Croydon College has lifted its Ofsted grade to ‘good’ in all areas following an ‘inadequate’ grading last year due to concerns about behaviour.
The college, which has more than 2,700 students across two campuses, has taken “effective actions” to improve the quality of its education, behaviour and attendance, inspectors said.
This has resulted in “notable improvements” and led to “increased and high achievement rates”, good behaviour and improved attendance.
This means no further education colleges are now graded ‘inadequate’ by Ofsted.
Croydon’s report, published today, said since the last inspection the college has also improved its personal development curriculum, previously described as “limited” in delivery.
‘Extremely proud’
Caireen Mitchell, principal and chief executive officer of Croydon College, said: “We are absolutely delighted with the overall rating of ‘good’ for the college.
“Our teachers do this job because they want to make a difference to the lives of young people, they want them to succeed and do well in whatever career they choose, and I am extremely proud that this has been reflected in the Ofsted report.
“As a team we are committed to creating a safe and effective learning environment for our students and we will continue to improve and develop as an education provider that the communities of Croydon and Coulsdon can be proud of.”
In May last year, Ofsted dealt the college a grade four report to the “surprise” of its leaders.
This made it the first general FE college in the country to receive the lowest grade since the watchdog launched its 2019 education inspection framework.
The mixed report issued ‘inadequate’ judgments for leadership and behaviours, some of which it described as “inappropriate”, and ‘requires improvement’ for four areas including quality of education. It issued ‘good’ judgments for apprenticeships and adult learning programmes.
An FE Commissioner team visited the school two months later, and said the college should “harmonise cultures” with Coulson Sixth Form College, which Croydon College merged with in 2019.
‘Marked’ improvements
Ofsted has now found that staff have set “high standards” for behaviour at both campuses, with learners presenting as “polite, courteous and respectful”.
It added that Coulsdon’s achievement rates have “increased markedly” and its special educational needs and disabilities students “enjoy a much-improved curriculum”.
It also praised the college’s “experienced” teachers for using “effective teaching strategies” and giving good support.
But better teacher training has resulted in “improved” achievements in subjects such as health and social care, A levels and GCSE maths, although subjects such as sports, hairdressing and engineering “have not improved sufficiently”, inspectors said.
Governors are now “effective” at holding senior leaders to account through “accurate reporting and data”, which the FE Commissioner suggested needs to be managed more effectively.
Learners also told inspectors the college is “a safe haven”.
According to Ofsted data released last year, 91 per cent of general FE Colleges held a ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ judgment.
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