City of Glasgow College
11 March 2016
A report by HM Inspectors
On behalf of the
Scottish Funding Council
Summary Report
The external review process
HM Inspectors undertake an independent review of the quality of provision in
Scotland’s colleges on behalf of the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding
Council (SFC) under a service level agreement between the council and Education
Scotland. External review teams include HM Inspectors, associate assessors and a
student team member.
During external reviews, members of the review teams observe learning and teaching
and hold discussions with learners, staff and stakeholders. They consider information
on learner attainment and evaluate learner progress and outcomes. They meet with
members of the Board of Management and obtain feedback from community groups,
partners and employers who work with the college.
The purpose of this report is to convey the main outcomes arising from the external
review, to acknowledge the college’s strengths and to provide a clear agenda for
future action to improve and enhance quality.
This external review results in judgements of effective or limited effectiveness or
not effective that express the external review team’s overall evaluation of high quality
learning, learner engagement and quality culture.
The report also uses the following terms to describe
numbers and proportions:
almost all
most
majority
less than half
few
over 90%
75-90%
50-74%
15-49%
up to 15%
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Contents
Page
1. Introduction
1
The external review
1
2. The college and its context
2
3.
3
Outcomes of external review
Judgement of Effectiveness
Section A:
Section B:
Section C:
Section D:
Section E:
Overarching judgement
Supporting statements
Areas of positive practice
Areas for development
Main points for action
3
3
4
5
5
4.
Signposting excellent practice
6
5.
What is an overarching judgement?
10
6.
What happens next?
11
7.
What happens next?
12
8.
How can you contact us?
13
Appendices
14
Glossary of terms
The Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework
14
15
1.
Introduction
The external review
The external review by Education Scotland took place during the week beginning
11 January 2016.
We examined learning and teaching and other important activities that impact on the
quality of the learner experience. We evaluated these against the three key principles
of high quality learning, learner engagement and quality culture, using the 13
reference quality indicators outlined in External quality arrangements for Scotland’s
colleges, updated August 2013. We also included QIs 1.3 Adherence to statutory
principles and 2.2 Relevance of programmes and services to learner needs, to
support our evaluations. We used information from previous visits to the college to
decide the scope of the review.
We found examples of excellence which we describe in this report on page 19.
The external review team talked with learners, staff at all levels in the college,
members of the Board of Management, employers, external agencies and other users
of the college.
1
2.
The college and its context
In carrying out the external review of City of Glasgow College, Education Scotland
took the following college context fully into account.
City of Glasgow College was established in 2010 as a result of merger of Central
College Glasgow, Glasgow Metropolitan College and Glasgow College of Nautical
Studies. Located within the city centre, the college currently operates from nine
delivery locations that are a mix of new modern facilities and existing legacy
campuses. Phase one of its on-going estates re-development strategy, Riverside
Campus, opened in August 2015. Another new, larger campus is also under
construction on Cathedral Street in the city and will open in August 2016, replacing all
other existing locations.
The college is the largest of three assigned colleges in the Glasgow region along with
Glasgow Clyde College and Glasgow Kelvin College and is contracted by the Glasgow
Regional Board to deliver the Glasgow Regional Outcome Agreement (ROA) 2014-17.
City of Glasgow College works in partnership to deliver the ROA priority of increasing
the number of learners who achieve qualifications to access further study and, or work
within the city.
Forty-five percent of City of Glasgow College learners live in Glasgow. The remaining
fifty-five percent travel to study from across Scotland with a number travelling
significant distances to access specialist provision. The college attracts around 300
international learners a year, most of whom study programmes within the nautical
studies faculty. A significant number of residents in Glasgow have low levels of
qualifications or no formal qualifications. Approximately one third of the learner
population is from the most deprived SIMD datazones.
The college offers programmes from level 2 to level 11 on the Scottish Credit and
Qualifications Framework (SCQF) and these are aligned to Glasgow’s key growth
sectors. Subjects are grouped into six curriculum faculties. The college also delivers
a range of Modern Apprenticeship programmes and a range of part-time provision for
school pupils including the new Foundation Apprenticeship in Engineering.
In academic year 2014-15, City of Glasgow College enrolled around 12,500 learners
on SFC-funded programmes with just over 8,000 studying full-time and accounting for
80% of wSUM activity. In academic year 2015-16, the college is contracted to deliver
a target of 162,868 credits, which is 43% of the regional target within the ROA.
Currently, City of Glasgow College employs a total of 1,200 members of staff. Total
SFC grant income represents 60% of the college’s total income.
2
3.
Outcomes of External Review
Judgement of Effectiveness
Section A: Overarching judgement
City of Glasgow College has in place effective arrangements to maintain and
enhance the quality of its provision and outcomes for learners and other
stakeholders.
This judgement means that, in relation to quality assurance and enhancement, the
college is led well, has sufficiently robust arrangements to address any identified
minor weaknesses, and is likely to continue to improve the quality of its services for
learners and other stakeholders.
Section B: Supporting statements
Learner progress and outcomes
The number of learners who successfully complete their programme has improved
significantly at all levels and modes of delivery over the last three years. However,
in a few subject areas, too many part-time further education (FE) learners leave
early or do not achieve their qualification. College safeguarding arrangements for
young people and vulnerable groups are comprehensive and robust. The college
offers a wide range of programmes from SCQF levels 2-11 that meet the needs of
the college’s learners, employers and communities well. The college engages
proactively with secondary schools across Glasgow and neighbouring regions to
offer programmes which meet the needs of young people in the senior phase of
curriculum for excellence. Most learners make good progress and attain the
qualifications. Staff ensure that the majority of learners are provided with a broad
range of opportunities to achieve more widely and develop skills for learning, life
and work.
Learning and teaching processes
The college promotes equality and diversity well within programmes. In classes,
learners interact well with each other and with their class tutors which creates a
positive and supportive climate for learning. Most teaching staff have recent and
relevant industrial experience and plan lessons effectively to incorporate an
emphasis on developing industry standards and employability skills. However, the
majority of teaching staff use too narrow a range of teaching approaches to engage
all learners sufficiently. The college has a clear commitment to incorporating
essential skills development into all programmes. However, not all teaching staff,
particularly guidance tutors, understand their role in supporting learners to develop
the full range of essential skills within their programmes. High quality support
services are effective in supporting learners. Almost all staff have a strong focus
on the performance of their programmes and have a clear understanding of where
improvement in performance is required. However, the majority of teaching staff
do not reflect routinely or systematically on their classroom practice.
3
Learner engagement
The college has a clearly expressed commitment to learner engagement. The
majority of learners are actively engaged in enhancing their own learning.
Learners regularly contribute their views through questionnaires, focus groups,
‘you are the expert’ meetings and class representation. Almost all full-time and
many part-time programmes have appointed class representatives. Class
representatives are well supported and enabled to undertake their role effectively.
The majority of class representatives have not yet received formal training,
however plans are in place for this to take place soon. Many learners are
unaware of feedback provided on actions taken arising from cross-college
surveys. Learners of all backgrounds and circumstances are supported well to
integrate into college life. Equality and diversity is celebrated and promoted well to
learners. Learners are well represented on key college committees. Learners
engage enthusiastically in a wide range of activities which benefit the wider
community. However, many learners are not aware of how the work of the
Student Association and student engagement team complement each other.
Leadership and Quality Culture
The Principal and senior team work effectively together and with external partners.
Clear and comprehensive operational planning arrangements align well with
strategic aims and objectives. There is a strong culture of ownership and pride in
the college’s purpose and way. The Principal and senior managers provide strong
strategic direction for the curriculum and faculty directors are empowered to lead
and manage their teams. Current arrangements for reflection on learning and
teaching do not focus sufficiently on teaching practice. Support managers lead
their areas effectively. Support staff work well together and are enthusiastic and
flexible in their approach to supporting learners. There is a positive culture of
performance and quality improvement which is shared by all staff. Staff engage
well in self-evaluation and performance review. However, arrangements for selfevaluation do no support staff to reflect sufficiently on learning and teaching
approaches. The college has an extensive and effective range of regional, national
and international partnerships.
Section C:
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
Areas of positive practice
The number of learners who successfully complete their programme has
improved over the last three years and is now well above the sector performance
level.
Almost all successful learners, whose destination is known, progress directly to
further learning, apprenticeships, or employment.
Equality and diversity is embedded across college functions and is promoted
well to learners.
Staff ensure that the majority of learners are provided with a broad range of
opportunities to achieve more widely and develop skills for learning, life and
work.
Staff in many programme teams demonstrate creativity and flexibility in adapting
programmes to meet the needs of specific groups of learners.
Where learning activities are engaging, almost all learners are well-motivated
and participate productively during lessons.
4
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





Almost all learners use the college Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), MyCity,
proficiently to access learning resources during classes and in their own time.
Most teaching staff plan lessons well, often with an emphasis on developing
vocational and employability skills.
Almost all staff have a strong focus on the performance of their programmes and
have a clear understanding of where improvement in performance is required.
Almost all learners describe a sense of pride in being part of the college and
enjoy mutual respectful and productive relationships with college staff.
The Principal and senior managers provide strong strategic direction for the
curriculum and leadership to enhance learning and teaching.
Support staff work very effectively together in teams and with colleagues in
teaching faculties to review and improve services to meet learner needs.
There is a positive culture of performance and quality improvement in the college
and a clear commitment to improving the learner experience by all staff.
Section D:





In a few classes, teaching staff miss opportunities to promote equality and
diversity when naturally occurring opportunities arise.
Not all teaching staff, particularly guidance tutors, fully understand their role in
supporting learners to develop the full range of essential skills.
However, where learning activities are not sufficiently stimulating, some learners
are passive and become disengaged in learning.
In the majority of lessons, the late arrival of some learners disrupts teaching
activities which reduces the learning experience for other learners. Most staff do
not take action to challenge learners’ poor timekeeping. Arrangements for
personal development planning are not used effectively by staff
The majority of teaching staff do not reflect routinely or systematically on their
classroom practice as individuals or in teams.
Section E:

Areas for development
Main point for action
College managers should ensure that teaching staff reflect on their
practice to ensure that an appropriate range of teaching approaches are
used within lessons.
5
4.
Signposting excellent practice
During the Education Scotland external review, the college submitted examples of
what it considered to be excellent practice and the review team also identified
examples worthy of dissemination.
4.1 Supporting Learner Skills for Employability Through Effective Employer
Engagement
In line with the requirements of Developing The Young Workforce, City of Glasgow
College is committed to helping learners to develop skills for employment which help
them to ‘get a job, keep a job, and get a better job’. Through the development of a
number of ‘industry academies’ across the curriculum, college staff engage directly
with a wide range of local and national employers to collaborate, identify skills gaps,
and provide learners with real-life work experiences. Learners are supported well to
become work ready in their chosen vocational area through involvement in a range of
activities such as work experience, work placements, cross-curricular initiatives and
live projects set by employers. In turn, staff keep up-to-date with current
developments within their specialist field and benefit from opportunities to work
directly with employers, to jointly problem solve and address skills gaps. Companies
have direct access to current learners and newly-qualified graduates, many of whom
go on to employment as a result of prior engagement with their employer.
To date, the Industry Academy model has significantly improved the range of
opportunities for learners. It has increased the number of work placement and work
experience opportunities, guaranteed interviews, range of industry-based projects and
apprenticeship opportunities.
4.2 Improving Learner Attainment and Work Readiness Through The Use of
Technology: Online Navigation Tool Maritime Studies
Learners on maritime studies programmes, who have limited or no experience of life
at sea, find it difficult to comprehend the complex international regulations for the
prevention of collision at sea and associated buoyage systems. Previously,
classroom-based learning activities did not provide sufficient ‘real-life’ experiences for
learners. As a result, many learners required additional time to understand the
complex systems and were unable to practise the buoyage and collision rules outwith
the classroom.
Staff recognised the need to support ongoing assessment and provide learners with
realistic opportunities to practice these skills at a time and place which suits their
needs. They worked to develop a mobile application that split the complex topic into
bite-sized chunks of learning. This online tool allows learners to view the theoretical
content, and test their understanding through the use of quizzes. Learners are
enabled effectively to reinforce learning and study at a pace that suits their needs.
Further developments support learners to navigate safely within a virtual channel of
buoys and develop vital knowledge for the role of deck officer. As a result of the use
of the mobile application, learner motivation has increased and attainment has
improved at both unit level and in final exams. Learners now achieve more widely
through greater awareness of safety issues at sea, and are more confident and ‘work
ready’.
6
4.3 Championing Vocational Skills and Improving Quality Through
Engagement in WorldSkills
City of Glasgow College has established a very effective ‘WorldSkills’ academy as a
platform to celebrate industry standard skills and inspire learners to achieve. The
academy provides learners with a range of opportunities to develop work-relevant
experiential skills at each stage of their learner journey. Learners work with industry
standard and very experienced trainers and coaches to learn and develop the high
level of skills and compete internationally with fellow learners from all over the world.
They experience on-going exposure to excellence and strive to develop as learners
and skilled vocational practitioners. Staff have aligned the curriculum to WorldSkills
standards which meet the needs of employers industrial practices. On-going,
systematic consultation with industry ensures that the standards and resulting
competitions are consistent with current global best practice and technology. The use
of WorldSkills standards helps the college to keep subject curriculum vocationally
current and in line with employers' needs.
By fostering a culture and ethos of high performance and outstanding achievement,
young people are provided with high quality experiences to improve their life chances
and prepare for employment. The college has had significant success in recent
competitions and is now ranked number one in the WorldSkills UK league table with
similarly high success at WorldSkills International. Learners value these experiences
highly.
4.4 Supporting Learners to Succeed: Improving Retention and Attainment
Through Co-ordinated Intervention
City of Glasgow College recognises the vital role that support services play in helping
learners to access, sustain, and successfully complete their chosen programme. In
line with the college-wide focus on improving the learner experience, support services
took collective ownership of their role in supporting learners to succeed. In response
to high rates of learner withdrawal and low numbers of learners successfully
completing their programme, support staff undertook a co-ordinated performance
review of learner support services using an equality impact assessment tool. All
aspects of the learner journey from the point of application to programme completion
were systematically reviewed. The review took account of learner and staff views and
detailed analysis of admissions and recruitment data.
As a result of the review, changes were implemented at every stage of the learner
journey. These include improved admissions arrangements, and systems for
maintaining communication with applicants prior to enrolment. Arrangements were put
in place to deliver activities to help new learners settle in, provide focussed advice and
guidance to assist with finance issues and improve access to services for learners
with additional needs. The student engagement team developed and delivered a
range of helpful workshops to improve retention and attainment. These workshops
were arranged in close partnership between support staff and teaching faculties and
were designed to meet the needs of individual learner groups. As a result of these
focussed and co-ordinated approaches. The number of learners who apply and
proceed to enrolment has increased, learner withdrawals have reduced, and
attainment has improved significantly.
7
10. What is an overarching judgement?
Education Scotland uses an overarching judgement of Effectiveness to express the
findings of the review team. The judgement of effectiveness takes into account all the
evidence gathered through the external review. Such judgements express outcomes
as:
effective;
limited effectiveness; or
not effective.
This judgement is further detailed by supporting statements which substantiate the
judgement of effectiveness. Education Scotland evaluates and reports according to
the three key principles. In this report, the principles and supporting statements relate
to:
Key principle 1 – High quality learning (supporting statements numbers 1 and 2)
Key principle 2 – Learner engagement (supporting statement number 3)
Key principle 3 – Quality culture (supporting statement number 4)
Judgements of effectiveness and supporting statements provide stakeholders with
assurances, or otherwise, about the quality of a college’s provision. These
judgements are based on trends and track record of a college, the findings at the time
of the external review, and the college’s capacity to continue improving.
A judgement of effective indicates that the college has in place effective
arrangements to maintain and enhance the quality of its provision and outcomes for
learners and other stakeholders. This judgement means that, in relation to quality
assurance and enhancement, the college is led well, has sufficiently robust
arrangements to address any minor weakness, and is likely to continue to improve the
quality of its services for learners and other stakeholders.
A judgement of limited effectiveness indicates that the effectiveness of the
college’s arrangements to maintain and enhance the quality of its provision and
outcomes for learners and other stakeholders is limited. This judgement means that
there are some strengths in the college’s arrangements for quality enhancement.
However, there are weaknesses in arrangements for high quality learning and/or
learner engagement and/or quality culture. If not addressed, the importance of these
weaknesses will continue to limit the effectiveness of the college’s arrangements.
A judgement of not effective indicates that the college’s arrangements to maintain
and enhance the quality of its provision and outcomes for learners and other
stakeholders are not effective. This judgement means that there are significant
weaknesses in the arrangements for high quality learning and/or learner engagement
and/or quality culture. There is a high probability that, without significant and
comprehensive action, with external monitoring and support, the college will fail to
improve current low-quality provision and outcomes to an acceptable level. Education
Scotland does not have evidence that the college has the capacity and commitment to
identify and implement effective and comprehensive action.
8
Scottish Funding Council response to judgements
If the overarching judgement is effective, the Council will expect the college to
engage with Education Scotland in follow-up activity, as appropriate, and, one year
after the publication of the review reports, to provide a report, endorsed by its
governing body (see Council guidance to colleges on quality from August 2012,
paragraphs 62-66 SFC/13/2012 setting out its response to the review.)
If the overarching judgement is of limited effectiveness or is not effective, the
Council will require the institution to prepare and fulfil an action plan to address the
shortcomings identified (see paragraph 67 of guidance). Education Scotland will
provide advice to SFC on the adequacy of the action plan and on how it is being
implemented. SFC, taking into account any advice from Education Scotland, will
normally require a formal follow-up review at an appropriate time, usually within no
more than two years.
9
11. What happens next?
Education Scotland will continue to monitor progress during annual engagement visits
to the college.
There will be feedback to the learners at the college.
One year on from this report, the college will produce a report setting out what it has
done to address the main points for action and/or areas for development in the report
and other quality assurance and enhancement activities. There will be a link to this
report from Education Scotland’s website.
Gill Ritchie
HM Inspector
10
12. Further information
The review and judgements relate to the college as a whole and do not provide
information about individual programmes of study or subjects. For further information
on these or any other queries, contact the college or look on its website http://www.cityofglasgowcollege.ac.uk/
For further information about Education Scotland, the external review methodologies,
or other information about reviews, see www.educationscotland.gov.uk
For further information about the Scottish Funding Council, see – www.sfc.ac.uk
11
13 How can you contact us?
This report has been produced as a web-only publication and is available on our
website at
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/inspectionandreview/reports/othersectors/college
reviews/CityofGlasgowCollegeGlasgow.asp
If you would like to receive this report in a different format, for example, in a
translation please contact the administration team on 0131 244 5684.
If you want to give us feedback or make a complaint about our work, please contact
us by telephone on 0131 244 4330, or e-mail:
complaints@educationscotland.gsi.gov.uk or write to us addressing your letter to The
Complaints Manager, Denholm House, Almondvale Business Park, Livingston, EH54
6GA.
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Crown Copyright 2016.
Education Scotland
12
Appendix 1
Glossary of terms
CADMs
CPD
FE
HE
ICT
PVG
ROA
SCQF
SDS
SFC
VLE
WRAP
Course Action and Development Meetings
Career Professional Development
Further education
Higher education
Information and Communications Technology
Protection Vulnerable Groups
Regional Outcome Agreement
Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework
Skills Development Scotland
Scottish Funding Council
Virtual Learning Environment
Workshop to Raise Awareness of PREVENT
13
Appendix 2
15