Bosses pleased as Telford College makes progress

Last year the further education centre, a merger of the former Telford College of Art and Technology and New College, was given a "requires improvement" rating amid a major shake-up of operations.

But following a monitoring visit in April, inspectors found that efforts were on track by the senior leadership team to maintain "a clear focus on monitoring improvements in quality".

The latest report states that there has been "significant progress" in GCSE maths and English grades which has seen exam results higher then the national average and that outcomes for adult learners had also improved.

It says: "Curriculum managers at all levels in the college are aware of the key priorities for improvement and report on progress in their own areas through the series of quality support meetings with senior managers. In-year indicators for attendance and retention are in line with performance at the same time last year, or very slightly better.

"Senior leaders monitor the progress of learners against a minimum target grade. Current data shows that the large majority of learners are working in line with or above their target grade."

However, the report states that teachers’ written feedback to students on homework is inconsistent, with a minority of teachers simply identifying mistakes without explaining how to improve while some give detailed feedback, but use technical language that learners do not understand.

Graham Guest, principal and chief executive at Telford College, welcomed Ofsted's findings.

“We have enjoyed 18 months of considerable improvement, which has accelerated since the confirmation of our merger.

“It’s pleasing to see that Ofsted recognises these across-the-board improvements, including significant progress in our students’ maths and English skills, and a considerable rise in achievement among our apprentices.

“With exciting innovations round the corner, including a £750,000 investment in virtual and augmented reality technology, the launch of our pioneering new 7th Form - the future is looking very bright here at Telford College,” Mr Guest says.

The existing TCAT and New College Telford campuses have operated on their respective sites in Haybridge Road and King Street during the 2017/18 academic year, but all students will be brought together on the current TCAT site from September. END