Minutes of the QCS Committee Meeting 9th

STOCKPORT COLLEGE
Minutes of the Curriculum, Quality and Students Committee
held at 5.30pm on Thursday 9th October 2014
in Conference Room A
Present:
John Reilly
Glynis Brown
Glad Capewell
Ian Clinton
Sue Haywood
(Chairperson)
In Attendance:
Barry Watson
Karen Moss
Bryan Davies
Patrisha Byrne
Lee Gregory
Mel Spooner
Julie Fagan
Louise Stone
(Clerk to the Corporation)
(Deputy Principal)
(Interim Vice Principal Quality & Standards)
(Vice Principal Curriculum Development)
(Executive Director PS&P)
(Executive Director F&V Studies)
(Teaching &Learning Improvement Manager)
( Curriculum Area Manager)
Minute No:
Prior to the commencement of the meeting the Chairperson welcomed
Glad Capewell and Sue Haywood to their first Committee meeting. The
Chairperson also welcomed Patricia Byrne and Julie Fagan to the
meeting.
CQ&S/34/14
Apologies for Absence
(Interim Principal)
The Clerk to the Corporation reported that apologies for absence had
been received from Wendy Cooke (sabbatical) and Maureen Wilkins.
CQ&S/35/14
Declarations of Interest
There were no declarations of interest in any of the meetings business
items.
CQ&S/36/14
Minutes of the Meeting held on 26th June 2014
The minutes of the meeting were received and noted and the Chairperson
expressed his thanks and appreciation to the Clerk for the detailed and
accurate records.
CQ&S/37/14
Matters Arising from the Minutes
i)
CQ&S/19/14 i) – Matters Arising from the Minutes (Support to
Student Governor Role)
The Clerk to the Corporation advised the Committee of the actions
that had been taken in order to provide more effective support to the
Student Governor. It was noted that in particular that the Student
1
Council would be appointing a Deputy Student Governor shortly who
would be attending future meetings. The Clerk also provided the
Committee with a copy of the Student Council 2014/15 document
‘Learner Voice Your Future’ which outlined in detail the role of the
Deputy Student Governor.
Action: Student Council
The Committee welcomed the actions that had been taken and
resolved that the update be noted.
ii)
CQ&S/19/14 ii) – Matters Arising from the Minutes (Foundation
Degree Awarding Powers Update)
It was noted that work with regard to the Higher Education Strategy
had now been completed and that it would be brought to the
Committee at its next meeting before consideration by the Board of
the Corporation in November 2014.
Action: Vice Principal Curriculum Development
iii)
CQ&S/19/14 v) – Matters Arising from the Minutes (Curriculum
KPI’s)
The Vice Principal Curriculum Development provided members with
a copy of the curriculum quality calendar which gave details of the
schedule of feedback activities that are undertaken at the College. In
discussion it was agreed that the Vice Principal would provide details
of the link in order that Governors could access the dates for the
events.
Action: Vice Principal Curriculum Development
iv)
CQ&S/22/14 – Measuring Value Added June 2014
The Chairperson requested that a report detailing the up to date
situation with regard to Value Added information be provided at the
next meeting and on an ongoing basis at future Committee
meetings. The Deputy Principal commented that the additional
Curricular KPI’s had now been added to the Colleges KPI data.
Action: Executive Director Further & Vocational Studies
v)
CQ&S/23/14 – College Self-Assessment Report 2013/2014 –
Updated calendar and validation panels
The Vice Principal Quality & Standards provided the Committee with
details of the Self-Assessment calendar for 2013/2014. The report
also identified the matters that were considered at the validation
panel meetings. The Committee members raised a number of issues
Arising from the calendar which included:
2

A general comment that in future it would be helpful if
Governors who were involved in the validation panel meetings
and were given more notice in terms of receiving the papers
for the meeting. The Vice Principal commented that there had
been a few last minute changes that meant some of the
papers were sent out late but that in future adequate
preparation time would be given to Governors.
Action: Vice Principal Quality and Standards

The arrangements that were in place for the validation of work
based learning and apprenticeships and whether the
validation was undertaken as part of the curricular areas
validation panel meetings. The Vice Principal advised that
they were not currently and that this was an issue that needed
to be addressed in terms of teams taking ownership for work
based learning and apprenticeships within the curricular
departments. He further advised that there would be an
overriding self-assessment report for apprenticeships and that
the validation for both areas would take place if a little late.
The Chairperson commented that that this was a significant
issue and that management should clearly establish where
and how the areas were held to account.
Action: Vice Principal Quality and Standards
After due consideration it was noted that the calendar be noted and
that the Committee would consider a Draft Self-Assessment Report
at its next meeting.
Action: Vice Principal Quality and Standards
vi)
CQ&S/28/14 – Student Survey Report
The Chairperson asked what the date of the next meeting of the
Student Council was and was advised that it would be contained in
the College calendar the link details of which were referred to earlier
in the meeting.
There were no further matters arising from the minutes
CQ&S/38/14
Provisional Close Down Report on Success Rates 2013/2014
The Deputy Principal presented a report which detailed the College’s
interim success rates position by student cohort together with the best
case scenario for 2013/2014. The data also included the projected results
that had been shared with the FE Commissioner and Ofsted together with
RAG ratings. The report identified the outcomes with and without
functional skills as well as success rates summaries for work based
learning and Higher Education.
3
Members discussed the report in detail and made the following
comments/asked the following questions:



Retention was the key problem in the Colleges poor performance.
The Deputy Principal commented that the College would improve
its performance in 2014/2015 and the issues that the College had
had with student withdrawals would be resolved.
That there was not much difference between the outcomes with or
without functional skills with marginal improvements if functional
skills were included. The Deputy Principal outlined that functional
skills were not included in the data outcomes for 2012/2013 but
they had been 2013/2014.
It would have been helpful to have had the equivalent data for
2012/2013 and previous year’s data should in future be included in
the report to enable Governors to compare performance over time.
The Deputy Principal undertook to do this for future reports.
Action: Deputy Principal



Why the short course success rates were so low? The Deputy
Principal advised that there were still a lot of results to come in and
that she expected significant improvement on last year’s results.
The Chairperson commented that it was a big job to get the College
to the benchmark in 2014/2015 and that the aspiration should be to
get beyond the benchmark and ultimately to be in the top 10% of
Colleges.
The disappointing outcomes for Apprenticeships. The Deputy
Principal commented that the College will get to 70% success rate
going forward.
After due consideration of the report it was resolved that it be noted.
CQ&S/39/14
Student Induction Performance Report 2014/2015
The Vice Principal Curriculum Development presented a report which
provided the Committee with an overview of the College’s induction
programme. It was noted that the 2013/2014 programme had been
identified as being fragmented and uncoordinated across the College and
the Vice Principal identified the actions taken to improve student induction.
The report provided the Committee with the following information:


The role of Learner Services including team structure and the fact
that the teams were tasked with leading on Student Induction.
Induction Aims. A member asked how well the assessment of
learners and learning needs had been put in place. The Vice
Principal advised that all learners support needs had been
identified and put in place. 700 students had been identified as
having a support need and the College were currently working
through these with all progression mentors liaising with the
students over their learner support needs. A member asked who
undertook the support needs assessment and was advised that
4



they were made by the qualified assessors in Learner Services.
Induction outcomes and the induction process. A member asked
about the process for adult learners and was advised that there is a
handbook given to adults.
Student comments, late starts, impact on learners, at risk learners,
celebrating learner achievements and what could be improved. A
member asked if the students views on induction were included in
the student survey and were advised that they were. A member
asked how the need to re-enforce the need to wear ID badges with
staff was working this year and was advised that it was going well,
that there was more of a college wide approach to the matter and
that staff and managers were paying it greater attention due to the
Ofsted report.
A member commented that she was pleased to see the
arrangements for post induction feedback and that the co-ordinated
approach had led to impressive induction processes and
congratulated the staff involved.
After due consideration of the report it was resolved that it be noted.
CQ&S/40/14
Safeguarding our Learners – Annual Report to Stockport College
Executives and Board of the Corporation
The Vice Principal Curriculum Development presented a report which
provided the Committee with an overview of the College’s safeguarding
and protection issues.
The Vice Principal reported on the following matters:











Board Training and Development
The Safeguarding and protection Team
Safeguarding policies, procedures and statutory guidance.
Staff Code of Conduct
Safeguarding referrals
Commentary and Training
Outcomes from Student Perception of College
Bullying including cyber bullying
Education Visits
Drugs Policy
Work Based Health and Risk Assessment
Members raised a number of issues arising from the report which
included:

The high number of responses from students who strongly
disagreed with the statement ‘Do you feel safe whilst you are in
College and/or work placement?’ The Vice Principal acknowledged
that this was a disappointing outcome and outlined the action that
was being taken to investigate and address the matter. A member
asked if it was a localised issue and the Vice Principal advised that
it was spread across the College and gave examples of the
5


feedback received from students with regard to the matter. The
Vice Principal commented that some of the examples they had
come across were students who had no one to go to lunch with and
that although the figures were high there were no extensive
safeguarding issues arising from the managements investigations.
A member asked the Student Governor for his views on whether
students feel safe at College and he commented that it was a
matter that had been brought up at Student Council and that in
general terms things were a lot better than they used to be. He
further commented that the security provision was variable. The
Vice Principal commented that Learner safety was now part of the
central induction process and outlined the training that was
provided to staff on an ongoing basis.
Whether the College had adequate procedures in place for
Educational Visits? The Vice Principal outlined to the Committee
the procedures that the College has in place to ensure the safety of
learners whilst on educational visits.
Arrangements for DBS checks. The Vice Principal advised that they
were undertaken for all staff and that staff were not allowed to be
with students on their own until they had secured the appropriate
documentation. A member asked about checks on contractors on
the College premises and was advised that there were no
arrangements in place in this respect. It was suggested that in
future appointments of external contactors the College
requirements with regard to clearance should be written into the
contract.
Action: Vice Principal Curriculum Development




Whether there were any issues with unauthorised people coming
into the College? The Vice Principal commented that the initiative
with ID badges had helped with this and that the college
management was looking at the exit and entrance arrangements to
see if improvements could be made.
Safe guarding arrangements for Adults. The Vice Principal advised
that vulnerable adults are also covered by the College
Safeguarding policy and procedures.
Bullying. In answer to a question about bullying the Vice Principal
advised that the cases occurred within and without College (cyber)
and none of the cases involved staff.
A member commented that the statistics were very helpful and
thanked the Vice Principal for her very comprehensive report. It
was commented that it would be helpful for Governors to be aware
of the position with regard to staff training and DBS data. The Vice
Principal undertook to provide this in the next report.
Action: Vice Principal Curriculum Development

Whether the College carries out Impact assessments. The Vice
Principal commented that the College had a duty to carry out
impact assessments on all its policies and procedures and that this
was undertaken by the Human Resources Department.
6
After due consideration and discussion it was resolved that the Annual
Report be recommended to the Board of the Corporation for approval.
Action: Board of the Corporation
CQ&S/41/14
Enrolment and Curriculum KPI’s Report – October 2014
The Deputy Principal presented a report which detailed the current
progress against targets for the College’s Key Performance Indicators
relating to Curriculum, Quality and Students together with the recruitment
position for the main cohorts of Learners.
The Committee considered and discussed the progress against targets in
detail and in particular raised the following issues:

The confidence that management had in the data. The Deputy
Principal advised that the College had undertaken a data cleansing
day on the 3rd October 2014 which had resulted in the number of
students who had left the College increasing from 6 to 57 and that
the current number for 16-18 learners was 1775. The Deputy
Principal advised that 52 Younger learners had left since the start
of term and that the College were aware of who they were. A
member asked if there were any trends with regard to the
withdrawals and was advised that there were no identifiable trends
and that the College was actively managing the withdrawals
through direct contact with the students and that there had been 74
transfers between courses during the same period. A member
asked how this compared to last year and was advised that there
were significantly more (total of 300) withdrawals last year. The
Deputy Principal also outlined the ongoing action that management
undertook to ensure the validity of the data. A member commented
that it would be helpful if the information could also be presented
graphically and over a 2 year period in order that Governors could
see trends. The Deputy Principal undertook to do this and advised
that retention data comparing year on year performance would be
provided after the 42nd day.
Action: Deputy Principal


The main reasons for the under recruitment of around 600 16-18
learners. The Deputy Principal discussed a range of matters with
regard to this which included the withdrawal of A Level provision,
and other curricular areas such as Travel & Tourism and Motor
Cycle, the poor publicity around the Ofsted Inspection outcome, the
aligning of the curriculum to the LEP priorities and the decline in the
student cohort and the performance of local competitors.
Whether there were any specific curricular areas that had under
recruited. The Deputy Principal commented that recruitment was
down across the College and in particular in Business, IT, Art Level
3 and Construction and detailed the actions that the College was
taking especially with regard to the recruitment of NEETS and the
Re Focus initiative to recruit further students. The Deputy Principal
7

also advised that the College was talking to Younger Peoples
Worker team within the Borough and were looking to put on new
provision in Construction and Child Care after November 2014.
Whether student attendance was being actively followed up. The
Deputy Principal commented that an improved electronic register
system would be implemented by half term. The Deputy Principal
commented that she expected to see improvement with regard to
this KPI.
Action: Vice Principal Quality & Standards
After due discussion it was resolved that the report be noted.
CQ&S/42/14
Employability Policy
The Vice Principal Curriculum Development presented a report which
enabled the Committee to review the Colleges Employability Policy. The
report covered:










Scope of the area.
Statement of Principals
Learner Entitlement
Expected Outcomes for Learners
Process and implementation of the Policy
On –Line Employability
Employability Activities (Autumn Term 2014)
Voluntary Work
REED ncfe
Mentoring Scheme
The Committee considered the proposed policy in detail and made a
number of recommendations/comments as follows:




The policy should be expanded to cover Adult Learners and Higher
Education.
That the word “impartiality” should be added with reference to
Careers Guidance.
That there was little reference to Self- Employment in the Policy
and that this be made more explicit.
That it would be helpful to prepare case studies for the Ofsted reinspection which would support the data and that destination data
would also be very beneficial in this respect.
The Vice Principal thanked the Committee for their comments and
undertook to implement the appropriate action.
Action: Vice Principal Curriculum Development
8
After due consideration and discussion it was resolved that the
Employability Policy 2014 be recommended to the Board of the
Corporation for approval subject to the aforementioned changes.
Action: Board of the Corporation
CQ&S/43/14
Comments, Compliments & Complaints – October 2014
The Vice Principal Quality & Standards presented a report which detailed
the Colleges performance in respect of comments, compliments and
complaints.
The Committee considered and discussed the report in detail and noted
the management actions that would be taken in relation to the issues
raised in the report which included:



Improving the timeliness and accuracy of information provided to learners
through the Information, Advice and Guidance process.
Improve teaching and Learning.
Improve support for learners across the College and the customer focus
of all staff.
Action: Vice Principal Quality & Standards
After due consideration and discussion it was resolved that the report be
noted.
CQ&S/44/14
Equality & Diversity Annual Report 2013/2014
The Vice Principal Curriculum Development presented the Annual
Equality and Diversity Report which provided a summary of the
participation, success, retention and achievement of students for
2013/2014 by ethnicity, disability and gender. The report also included
information relating to the staff profiles, progress on equality objectives
and action plan and KPI’s for 2014/2015.
The Committee discussed and considered the report in detail and raised a
number of issues arising from the report including:


The decline over a three year period of success rates and the gap
between BME and white performance rates and what the College
was doing to address the issue. The Vice Principal commented that
achievement was the main issue and that the College had in place
a wide range of activities in place to improve performance. This
included a very detailed Equality & Diversity Plan and the
establishment of an Equality and Diversity Committee. Members
commented that it was important to identify trends and take into
account the number of students within the headline figures. It was
also commented that analysis should also be available at curricular
area level.
The comparison of the staff and student profiles and the Colleges
recruitment activities which could impact on the recruitment of staff
9
with an ethnic background. The Vice Principal commented that she
was not aware of a College in this regard and would pick it up
through the Resources Committee. A member asked if KPI’s had
been set for staff and students in terms of Equality and Diversity.
The Vice Principal that they had not been as yet but would be
established shortly.
Action: Vice Principal Curriculum Development

The high numbers of “not knowns” relating to staff ethnicity
(12.04%).The Vice Principal undertook to look into the matter. With
regard to disability a member commented that it would be helpful to
have a sub analysis with regard to the different types of disability.
Action: Vice Principal Curriculum Development
After due consideration and discussion it was resolved that the Equality
and Diversity Annual Report be recommended to the Board of the
Corporation for approval.
Action: Board of the Corporation
CQ&S/45/14
Staff Development Report October 2014
The Teaching and Learning Manager presented a report which updated
the Committee concerning issues relating to Staff Development and the
Improvement of Teaching and Learning. The report highlighted the
following matters:

The implementation of a new structure for managing staff
development with an emphasis on management training,
improvement of teaching learning and assessment and cultural
change. The report also identified the developments that had been
undertaken with regard to advanced lecturers, supporting new
teachers and those who are not consistently good, learning
squares, the regularisation of staff development, cultural change
and the setting of challenging targets.
The Committee asked a number of questions/made a number of
comments arising from the report as follows:

What was the budget for staff development? The manager
commented she did not know the figure but that it was shared with
Quality Improvement.

Do the CAM’s have a teaching commitment? The Manger
commented that they do not currently as they have large and
diverse areas to manage but that they do provide cover as required
and that the Deputy CAM’s have a teaching commitment.
After due consideration and discussion it was resolved that the report be
noted.
10
CQ&S/46/14
Any Other Business
There were no matters raised under any other business.
CQ&S/47/14
Date of Next Meeting
It was agreed that the next meeting would ne held at 5.30pm on Monday
17th November 2014.
The meeting closed at 7.38pm.
11

Download Report