A one-year GCSE ‘improvement’ (Advanced Foundation) programme is offered. The College also has a small community education programme and works with Colchester Institute, Colchester Adult Community College and the University of Essex to promote lifetime learning in the Colchester area notably through partnership in the Colchester Learning Shop Project. Students are largely drawn from a 15 miles radius around Colchester but some students travel in excess of 35 miles on a daily basis.
The College received outstanding Inspection reports from FEFC in 1997, OFSTED in 2002 and again in 2007 (see College website for report). The College maintains ‘Outstanding’ OFSTED/LSC rating. Levels of student retention (96% ‘through year’ retention) and achievement, including (positive value added), are high. In 2000, the College received a Queens Anniversary Award for Higher and Further Education and was awarded Learning and Skills Beacon Status in June 2002, one of the first nationally to be awarded this status.
The College was first opened by Essex County Council in 1987. It was established as an ‘Incorporate’ institution in the 1992 Higher and Further Education Act and has therefore since been controlled and funded from Central Government through the Learning and Skills Council quango. There are currently over 200 members of teaching staff, with a good age and gender balance. Approximately 75% of teaching staff are full-time and 25% are part-time. There are approximately 100 members of the support staff, a third of whom work full time.
Ethos
The ethos and atmosphere in the College is positive and vibrant with a strong sense of community. A broadly based educational experience is provided for full time 16-19 year old students, and the importance of the development of each individual student is recognised. Operating as a young adult environment the College provides a bridge between the worlds of school and of higher education or employment. The aim is to give students the skills, opportunities and qualifications needed to progress and make the transition to the full adult world successfully. Parents are involved in supporting students' education; they regularly receive reports on progress, attend consultation evenings and are contacted when it is felt they need to be involved.
The Curriculum
We offer an extensive and challenging range of examination subjects and courses. Students are able to choose programmes from nearly 60 Advanced Subsidiary Level/Advanced Level subjects as well as the option of the IB Programme and a variety of other courses leading to, GCSE, RSA, Key Skills and other qualifications. Special tuition or preparation is provided for students wishing to apply to Oxford and Cambridge, medical and a number of other selected career areas. In addition, a range of special support extension and comprehensive courses for students seeking entry into professions such as medicine, teaching and journalism are offered.
From September 2009 the College will be offering some students in some subject areas the opportunity to extend their study of specific subjects by preparing for the University of Cambridge International Examination Pre-U qualification in that subject as well as the AS/A level.
An Additional Studies Programme offers students over 100 options each year and provides enrichment and skills development opportunities and offers considerable scope for broadening of education. It allows students to develop personal interests and individual skills. Staff appointed may have an opportunity to teach or have involvement in areas of skill/interest outside their predominant subject teaching areas or the area to which they have been appointed. Potential involvement would be discussed with relevant Senior Staff and Heads of Department.
Examination results and Progression
Strong public examination results and high level of entry to higher education are obvious proofs of success. At A Level the A-E grade pass rate has been consistently very good, (98% in 2008). The College has a comprehensive intake of AS/A Level students broadly in line with the national norm. Using A and AS Level value-added measures the College has consistently achieved positive value added measures. The AS Level results at the end of the first year of study have also consistently been excellent. GCSE results, where most entries are on re-take basis, also comfortably exceed the national pass rates. IB Diploma results have been outstanding – well above both the national and international averages. Each year well over 800 students successfully gain places in higher education to which they progress either directly or after a GAP year. For 2009 entry, 16 students have been successful in attaining offers for places at Oxford and Cambridge and there are very large numbers progressing into professional areas including Medicine, Veterinary Science, Architecture and Law or to other ‘Russell Group’ universities or to other very competitive degree courses.
Pastoral Care
We believe that much of the success of the College, and indeed sixth form colleges in general, lies in the strong emphasis on pastoral care and a concern for the particular needs of each individual student. The College has its own pleasant and distinctive atmosphere and a clear sense of community. Our students adopt a mature approach and staff/student relationships are very good. Each student is allocated to a tutor group led by a Personal Tutor who looks after the general and academic welfare of that student. This work is supported by a Senior Tutor. Students receive individual advice and support at every stage of their time with us starting from their initial application for entry. A strong Careers team provides continual expert guidance as well as offering precise preparation for applications to higher education and employment.
Tutorial Programme
The Tutorial Programme is delivered by a team of nearly 120 personal tutors supported by nine senior tutors and a series of other specialists. It includes individual counselling, careers and HE information and the regular review of the student's academic progress. In addition it enables students to consider broader personal, social and world issues, which are also presented by visiting speakers, in wider debates and through a series of materials. Teaching staff will have opportunities to be involved in and trained for the Personal Tutor role.
Student Activities
Many students choose to take part in one or a number of activities from a broad range including sports, drama, music, dance and many other recreational and creative activities. Students are also encouraged to take greater responsibility for themselves and to improve the general life of the College through involvement in the elected College Council, its six main committees (social/arts/charities/sport/environment/international) and their organised events and activities. There is a high level of extra curricular activity and very organised trips, visits, residential experiences and expeditions. This includes a large programme of international expeditions and visits offered by staff.
Accomodation and Facilities
The College is very well located and has generally provided students with excellent accommodation and facilities. It is situated on an historic town centre site and is located on top of and around rich Roman archaeology. A school formerly occupied the site and in 1986/87 the ‘old building’, which dates from 1912, was substantially and very attractively refurbished. At the same time a large new extension was designed and constructed to meet the specific needs of a new sixth form college. A £3 million extension was completed in 1998 to supplement the existing accommodation with a further £6 million being spent in the period to 2004 on a series of additions, modifications and enhancements.
In 2004 the College completed construction of a £1 million IT Centre which has provided additional accommodation on the lower part of the site and a £5 million major ‘mid site’ building development was opened in Spring 2007 providing a mixture of replacement and additional accommodation. This was followed in Summer 2007 by the construction of an outdoor floodlit multi-purpose sports surface. A number of re-modellings and further improvements are planned for the 2008-09 period and the College now has approval from the LSC for a programme of £13 million of new and additional accommodation and facilities together with substantial sustainable upgrading to a number of the existing buildings. The capital project will involve building works from 2010 to 2014 and at their conclusion will provide the College with absolutely outstanding accommodation and facilities.
Staff Development
As a large and innovative College, we place a great deal of emphasis on development and training and a considerable increase in the level of resources provided to support the staff development and training programmes has been achieved over the past five years.
We offer our teaching staff regular opportunities to participate in curriculum development, academic/pastoral initiatives and skill development, as well as promoting the use of appropriate external training and development. Our on-going all staff In-Service programme includes opportunities for teaching staff to attend national and local courses and training as well as "in-house" training and the opportunity to gain further professional qualifications on a local/regional basis. Support staff are also offered excellent opportunities for training and career development, enabling them to gain further qualifications and enhanced skills.
An induction programme led by College staff is provided for all newly appointed staff which includes a regular programme of discussions, briefings and meetings and it introduces new staff to the general work of the College. For teachers (and personal tutors), more specialist induction support is provided at departmental level. The College welcomes and offers particular support to teachers new to the profession and offers the NQT Induction year to those wishing to complete their qualification to include work in schools.
Staff development procedures are linked to the College's system of staff development interviews and self-assessment. By this process we hope to provide the appropriate support, guidance and opportunities for professional development to all members of the teaching and support staff and to meet their particular career needs. A voluntary peer mentoring programme is in place for all staff.
General Information
Secondary Education in North East Essex
In September 1987 the establishment of the Sixth Form College in Colchester formed part of the general reorganisation by Government of post-16 education in the town. The community commitment to education in the locality is strong. At 16+, many pupils from the local 11-16 schools undertake courses at the College or nearby at the Colchester Institute, which is well established as a provider of a broad range of further education opportunities as well as some Higher Education and Adult and Community Education. The College also admits a large number of students from 11-18 schools and schools outside the area, as well as a number of students previously educated outside the UK, and is very heavily oversubscribed each year. First priority of admissions is given to students attending designated partner and link schools or who are resident in particular geographical areas. Essex County Council are currently following the arrangements for provision of the 11 - 16 phase of secondary education in Colchester but outcomes are not expected to have a significant bearing upon the College.
The Locality
Colchester is an historic and rapidly growing large town located in southern East Anglia, at the centre of North East Essex, with strong links to London. It has an attractive centre built on the site of the Roman settlement of Camulodunum. The population of the town has grown from under 100,000 in the 1970s to around 175,000 at present. Substantial new residential building is projected for the town and the local population is projected to increase by a further 7-10% within the next 10 years.
The area is a mixture of estuaries and open countryside, long-established village communities, a number of coastal holiday resorts, sailing centre towns and a major port. Colchester is located very close to the Suffolk border, just to the south of 'Constable Country' and is only 15 miles away from Ipswich, the county town of Suffolk; nearly 20% of College students are resident in Suffolk. Colchester is also close to the county town of Chelmsford and is 52 miles (45 minutes by train) from London. Regular intercity rail and local services operate to and from London and the proximity of London, Cambridge, Ipswich and Norwich offers excellent opportunities for a range of curriculum, social and wider activities.
The level of unemployment in the town has been consistently below 2% and the local economy has been strong. East Anglia in general and the Colchester/Ipswich sub-region in particular, continues to be major economic growth points within the South East of England. Employment in London including The City is of economic importance to the town, although Colchester is a centre in its own right.
Cost of housing and accommodation in the Colchester area remains significantly below the average levels for the South East are below national averages and are very low when the relative proximity to London is considered.
Colchester is the home of the University of Essex, with which the College has excellent links and relationships, and the University of Essex, in conjunction with the University of East Anglia, has now opened the University Campus Suffolk (UCS) located on the Ipswich waterfront just 17 miles away.
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