Estyn Inspection October 2010 John Phelps, Assistant Principal

Background The 2010 Inspection Lines of enquiry Inspection week Summary judgements Overall judgements Recommendations Achievements

Background Coleg Morgannwg was established in 2003 resulting from a merger of three FEIs from 1995 to 2003 (Pontypridd, Rhondda and Aberdare) Serves the second largest unitary authority approx people with 67% of learners from designated areas of deprivation 19 Comprehensives in RCT with 6th forms (School links fallen from 221 to 98 in 4 years) Four campuses across RCT (approx 2200 f/t) Since 2004, staffing levels have fallen from 586 to 412 FTEs

Background (contd.) Coleg Morgannwg learners, like many others, have issues with basic skills 83% at Level 1 or below with 12% at Entry Level 3 or below for Literacy 86% at Level 1 or below with 28% at Entry Level 3 or below for Numeracy Those in comprehensives gaining GCSE grades at A* to C for the five including Maths and English/Welsh is approx 37% across RCT Increasingly aged population with high levels of economic inactivity

Background (Contd.) 2005 Estyn Inspection General Inspection of all FE provision involving over 50 HMI and Peer Inspectors over 2 weeks (16 Learning Areas) KQ 1 - Grade 3 KQ 2 - Grade 3 KQ 3 - Grade 3 KQ 4 - Grade 2 KQ 5 - Grade 3 KQ 6 - Grade 3 KQ 7 - Grade 3

What Happened Next? Re-structure of middle and senior management plus teaching staff 4 Heads of Faculty to 2 Assistant Principals 16 Heads of School to 6 Curriculum Area Managers (2006) 13 Senior Curriculum Leaders with specific quality roles/responsibilities (2006) One Additional Assistant Principal (Planning & Performance, 2007) New Principal and Deputy Principal (2008) SMT re-alignment of roles (2010)

2010 Estyn Inspection Lighter touch – 1 week & smaller team; 4 weeks notice of the inspection; List of requirements that needed to be prepared and sent to them e.g. Current SAR and QIAP, 3 year data sets, learner surveys (plus one for Estyn), structures etc; Pre-inspection meeting with Lead Inspector Janice Thomas; Feedback to senior managers and governors only at the end of the week.

Lines of enquiry 5 main lines of enquiry: Standards – curriculum areas looked at more closely in terms of data were Art & Design, Computing & IT, Hair & Beauty and Health & Care; Quality systems impacting on standards; Curriculum planning & design; Effectiveness of Basic/Key Skills support; Strategic Partnerships and roles.

The Inspection Week Team of 10 HMI plus 5 Peer Inspectors; Looked at the FE and WBL provision; ACL Inspection across RCT ran parallel with college inspection; Team reviewed documentary evidence, carried out over 50 classroom observations investigating their “lines of enquiry”; Spoke to tutors, SCLs, CAMs, Governors, SMT plus other staff involved with key areas e.g. Essential Skills, met with Head of LEA and telephoned employers;

The Inspection Week Inspection Team meetings at the end of each day and feedback to Principal each day with no evenings; Classroom observations completed by the end of Wednesday; Final Judgement Meeting on Thursday afternoon; Feedback to SMT on Friday morning at 11 am.

Judgement Descriptors Excellent - Many strengths, including significant examples of sector-leading practice Good - Many strengths and no important areas requiring significant improvement Adequate - Strengths outweigh areas for improvement Unsatisfactory - Important areas for improvement outweigh strengths

Summary Judgements KQ 1 – How good are outcomes? Adequate Standards – Adequate Wellbeing - Good KQ 2 – How good is provision? Good Learning experiences - Good Teaching - Adequate Care support & guidance – Good Learning Environment – Good KQ 3 – How good are leadership & managers? Good Leadership – Good Improving quality – Adequate Partnership working – Good Resource management - Good

Overall Judgements Current Performance – Adequate Standards that learners achieve at the college are adequate overall; Rates at which learners have been successful in gaining their qualifications have shown modest improvements over the last two years; Most learners are positive about their experiences at the college and make good progress; Most learners are well motivated and enjoy their learning. They are positive about their experiences and report that their self-confidence and self- esteem have grown since starting their programmes of learning;

Current performance –contd. the senior management team provides effective leadership and has already demonstrated effectiveness in managing change; the team has a clear vision and has established a secure platform for achieving its mission and priorities;

Overall Judgements- contd Prospects for improvement – Good The prospects for improvement are good because: the college has addressed all the recommendations from the previous inspections; leaders and managers provide good leadership and work very well together; planning for improvement is strong and senior managers have established good lines of communication in the college, high staff morale and a culture of trust to support the effective management of change; the rates at which learners complete and attain qualifications are improving; there are appropriate arrangements in place for sharing good practice in teaching and learning.

Prospects for improvement - contd. N.B. Although the judgement for key question 1 was lower than that for key questions 2 and 3, the inspection team’s evaluations indicated that senior management team have clear strategies for managing change and improving standards and quality, and these are having a strong and noticeable impact throughout the college.

KQ 1 – How good are outcomes? Why Adequate? The rates at which learners achieve their quals are adequate overall and similar to other FEIs; Variation between success rates in different areas across the college; Evidence of high grades in some areas but not across all areas of the college; The rates at which learners gaining their quals have shown only modest improvements over two years; Success rates are adequate for WBL; Learners struggle with technical accuracy in written work; Small numbers of learners develop Welsh language skills especially those from Welsh medium schools.

KQ 2 – How good is provision? Why Good? Broad and balanced curriculum from entry to level 4; Good progression routes; Meets the needs of learners well and provides a good experience; Effective use of the WBQ to enhance learners’ experiences and skills; Tutors use their subject knowledge well; Excellent relationships between tutors and learners; Well planned lessons linking theory to practice; Very good care, support and guidance; Particularly good at supporting those vulnerable learners.

KQ 3 – How good are leadership and management? Why Good? Managers at all levels understand their responsibilities with clear lines of accountability; Managers at all levels work well in teams; Staff morale is high; Significant improvements to communication and culture; The college has responded very well to new national and local priorities; Resource management is good and provides good vfm; Joint planning with LA, FEIs/HEIs, ACL, Employers and SSCs is strong.

Recommendations I n order to improve, Coleg Morgannwg needs to: Improve the rates at which learners complete and attain their qualifications; Use data more effectively to compare learners’ outcomes within the college and with other providers to plan for improvement; Improve the overall quality of teaching; Make sure that learners have opportunities to develop their essential skills within the context of their main course of study; and Make sure that learners have more opportunities to develop and to maintain their bilingual skills, particularly those who have progressed from Welsh- medium schools.

College Achievements since 2008 ●Wales Quality Award 2009 (Bronze); ●Wales Quality Award 2010 (Silver plus Most Improved Organisation Award); ●Investors in People (2009); ●Corporate Health Standard 2010 (Silver) ●Green Dragon Level 2 (2010); ●AoC Beacon Awards 2010/11(Edge Award and President’s Award); ●Global Enterprise Challenge 2010 (3 rd place behind Australia and Japan); ●Best Companies ‘One to Watch’ (2010)