Bilborough College Ofsted Report

Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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Full report

What does the college need to do to improve further?

 Equip teachers with the skills and data they require to monitor students’ progress in relation to their prior attainment and to intervene swiftly when progress is not rapid enough.  Provide teachers with training to plan lessons that challenge all students in order that a higher proportion successfully achieves both their qualifications and high grades.  Ensure that teachers have a thorough understanding of the range of assessment activities that they can use during lessons to monitor students’ progress and that they implement them well.  Share the good practice that already exists to promote more thoughtful questioning by all teachers in all lessons.  Ensure that all teachers give students enough meaningful work to do outside their lessons so that students consolidate their understanding and gain a wider interest in the subject.  Teachers must assess work more thoroughly so that students know exactly what they have achieved and what they need to do to improve.  Improve the usefulness of the targets teachers set for students by ensuring that teachers identify what each student needs to work on and then set appropriate targets.  Equip the managers who make judgements about the quality of teaching, learning and assessment with a broader range of criteria on which to base their judgements other than just the graded observation of lessons.  Governors and leaders should ensure that those managers that are currently underperforming receive appropriate training and better management of their performance so that they are more able to evaluate and improve provision and become properly accountable for students’ achievements.

Inspection judgements

Outcomes for learners

Requires improvement  All students are on study programmes at level 3. The very small minority who have not achieved a GCSE high-grade pass in either English or mathematics re-sit this qualification alongside their main programme. The subject areas inspected account for just over half of the provision. The other substantial numbers are in performing and visual arts, business, media and humanities. A large proportion of students take either general studies or the extended project qualification in their second year.  The proportion of students that successfully achieve their qualifications is below the rate for similar colleges and requires improvement. The decline in students’ success rates has reversed with a modest increase in 2013/14. However, too many students still do not achieve their AS-level qualifications. The proportion of students achieving high grades is low in the majority of subjects. Students make progress broadly in line with their prior attainment.  Overall success rate figures mask large inconsistencies between subjects. For example, students on the International Baccalaureate and those taking modern languages, performing arts, electronics and product design achieve particularly well and make extremely good progress. Conversely, students taking mathematics, sociology and economics have very low success rates and students taking English language have made poor progress over a number of years.  Students’ attendance rates were high during the inspection and this mirrors the college’s own data. Students arrive at their lessons on time, enthusiastic to learn. In a minority of lessons, students’ progress exceeds the level the qualification requires. For example, in an A-level French Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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lesson, students demonstrated a high level of skill by their spontaneous use of the target language. However, in other subjects, for example mathematics, the standard at which students work is insufficiently challenging to prepare them effectively for their examinations.  Significant differences exist between the achievements of some groups of students. Males achieve less well than females and students from a small number of minority ethnic groups achieve less well than white British students do. Students with learning difficulties and/or disabilities achieve well. The small proportion of students with barriers to their learning make very good progress as a result of the excellent personalised support and appropriate adjustments to the learning environment that staff provide.  Students benefit from the wider aspects of their study programmes. They participate in a wide variety of suitable activities to prepare them for work including interview practice, careers fairs and business challenges. The majority of students undertake appropriate work experience. All students complete a piece of extended study in their second year which helps them to develop both their research skills and their ability to learn independently of their teachers. The extensive enrichment programme enables students to gain the wider skills that they will need as they move to the next stage in their lives.  Students continue to develop their English skills very well through their main programmes and the proportion of students achieving a high grade in GCSE English is above the national rate. The corresponding rate for GCSE mathematics requires improvement.  The large majority of students apply to higher education and successfully obtain a place at their first-choice university. The courses that they go on to study match well to their initial goals and ambitions. A small proportion of students progress straight into employment or to apprenticeships. In every case, students benefit from the comprehensive and specialist guidance that they receive from staff. College managers have been very successful in obtaining the destination of every student who left the college in the previous academic year.

The quality of teaching, learning and assessment

Requires improvement  Teaching, learning and assessment are not sufficiently good to improve students’ outcomes rapidly enough. Teachers have too little focus on the impact they are having on students’ learning. The majority do not assess students’ progress sufficiently well and do not have high enough expectations of what students can achieve. Consequently, the proportion of students that achieve their qualifications, obtain high grades and make good progress remains low.  Teachers’ planning of learning pays insufficient attention to ensuring that all students are working at an appropriate level. In too many lessons, students work on exactly the same activities. As a result, the more-able students finish quickly, become bored and wait for something more challenging to do while other students often struggle to complete tasks in the time available and move on before fully understanding the previous topic.  Teachers assess students’ prior attainment accurately and identify their ambitions and any barriers to learning systematically. Staff make good use of this information to implement effective support. For example, teachers provide well-considered support in the independent learning areas for students who are underperforming, providing these students with time and expert guidance on how to learn independently of their teacher and enabling them to improve. However, too few students benefit from this because teachers do not enforce the requirement for students to attend.  Teachers’ assessment of students’ work and progress, both in lessons and over time, is weak. Teachers often rush activities in lessons and do not give enough time to checking that students have understood or consolidated their learning. A minority of teachers’ questioning is good, for example in philosophy where students give thoughtful and perceptive answers to teachers’ carefully considered questions. However, too much questioning is superficial, requiring one-word Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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answers. Teachers do not use questioning well enough to bring in other students to widen understanding and generate discussion and interest.  Teachers mark and return work to students promptly, but the usefulness of the written feedback they provide is variable. Comments that teachers make are often too brief and do not give students the information they need to improve their work. A minority of teachers do not set enough independent work for students to do.  Teachers’ monitoring of progress against target grades and the setting of short-term targets require improvement. Most of these targets are not specific enough to be useful. Where teachers do set individual targets, too frequently they do not monitor carefully enough whether or not students are meeting them.  Teachers use resources well and the accommodation provides a good learning environment. Teachers use information and learning technology (ILT) effectively in most subjects. Students benefit from a virtual learning environment (VLE) that contains much stimulating material and encourages them to continue their learning away from their lessons. However, teachers do not monitor the use of the VLE well enough and consequently do not know how effective it is in helping students to improve their wider learning.  Teachers develop students’ mathematical skills well in those areas where it readily presents itself, but they are less adept at doing so in subjects where the opportunities require more thought. For example, in tutorials, students calculate their minimum target grades and the increased marks they need in order to improve their subject grades, and they use mathematics well in considering how to survive on a budget. In science, students make good use of a wide range of mathematical techniques in collecting and analysing the results of practical work. However, in English and the arts, teachers do not plan sufficiently well to identify and take advantage of appropriate opportunities to develop students’ mathematical skills.  Teachers develop students’ English skills very well. For example, they highlight the need for accurate and sophisticated language in higher-education personal statements and they focus effectively on developing students’ study skills, note taking and essay writing. Classroom displays reinforce the importance of the correct use of subject and assessment terminology. Many enrichment activities such as the book club and debating society develop students’ use of language. Teachers provide useful support sessions for students who identify that they need extra help in developing their English.  Teachers provide good individual advice and guidance throughout the students’ time at the college. They have devised study programmes that match carefully to students’ goals and ambitions. Teachers ensure that students are studying an appropriate combination of subjects, they develop students’ understanding of the workplace with well-considered activities and work experience and they give students effective guidance for both careers and higher education.  Staff promote both equality and diversity well through the pastoral curriculum and the wide range of clubs, societies and enrichment activities. For example, faith groups work together to organise projects and debates. Teachers and students have organised thought-provoking events on gay rights in Africa and on girls’ rights to an education in Afghanistan. Students mark annual events such as Chinese New Year and the holocaust memorial. The Amnesty International group develops thinking on human rights. However, teachers’ planning for the promotion of diversity during lessons and for their teaching to meet the needs of all students are both areas that require improvement. Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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Science

16-19 study programmes

Good

Teaching, learning and assessment in science are good because:

 although the higher student outcomes in 2013/14 still require further improvement, in the current year students are making good progress; this is evident in retention and attendance that are now high and significantly better results in mid-term examinations compared to the equivalent examinations in the previous year  teachers use a range of stimulating activities well in theory lessons to help explain scientific ideas and concepts, checking learning frequently; as a result, students are attentive and enjoy learning, arriving promptly and benefitting from the informal support that teachers offer at the end of lessons  teachers now have much higher expectations of what their students can achieve; they ensure that all students do an appropriate amount of independent study and research and they monitor and assess this work well  teachers give good quality information, advice and guidance relating to students’ next steps both on entry to the college and during their courses; most students who take at least one science subject progress onto a science-related degree course  support for students is extensive and teachers identify students who require this support promptly; for example, physics students benefit from extra timetabled sessions to support them with mathematics  the excellent culture of mutual respect that teachers foster promotes effective collaborative learning  the good level of resources available including well-equipped laboratories, stimulating visual displays and useful materials on the VLE, motivate students well and enable them to understand the relevance of science to their lives and future careers.

Science is not yet outstanding because:

 teachers have not implemented improvements sufficiently well in all subjects; in physics for example, a minority of students struggle to master the concepts and teachers do not always routinely check understanding quickly enough to ensure every student makes good progress  teachers do not share best practice sufficiently well to ensure improvements in teaching, learning and assessment are fully translated into improved student outcomes in every subject  teachers’ written feedback on assessed work is not consistently good enough; in areas where teachers make less effective use of peer or other forms of assessment and feedback, a minority of students do not receive clear, specific guidance on what they need to do to improve  teachers do not support the development of students’ verbal reasoning skills well enough; they do not make best use of questions which require longer answers that would require students to explain, evaluate, debate, conclude or justify. Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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Mathematics and Statistics

16-19 study programmes

Inadequate

Teaching, learning and assessment in mathematics and statistics are inadequate because:

 success rates have fallen over the last three years and are well below the national rates for similar colleges; students make poor progress relative to their prior attainment, particularly in A-level mathematics and AS-level further mathematics  teachers use learning activities that are insufficiently challenging to enable students to gain knowledge, skills and understanding; activities do not promote independent learning or stimulate students’ interest in the subject and this leads to underachievement, particularly for the more able students  teachers do not use their knowledge of students’ starting points when planning lessons; all students work on the same activity and as a result the more-able finish quickly and get bored and the less-able make very limited progress  most students are unsure how to improve their skills and knowledge further because teachers’ assessment practices require improvement; teachers set targets that are insufficiently detailed or tailored to the individual student and consequently too few students achieve higher grades  teachers do not expect students to complete sufficient work on their own and as a result many students do not consolidate sufficiently well on one topic before moving on to the next  teachers do not respond well enough to students’ lack of understanding; they do not assess students’ work well, check understanding frequently enough or follow up on any additional work they have set  students’ folders are often incomplete, lacking assessed work and notes that will help them to prepare properly for examinations  teachers’ questioning is often superficial and does not involve other students who could support or build on the answers their peers provide.

In mathematics and statistics, the college has the following strengths:

 students find teachers approachable and benefit from the support and time teachers offer to them outside lessons  students’ attendance rates are high and they demonstrate a good working ethos  teachers use a wide range of interactive resources to support students’ learning including use of the VLE and posting examples from lessons online; students find these resources helpful if they are working independently on a difficult topic  teachers make good reference to mathematicians from different backgrounds that reflect the diversity of the college community well. Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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Social Sciences

16-19 study programmes

Requires improvement

Teaching, learning and assessment in social sciences require improvement because:

 success rates are low in economics, sociology and politics; the proportion of students who achieve high grades is below the rate for similar colleges and a minority of students make insufficient progress  too few teachers plan and prepare activities that meet the specific needs of individual students  teachers often rush activities which stops students having enough time to explore and complete tasks or to consolidate their learning effectively; teachers do not always give students precise enough directions on what they want them to achieve  teachers do not always challenge and help students to develop deeper levels of understanding  the quality of written feedback returned to students is inconsistent; although a minority is good, for example in geography, in economics, teachers’ comments are too short and they do not explain how students can improve their assignments  individual targets are often too general to motivate students to progress and succeed  teachers do not develop students’ mathematical skills well, missing quick opportunities to do so in many lessons; teachers do not always correct poor grammar, spelling and punctuation when assessing and returning written work.

In social sciences, the college has the following strengths:

 enthusiastic geography teachers who have high standards and expectations which motivate and interest students very well and lead to high success rates in this subject area  teachers who check students’ progress particularly well in lessons through questions, quizzes and other assessment activities  the good support students receive from friendly and approachable subject teachers who provide very effective extra support sessions to help students improve their understanding and work  the good use teachers make of information and communication technology to ensure that students and particularly their parents and guardians have online access to targets  a very good range of relevant field trips and enrichment activities that promote further learning and stimulate students to take a wider interest in their subjects  teachers’ good use of resources to help students to improve their learning; sociology students benefit from particularly helpful course books, geography students receive interesting weekly online materials relating to current events, and government and politics students make strong use of tablet computers to improve their research skills  particularly precise use of English and social science terminology by students in a clear and confident manner in lessons  a harmonious and inclusive environment for students to learn in, that ensures they respect and value each other’s contributions  strong encouragement and development by teachers of students’ wider understanding of the cultures of other peoples through particularly effective references in lessons and research topics. Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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English

16-19 study programmes

Requires improvement

Teaching, learning and assessment in English require improvement because:

 most students do not make the progress expected of them relative to their prior attainment and initiatives to resolve this have so far failed to bring about improvement; the proportion of students gaining high grades at AS and A level is low and declined further in 2013/14 in A-level English language and AS-level English literature  in most lessons teachers do not tailor teaching to individual needs and do not challenge all students appropriately; in particular, they often do not encourage the more able students to develop higher-level skills  teachers’ management of time in lessons frequently does not assist learning; activities go on too long and lack drive and urgency so that students lose focus on what they are studying  students’ use of literary and linguistic terminology is insufficiently sophisticated and frequently limited to recall and description rather than evaluation and analysis; they often present their views using language which is too informal  assessment for learning in lessons is not well-developed and teachers’ checking of learning and understanding is often cursory; for example, students may engage in a productive group activity, but have no opportunity to consolidate or share their work  teachers do not make good use of ILT to improve learning; for example, the laptop computers students use in lessons often malfunction so they are unable to work productively and waste time  staff do not consistently implement measures to resolve underperformance by students; teachers identify students who are at risk, but interventions to support them are insufficiently rigorous and additional support sessions are voluntary for most students  managers do not ensure that the good practice within the subject areas is shared, particularly in English language where the quality of teaching is most variable  the VLE for the subject area has a range of useful resources, but teachers do not encourage students to access these and do not monitor students’ use of these resources well enough.

In English, the college has the following strengths:

 teachers are knowledgeable and committed and students benefit from, and are appreciative of, their teachers’ supportive approach; this leads to success rates that are broadly in line with the high rates of similar colleges  students are enthusiastic and keen to learn  teaching, learning and assessment have improved in the current academic year through focused staff development, although it is too soon to judge the full impact  students benefit from an attractive and dynamic learning environment, with extensive displays including posters, careers information, subject-specific material and examples of students’ work. Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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The effectiveness of leadership and management

Requires improvement  In the last two years, the principal and governors have re-defined the college’s mission, re-structured the senior management team and re-focused governance because they had recognised the need to make rapid improvements across the college. While these measures have improved students’ overall performance and led to staff having higher expectations of students, the pace of change has not been rapid enough to secure good outcomes or good teaching, learning and assessment for all students.  Governors now have good access to pertinent, well-presented information on the performance of courses including the quality of teaching learning and assessment. They have a good understanding of the strengths and areas for improvement in the college and use this information to ask the right questions and to hold senior managers to account.  Leaders and managers are implementing strengthened arrangements for the management of staff performance diligently and sensitively. Staff not at the required standard receive mentoring and support to improve, or enter capability procedures. As a result, managers have made staff changes, but it is too early to judge the full impact of these arrangements.  Managers have an appropriate scheme for observing the quality of teaching, learning and assessment, but it is not leading to rapid improvement. College managers accurately evaluate the quality of teaching, and while the results inform staff development well, they do not always inform teachers’ development plans in sufficient detail. Teachers receiving an inadequate grade at observation are re-observed immediately. However, those that require improvement are not obliged to engage in improving their teaching.  Self-assessment is well established. It is informed by subject area reports and student views. The judgements in the cross-college report on outcomes and aspects of leadership and management are broadly accurate. However, judgements on teaching, learning and assessment rely too heavily on lesson observations, do not take sufficient account of assessment and fail to highlight areas for improvement sufficiently. Self-assessment reports for subject areas and quality improvement plans focus mainly on data and actions to resolve identified shortfalls in outcomes. Only a few reports highlight how key aspects of teaching and learning can be improved, or refer to assessment.  A lack of consistency across management at subject and faculty level is hampering rapid improvement across the college. The college does have a number of strong subject managers who communicate effectively with senior managers and teachers, use data well to monitor students’ progress closely and devise detailed action plans that are leading to rapid improvements in provision. However, a few managers both within and between departments adopt approaches to teaching, assessment, support, and monitoring of student progress that are less effective and do not improve their courses.  Managers have adopted a more systematic approach to tackling underperforming courses in the last year. In 2013/14, they made it a priority to intervene in all courses previously graded as inadequate. All improved, some courses substantially. However, a minority of the larger programmes, graded as requires improvement, did not have the same level of intervention, and did not improve their performance. As a result, the majority of subject areas continue to require improvement.  Leaders and managers have devised a study programme that effectively ensures that the vast majority of students who complete their course achieve their intended destination. The programme enables students to engage in work-related activity, to achieve additional qualifications and develop independent learning skills.  College leaders have appropriate links with the local enterprise partnership (LEP) and are aware of how the college curriculum offer, particularly the sciences, contributes to meeting LEP priorities. Managers are also in the early stages of broadening the curriculum offer by extending Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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the availability of vocational courses to meet the needs of students who want to pursue this route.  All staff foster an inclusive and welcoming learning environment and successfully promote a culture of tolerance, respect and harmony between teachers and students and amongst students. Managers do not tolerate any form of bullying or harassment and governors receive full reports on equality matters.  Managers monitor well the performance of different groups who successfully complete their qualifications and have devised a range of actions to resolve identified underperformance. However, this has not led to closing the performance gap between the more successful white British students and minority ethnic students overall. Managers do not routinely monitor different groups of students’ participation in other aspects of college life such as enrichment. Teachers’ ability to integrate diversity into the curriculum varies across subjects.  The safeguarding of all students is good. All staff receive mandatory safeguarding training every two years. In the last year, staff training has focused on internet safety. Safer recruitment practices are in place and the single central register that details the status of Disclosure and Barring Service checks for all staff is comprehensive and up-to-date. Designated officers for this area have received enhanced training and a governor chairs the safeguarding committee. Managers have good links with local agencies, including local safeguarding boards.  Managers have good links with the local team for the Prevent Strategy and they have developed a good response to the agenda for this area. Key staff have had appropriate training and managers have dealt with a recent issue sensitively and effectively. Staff have been well informed through bulletins. Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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Record of Main Findings (RMF) Bilborough College

Inspection grades are based on a provider’s performance: 1: Outstanding 2: Good 3: Requires improvement 4: Inadequate Overall effectiveness Outcomes for learners The quality of teaching, learning and assessment The effectiveness of leadership and management

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Subject areas graded for the quality of teaching, learning and assessment Grade

Science Mathematics and Statistics Social Sciences English

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Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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Provider details Type of provider

Sixth form college

Age range of learners

16-18

Approximate number of all learners over the previous full contract year

1,756

Principal/CEO

Mr Chris Bradford

Date of previous inspection

March 2009

Website address

www.bilborough.ac.uk

Provider information at the time of the inspection Main course or learning programme level

Level 1 or Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 below and above

Total number of learners (excluding apprenticeships) Number of apprentices by Apprenticeship level and age Number of traineeships

16-18 19+ 16-18 19+ 16-18 19+ 16-18 19+ N/A N/A N/A N/A 1,756 N/A N/A N/A

Intermediate Advanced Higher

16-18 N/A 19+ N/A 16-18 N/A 19+ N/A 16-18 N/A 19+ N/A

16-19 N/A 19+ N/A Total N/A

Number of learners aged 14-16

N/A Full-time N/A Part-time N/A

Number of community learners

N/A Number of employability learners N/A

Funding received from

Education Funding Agency (EFA)

At the time of inspection the provider contracts with the following main subcontractors:

 N/A Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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Contextual information

Bilborough College is a large sixth form college providing mainly A-level education in the East Midlands. The college attracts students from large areas of Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire as well as from the city of Nottingham. Unemployment in the areas around the college is significantly higher than in the East Midlands generally or nationally. A large proportion of the working population have employment in the manual, service and caring industries. The proportion of adults educated to level 2 or level 3 is broadly in line with both the regional and national rates. The proportion of school leavers achieving five A* to C grades at GCSE including English and mathematics is rising year on year, but it is still well below the regional and national rates.

Information about this inspection

Lead inspector

Stewart Jackson HMI

Two of Her Majesty’s Inspectors (HMI) and five additional inspectors, assisted by the Director of Teaching and Learning as nominee, carried out the inspection with short notice. Inspectors took account of the college’s most recent self-assessment report and development plans, and the previous inspection report. Inspectors also used data on learners’ achievements over the last three years to help them make judgements. Inspectors used group and individual interviews, telephone calls and online questionnaires to gather the views of learners and employers; these views are reflected throughout the report. They observed learning sessions, assessments and progress reviews. The inspection took into account all relevant provision at the college. Inspectors looked at the quality of teaching, learning and assessment across all of the provision and graded the sector subject areas listed in the report above. Inspection report: Bilborough College, 20–23 January 2015

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What inspection judgements mean

Grade

Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 3 Grade 4

Judgement

Outstanding Good Requires improvement Inadequate Detailed grade characteristics can be viewed in the Handbook for the inspection of further education and skills 2012, Part 2: www.gov.uk/government/publications/handbook-for-the-inspection-of-further-education-and-skills-from-september-2012

Any complaints about the inspection or the report should be made following the procedures set out in the guidance ‘Raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

Learner View is a website where learners can tell Ofsted what they think about their college or provider. They can also see what other learners think about them too. To find out more go to www.learnerview.ofsted.gov.uk

Employer View is a new website where employers can tell Ofsted what they think about their employees’ college or provider. They can also see what other employers think about them too. To find out more go to www.employerview.ofsted.gov.uk