After an intensive six years of FE Commissioner intervention, Brooklands Technical College proudly achieved its standalone status as an independent provider in September.
This journey was triggered by a subcontracting issue that exposed the college to a £25 million debt repayable to the Department for Education.
This crisis brought us to the brink of insolvency and destabilisation. But while the last six years were challenging, they were also immensely rewarding.
I share this journey because the intervention period profoundly shaped my leadership. I learned that leading transformation is as much about emotional intelligence and managing change as it is about finance.
The framework of intervention created an environment of pace, focus and purposeful action.
My priority was to build a firm foundation for prosperity. To achieve this, my leadership strategy concentrated on two distinct, yet parallel, areas, which enabled me to compartmentalise the crisis:
- Sustaining core operational success, which meant relentlessly focusing on the college community to ensure our learners, stakeholders and wider community received high-quality provision.
- Navigating the political landscape and managing the financial crisis bydirectly addressing the £25 million debt via immediate curriculum efficiencies, and generating sufficient cash to repay a significant proportion of the money owed.
Culture changes
Firstly, we created a culture of collective ownership and fostered a sense of belonging for our staff (belonging@brooklands) by establishing new shared college values.
This created an inclusive and inspirational learning environment and provided the framework for our professional standards, behaviours and expectations.
In synergy with the governors, we made a bold decision to rebrand, using our new identity to redefine our place in the communities we serve.
We fostered deeper alliances with our local employers and borough councils. This wasn’t merely dialogue; it was a strategy to ensure the college’s curriculum aligned directly with local economic need.
Gaining community trust through clear, consistent communication enabled us to demonstrate relevance and secure backing for the college’s growth and capital project.
The capital project, (two new-builds and three major refurbishments) was financed through land sales and grants from the Education Skills Funding Agency and Surrey County Council.
I constantly reflected on how I would lead and navigate staff, students and stakeholders to preserve the college’s future.
In synergy, I was managing high-level communication with the DfE whilst working to project a sense of resilience and confidence to my team. Crucially, it demanded complete transparency and a willingness to be held accountable by our corporation and external partners, whose endorsement was essential.
Secondly, on the point of navigating the political landscape, every intervention milestone was internally translated into a critical objective, allowing us to maintain the stability of the college community while simultaneously meeting external demands.
Proactive partnership
At no point was the learner experience, our ultimate purpose, allowed to falter.
I shifted our relationship with DfE and the FE Commissioner from one of transactional compliance to a proactive, solution-focused partnership. We demonstrated progress through an open and honest approach, communicating not just our achievements but also our challenges.
This transparency gained their trust and secured their endorsement. Strategic oversight of these key areas running in parallel, for six years, enabled us to channel our energies and secure stability.
Exiting intervention means taking back full control of our destiny. My role now transitions from leading a recovery to leading a sustainable legacy.
The resilience developed in the past six years is not a reaction to a debt, but a proactive mindset, defining our college as a dynamic, independent anchor for the local economy and educational landscape for years to come.
Intervention advice
To the FE Commissioner, those who have lived through intervention have valuable insight that could enhance future policy design. We will be happy to share our experiences with you.
To sector colleagues going through the process, reach out as much as you can to experts and colleagues who can support you. This was critical for me and I thank all the FE leaders and my executive coach for being my critical friend and for listening.
Be kind to yourself too. Intervention can be a turbulent environment. However, it can also be a purposeful, rewarding and powerful learning experience – if you have the appetite.
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