Havering London Borough Council

Havering London Borough Council Report following a monitoring visit to a ‘requires improvement’ provider

p.1

Name of lead inspector: Steve Lambert, His Majesty’s Inspector

p.1

Inspection dates: 30 April and 1 May 2025

p.1

Address: HAC Bower Park Centre 472 Havering Road Romford Essex RM1 4HR Monitoring visit: Havering Adult College, 30 April and 1 May 2025

p.1

Context and focus of visit

Havering Adult College was inspected in June 2024. At that time, inspectors judged the overall effectiveness of the provision to require improvement.

p.2

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.

p.2

Context and focus of visit

Havering Adult College offers education and training. The college offers a range of courses, with English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) having the largest number of learners enrolled. Other courses offered include English, mathematics, business, digital skills, education and training, early years practitioner and creatives subjects.

p.2

Significant progress

Since the previous inspection, leaders, managers and tutors have redesigned the ESOL curriculum. They now teach each component through well-planned 12-week courses, enabling learners to progress to higher-level classes at the appropriate time. This has increased the proportion of learners who complete more than one component and who progress to the next level. Leaders have implemented purposeful training for staff, which is having a very positive impact on teaching quality. Tutors teach the ESOL curriculum effectively. For example, in entry level 3 writing, tutors give clear explanations about the formation and use of adjectives as comparators. They provide good corrections to individual learners so that they understand the errors they make and how to avoid repeating them. Tutors use good techniques to challenge learners to revisit their work or build on it by adding more complexity, such as using alternative vocabulary and avoiding

p.2

Significant progress

repetition in their work. Consequently, learners become more competent in their written work. Tutors assess the progress that learners make well. In lessons, tutors frequently question learners to check their understanding of key topics and identify what they need to improve. For example, ESOL tutors question learners to check that they use the correct verb forms with singular and plural. Monitoring visit: Havering Adult College, 30 April and 1 May 2025 The improvement actions taken by leaders, managers and teachers have led to fewer learners withdrawing from ESOL courses before reaching the end. In addition, the proportion of learners who achieve their qualification has markedly increased and is now high.

p.2

Significant progress

Since the previous inspections, leaders and managers continued to implement improvement actions that they had started to introduce. These have had a positive impact on the quality of the service provided. Leaders collect a range of pertinent data that they use to maintain an accurate overview of the college’s performance. They use this information to make effective decisions. Leaders and managers use tutors’ formative assessments to identify the progress learners make. They use this very well to plan interventions in a timely manner, ensuring learners get the support they need. This has led to the introduction of the Friday Study Hub, which allows learners to come into the college and use the facilities to practise activities related to their course. Learners on information and communication technology (ICT) courses particularly value this, especially those without access to a computer at home. Leaders now collect information on learners’ destinations six months after they have

p.3

Significant progress

completed the course. This allows leaders to understand the impact that courses have on learners and whether the courses offered meet the needs of the borough’s residents. Leaders in the council with responsibility for the college have a good understanding of the provision. Council officers receive comprehensive data-informed updates from college leaders. This has resulted in council officers taking the strategic decision to bring the council’s employment and skills service into the same directorate as the college, enabling a more coherent approach to adult education across the borough. Elected council members have a good understanding of the college. Through the overview and scrutiny committee, they hold college officers accountable for the provision offered by the college. As a result, they understand the importance of the college to residents in the borough.

p.3

Reasonable progress

Since the inspection, staff have focused positively on improving the feedback they give to learners. Staff have attended training to improve their practice, and managers evaluate the quality of feedback through their quality assurance of the provision. Monitoring visit: Havering Adult College, 30 April and 1 May 2025 ESOL tutors assess learners’ writing skills frequently in lessons. They set useful activities for learners to write complex sentences, which include comparative adjectives, and ask learners to read these aloud to the group. As each learner reads out their answers, tutors highlight any misconceptions and help learners identify and correct their work, thus making improvements. Tutors revisit using different tasks to check that learners can subsequently apply their knowledge correctly. As a result, learners improve their knowledge, and most achieve their qualifications. In graphic design, tutors provide learners with very detailed feedback on their work.

p.3

Reasonable progress

They video record this feedback along with demonstrations of techniques that learners can try to enhance their work. For example, when learners try to make hair on their illustrations look realistic, tutors provide helpful demonstrations on differing techniques to achieve this. Tutors teaching learners how to play the guitar provide helpful audio recordings of their feedback to help them improve their fingering on the fretboard. Photography tutors provide helpful feedback to learners on the use of F-Stops to control the exposure when taking photos. In addition, they challenge learners to reduce their reliance on automatic camera settings to explore different photo effects. On the supporting teaching and learning course, tutors provide feedback to learners that gives suitable praise, but at times, is not precise enough to help learners know the gaps in their learning and how to improve. Similarly, in a small minority of

p.4

Reasonable progress

individual learning plans, tutors set targets for learners that are not helpful enough. In these cases, learners do not understand well enough what they need to do to improve their work.

p.4

Significant progress

Leaders and managers have taken very positive steps, with tutors, to improve how they identify the strengths and areas for development learners have in their learning. This has included training for staff on recording learners’ starting points and the progress they make from these, especially on non-accredited courses. Managers also evaluate tutors’ practice by reviewing teaching quality. Tutors now have very detailed information about the knowledge and skills learners have at the start of the course, the progress they make and their areas for development. For example, in ICT, tutors ensure that this includes an initial assessment of learners’ knowledge and use of different software applications, plus results from formative assessments, mock test results, skills developed and the results of summative examinations. Tutors use information from these assessments effectively to plan further teaching to address gaps in learners’ knowledge, such as

p.4

Significant progress

supporting learners to become more confident in using absolute values when using software to create spreadsheets. Monitoring visit: Havering Adult College, 30 April and 1 May 2025 In ESOL, tutors complete a thorough initial assessment of learners’ knowledge and skills at the start of each component of the course. They assess learners through mock assessments three times during their course. This helps tutors identify gaps in learners’ knowledge, correct any misconceptions and help learners to produce work at the expected level. Staff plan activities very well to take into consideration the needs of individual learners. For example, staff select resources that are helpful to deaf learners or those who struggle to write. As a result, learners who have to overcome barriers to learning make good progress in their studies. Monitoring visit: Havering Adult College, 30 April and 1 May 2025 regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young

p.4

Significant progress

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.

p.6

Significant progress

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 .

p.6

Significant progress

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

p.6

Significant progress

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

p.6

Significant progress

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

p.6