

Staff protect learners from radicalisation and extremism by teaching them how to identify and respond to risks. Leaders recognise that learners do not always recall what they have been taught and are taking steps to address this, but it is too soon to assess the impact. Monitoring visit: KITE College, 22 and 23 January 2025 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.

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Reasonable progress

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Reasonable progress

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

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