The Quality Assurance of Higher Education when delivered in partnership with Further Education Colleges: The Canterbury Christ Church University Approach Dr Nigel Morgan Assistant Director, Quality and Standards For further information, please contact me at:

Summary of number of HE students studying at HE and FE institutions, & First degree (eg BA, BSc): Full-time First degree (eg BA, BSc): Part-time Continued …. 2007/082011/12Percentage change 2007/08 to 2011/12 HE institutions 1,108,6851,312, % FE institutions 15,5907, % 2007/082011/12Percentage change 2007/08 to 2011/12 HE institutions 198,155229, % FE institutions 17,54512, %

2007/082011/12Percentage change 2007/08 to 2011/12 HE institutions 123,32099, % FE institutions 39,36051, % … continued Summary of number of HE students studying at HE and FE institutions, & Other undergraduate award (eg HNC, HND, FD): Full-time Other undergraduate award (eg HNC, HND, FD): Part-time 2007/082011/12Percentage change 2007/08 to 2011/12 HE institutions 374,810286, % FE institutions 77,155105, % Totals: 2007/082011/12Percentage change 2007/08 to 2011/12 Total HE institutions 1,804,9701,928, % Total FE institutions 149,650177, % Source:

In : % of students FT studying for an undergraduate (first degree) award at a HE institution = 99.4% at a FE institution = 0.6% % of students PT studying for an undergraduate (first degree) award at a HE institution = 95% at a FE institution = 5% % of students FT studying for an undergraduate (non-first degree) award at a HE institution = 66% at a FE institution = 34% % of students PT studying for an undergraduate (non-first degree) award at a HE institution = 73% at a FE institution = 27%

Key drivers for developing a Partnership agreement with a FE College improving access to HE for disadvantaged and underrepresented groups improving employability and supplying economically valuable skills in a localised context generally lower or broader entry qualifications required for a Foundation Degree creating a campus network designed for progression to Bachelors and Masters awards broadening the geographical and political sphere of influence for the University offsetting risks associated with over or under-recruitment staff mobility and capacity building for each party Models of Partnership Validated provision: Where the college creates its own unique curriculum which it presents to the University for validation; Franchised provision: Where the college ‘buys’ an existing product from the University Either mode may be exclusively delivered by the College or jointly delivered with the University. In each case the awarding institution retains final responsibility for the programme content, the teaching and assessment strategy, the assessment regime, examination and award, quality assurance and student learning experience. The Association of Colleges has produced a detailed guide to HE in FE, which can be downloaded from:

Range of CCCU Collaborative Partners Further Education Colleges – mainly delivering franchised HNC, HND, Foundation Degree and Bachelors Awards, and teacher training awards; Specialist companies - the university validates its training or study programmes; Awards delivered jointly with other UK universities; Specialist training organisations in the Church of England; Specialist CPD training (up to masters level), especially in health, education and police services; Specialist awards delivered with overseas partners. For full list, please refer to:

Quality Assurance and Enhancement in FE Colleges – the national framework HE in FE is subject to external scrutiny by the QAA, acting on behalf of HEFCE which has statutory responsibility for ensuring that provision is made for assessing the quality of education provided by institutions it funds. From 2013 a new review method for HE in FE replaced the Integrated Quality and Enhancement Review (IQER). The new method for FE Colleges and the method used in HE Institutions for the first time converges to apply a common review framework to ensure comparability of standards and quality across HE providers. At the same time the UK Quality Code is being introduced to replace The Academic Infrastructure as a reference to help assure the standards and quality of awards. (Non-HEFCE provision at L4-L7 in FECs is inspected by Ofsted). A detailed Handbook for the Review of Higher Education in Colleges is available on the QAA:

Quality procedure at CCCU for Collaborative Partnership working Phase 1 – Initial dialogue A proposal, usually by an academic department and sometimes by a partner, to deliver work in a collaborative environment Approval from the University that this proposal meets its strategic objectives Initial Due Diligence, to assess the credibility and substance of the partner Approval to proceed, underpinned by a contract to authorise development Phase 2 – Memorandum of Agreement to deliver a programme in collaboration Programme development through to validation by the academic department and partner in collaboration In depth Due Diligence of the partner Detailed financial costings, resource assessment and student number control A schedule that apportions responsibilities between the parties Key University and Partner staff allocated and trained Final Memorandum Agreement and signature Continued……

… continued Phase 3 – Programme delivery Regular Programme Management Meetings, including student representatives, partner staff and university staff Annual Review of operational imperatives Examination Board and External Examiner report Ongoing training for the programme director, link tutor and key administrative staff Routine management bulletins University-led Partner Forum Phase 4 – Partnership renewal: A Periodic Review at the end of the contract to include Renewed Due Diligence Renewed assessment of partnership objectives and business parameters Revalidation of programmes Renewed agreements for further details:

The Quality Assurance of Higher Education when delivered in partnership with Further Education Colleges: The Canterbury Christ Church University Approach Any Questions? Dr Nigel Morgan Assistant Director, Quality and Standards For further information, please contact me at: