CANTERBURY COLLEGE Higher Education Strategic Plan 2014-16 1
CONTENTS 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2 INTRODUCTION 3 POSITIONAL STATEMENT 4 KEY STRATEGIC AIMS/ STRATEGIC INTEGRATION APPENDIX ONE: Key strategic risks APPENDIX TWO: Action plan 2
CANTERBURY COLLEGE HIGHER EDUCATION STRATEGY OUR MISSION IS TO BE THE BEST IN TEACHING & LEARNING 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The HE Strategy outlines Canterbury College s commitment to the continual development and enhancement of its Higher Education provision, while retaining a distinctive demand-led offer in response to local, regional and national agendas. The rationale for the HE Strategy is to strengthen the College HE ethos, promoting a unified approach and consistent practice in the management, development and operation of its HE provision with a view to growing this provision in line with the College s Strategic Plan and the articulation of 4 HE key aims and associated targets. The stated purpose of HE provision within Canterbury College is to widen participation to those social and economic groups in the local and regional community who may not otherwise be able to access education at level 4 and above. In tandem, its aim is to provide higher level skills and specific vocational skills to meet demand for employment in the local and regional economy. The College identifies that partnerships with employers are essential to the sustainability of the HE provision and is seeking to strengthen work based learning and active employer involvement in all its HE programmes. The impact of the College s HE provision is currently mixed. The widening participation strategies (maintaining low fees and entry requirements) and range of provision have not yet resulted in a parity of recruitment: the majority of HE learners are 19-23 years old and male. Falling recruitment follows a 3 year trend (2010-2013) across all age groups. The faculty s ethnic profile mirrors that of the Canterbury local area with between 85% and 89% of students in any one year being White British with the next highest group White Other. Most HE students join from the local area, 30% from within 5 miles of the college. The consistently highest rate of participation is from the affluent post code CT1 and the lowest from TN24 - an area of social deprivation where HE participation rates are low. International students do not yet form a significant part of the student body at less than 1%. Achievement data has identified the best performing HE courses as HND Animal Science, HND Construction, HNC Engineering, BA Visual Art and HND Business within 14 Higher Education pathways. There is therefore a need to undertake a review of provision to ensure those niche areas that are both high quality and in demand are able to expand, while underperforming provision is reduced. Progression data - both internal and external identifies a more systematic approach is necessary to build student progression routes within the College and to further higher qualifications. For instance, 13% start a degree top-up year and 27% gain employment with either a new employer or remaining with an existing employer. In 2014/15, recruitment was strong to Pre-Access and Access suggesting greater use could be made of FE pathways to build recruitment internally to the HE Faculty. The HE Faculty has been responsive to recent developments. These include successfully bidding for direct funding by HEFCE for some provision in 2012/13; the opening of the purpose-built HE Centre in August 2013; and the appointment of a new Dean to oversee the recommendations from the QAA HE Review 2014. The College has begun to integrate the recommendations of the QAA Action plan into its development activities including the changes to the management structure to enhance strategic oversight of the provision by the HE Committee and ensure closer benchmarking of new policies and activities against the QAA Quality Code, such as the Employability and Enhancement. 3
Government sources have raised the possibility of potential changes to the student loans system for Higher Nationals as well as the assured ending of student number controls within the next two years. These require the College to take a risk-based approach to developing Foundation Degrees to offset potential disruption to recruitment. In addition, greater emphasis will be placed on expanding the number of Higher Apprenticeships in partnership with employers and the Business Development Unit. The provision of Higher Education is an intrinsic part of the overall College Strategic Plan and cross-college strategies and policies. The College reaffirms its commitment within the HE strategy to the development and enhancement of its HE provision by setting out four KEY Strategic Aims to achieve this over a two year timeframe (2014-16). Each theme has an overarching objective with associated targets monitored on an annual basis to inform the development plans for the following year. These themes are: 1. Quality Enhancement 2. Employability 3. Partnerships 4. Sustainability & Progression. 4
2. INTRODUCTION Canterbury College is committed to the continual development and enhancement of its Higher Education provision while retaining a distinctive demand-led offer in response to local, regional and national agendas. This strategy articulates how the College plans to enhance and sustain its offer through its direct contract with the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and with its franchised university partnerships. The timing of this updated strategy coincides with the outcome of the QAA 2014 HE Review and important changes nationally in the HE sector that primarily affect funding and student number controls. These latter developments potentially affect our HEI partnerships and our recruitment strategies. It is therefore important that the College positons its HE provision to stand out in an increasingly competitive market by developing HE niche provision in tandem with local needs and its internal progression routes. This will maintain its reputation as a College providing high quality HE and help sustain viability and growth. This strategy has been developed for the period 2014-2016 in consultation with members of the Canterbury College Higher Education Committee (including external stakeholders) and has been approved by the college governors. The HE Strategy and action plan will be formally reviewed in 2016, but will be subject to annual review. 3. POSITIONAL STATEMENT Canterbury College is a general Further Education College located close to the city centre offering a wide range of provision for 14-19 year old and adults. There were approximately 5,100 full-time and 1,100 part-time students of which almost 4 % were studying for high level awards in 2013/14. Its provision is located at one site, plus a small satellite college on the Isle of Sheppey. The majority of the Canterbury site is new, purposebuilt accommodation, with a new Higher Education Centre that opened in August 2013. The College successfully bid to the Higher Education Funding Council (HEFCE) for a directly funded contract under the core/margin process, with the first students enrolled directly with Canterbury College for 2012-13. Higher Education forms one of seven faculties at Canterbury College and is part of one of the two academic Directorates. It is led by a newly appointed Dean of Higher Education, who is a member of the Senior Management Team. The faculty has its own management and teaching team with additional support from the Higher Education Curriculum Development Officer and the HE Marketing officer. In 2013/14 there were 400 higher education students enrolled at the College. (373 FTEs) comprising 346 fulltime students and 54 part time students. These students were enrolled on 17 Higher National Diplomas HNDs (270), five Higher National Certificates HNCs (48), and 5 BA/BSc top-up degree programmes (82 students of which 76 were full-time and 6 part-time. ) Most of the part-time students were in local employment, with the majority studying Higher National Certificates and the remainder on part-time degree top-up programmes. Top-up degrees have been offered by the College since 2002 to encourage progression from HNDs and this has proved successful with high progression rates averaging 81%. Within the FE curriculum areas, the College also delivers a small amount of non-prescribed Higher Education in a limited number of subjects (accounting, health and social care, counselling) in response to statutory requirements and local demand for skills at this level. 5
Locally Local HE competition is primarily from the three universities based in Canterbury. The closest Further Education Colleges which offer Higher Education are West Kent College in Tonbridge, and MidKent College at Maidstone. In an area where qualification levels are below the national average, Canterbury college aims to offer an HE vocational provision that is not replicated locally and which will widen access by removing barriers for non-traditional entrants such as high fees and restrictive entry requirements. Higher Nationals continue to recruit strongly in some areas and remain the qualification of choice for most new entrants. Recent local labour market information produced by Kent County Council indicates that the key sectors for growth include the professional occupation and the knowledge based economy: information and communications, financial/insurance and administration. The arts, entertainment and recreation sector is also a small but growing sector. Growth is also strong in the wholesale/retail trades, accommodation and food services. Some of these areas are currently insufficiently represented in the College HE portfolio and there is also scope for greater PRSB involvement in the accreditation of programmes to aid recruitment through increased marketability. There have been marked falls in public sector employment in health, education and public administration; construction and marketing. The public/private sector mix is now equal to the Kent average, with public sector employment slightly higher than South East levels. [Sourced from the District Datapack lite The post 16 landscape in Canterbury in 2014. ] The Council is also keen to work with Canterbury providers to increase the numbers of young people in apprenticeships, including level 4. Regionally The relationship with the neighbouring universities has facilitated productive partnerships at curriculum level and support for quality enhancement activities. Competition from local HEIs is expected to increase following the removal of student number controls in 20015/16. The College is an active member of Kent Association of Further Education Corporations (KAFEC). In addition to coordinating opportunities for lecturing staff to share good practice and scholarly activity across Kent eg HE conference, membership also provides the benefit of substantial group discounts on educational products. The South East Local Enterprise Partnership LEP (a strategic economic partnership between businesses and other stakeholders including Local Authorities and Colleges) has secured a 442.2 Growth Deal from the government in 2014. One of its four priorities is raising skills including significant investment in teaching premises and equipment focused on priority fields such as science and engineering. This reflects the current government s priorities for funding of STEM subjects. The LEP is also seeking to support development of skills in digital media. Nationally Policy announcements from the Coalition government have had a direct impact on the College HE sector in recent years that have both facilitated its expansion and its obligations. The impact of the HE 2011 White Paper (2011) (core and margin bidding process; Key Information Sets; a new QAA UK Quality code: new HE Review methods) and Brown Review of Fees 2012 have come into effect. 6
The continuing government support for work based learning and vocational skills has been articulated through a number of strategic policy documents for England: (2010 skills for sustainable growth) that was extended in 2013 (Rigour and Responsiveness in skills); The future of apprenticeships in England: Next steps from the Richard Review 2013; and The Enterprise for All report by Lord Young published June 2014. The current government HE focus therefore remains on vocational skills in terms of enterprise skills and the STEM subjects: Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics. Funding for training for apprenticeships will be devolved to employers in 2016. Changes are also being made to simplify the qualifications to make them more relevant to employers. The impact of these changes on their recruitment and delivery is not yet clear. Future key changes nationally that have the potential to affect Canterbury College s HE provision include: a. the removal of the HE student number controls in 15/16 building on the AAB and ABB grade exemptions (HEFCE grant letter from BIS 10.02.14) with the subsequent expected increase in competition from local universities; b. the potential opening up of the loan system to 19-23 year olds, and relocation of Higher Nationals under the FE Advanced Learning Loan system for which the public consultation period has now closed (August 2014). Ministers are likely to announce their decision in November or December after which the Student Loan Company SLC will take ownership. Systems and rules will be put in place in 2015 and the new loans will on available from 2016. As the majority of College s HE provision consists largely of Higher Nationals, the Association of College s response to the above consultation is useful in summarising the potential challenges ahead affecting recruitment and choice: a. the reduction in access to HE maintenance grants for full-time students and to additional HEFCE funding for those on more expensive courses; b. the fall in numbers of students on non-prescribed HE courses generally; c. Foundation degrees may become more desirable to learners due to financial reasons which will increase the control of universities on the development of higher vocational education and consequently a subsequent loss of flexibility around validation. Finally, the outcome of the General Election in 2015 could possibly result in a change of government and subsequent further developments in the sector. Internationally Canterbury College currently does not recruit many HE international students (approximately 15-20 students annually on international visas). The majority of these students are on short courses. A lack of managed student accommodation and an insufficient offer to overseas students are possibly the limiting factors. Current international students are predominantly on ESF-linked European Student Exchanges and the Swedish Exchange Project. The College s International Development strategy aims to double the number of international students (excluding Swedish students) on FE and HE courses by 2015. Partnerships Canterbury College continues to offer franchised Higher Education provision with the local University of Kent and Canterbury Christ Church University. The College has indirectly-funded provision franchised by the University of Kent - mainly the BA and BSc top-up degrees. The University of Kent also validates the College s directly-funded provision. Canterbury Christchurch University has one remaining franchised HE course with the 7
College. The Faculty continues to investigate potential new HEI partnerships to support the growth of the provision. The majority of the College s direct contract provision is with Pearson UK s Higher Nationals to give the College greater flexibility to grow the provision. This provision is potentially at risk due to the proposed funding transfer of loans to the FE sector affecting recruitment due to the loss of maintenance grants. The College is considering options regarding the delivery of foundation degrees which could help offset this risk. Longstanding and close relationships with employers are in operation within the Animal Science and Graphic Design programmes. The NHS has recently approached the College to develop Higher Apprenticeships. However, much engagement within the Faculty is on an informal basis which the Employability Policy 2014 seeks to address. Developments to the HE Provision September 2013 saw the relocation of all the HE provision to the newly built HE Centre. A QAA Review took place in June 2014 with recommendations to strengthen some aspects of the provision. A new Dean for HE with specific responsibility for all prescribed college courses at level 4 or above was appointed in August 2014 to lead the Faculty and the implementation of the recommendations of the June QAA Review. A new HE committee structure and linked working groups was put in place from August 2014 to enhance the strategic oversight of the faculty and to ensure appropriate representation from staff and students and closer benchmarking of activities against the QAA Quality Code. Where we are now The HE student profile (2010-13) analysis shows the majority of HE students are within the youngest 19-23 age band (see chart 1 below). The gender profile also shows that in each year the number of males is greater than the number of females. The faculty s ethnic profile mirrors the ethnic make-up of the Canterbury local area with between 85% and 89% of students in any one year being White British with the next highest group White Other. Most HE students are from the local area: 30% from within 5 miles of the college (chart 2 below). Recruitment in 2014/15 has been slow to Higher Education Courses, although strong to Pre-Access and Access. The three year trend (2010-13) has seen a year on year decline in recruitment. The best performing HE courses are HND Animal Science, HND Construction, HNC Engineering, BA Visual Art and HND Business. The faculty offers 14 Higher Education pathways and 5 Access pathways, alongside 4 professional qualifications in Teaching and Learning. 8
Chart 1 Chart 2 Internal progression from FE courses is low and is thus a key area of work for 2014/15; there has traditionally not been close links between the two areas of the college despite some lecturers teaching across the HE & FE provision. In 2014 students from Higher Education provision at the College progress into various destinations (chart 3 below) with 31% returning to study for a second year of HND/HNC (as a percentage of the total faculty cohort, within the HND/HNC students 95% return to Year 2), 13% starting a degree top-up year and 27% gaining employment with either a new employer or remaining with an existing employer. 9 Chart 3
Historically, the development of the HE curriculum at the College has largely been an organic process: The HE strategy 2014-16 aims to support the development of a planned curriculum that meets local and regional economic need and reflects national imperatives. Strategic Aims /Strategic integration The provision of Higher Education is an intrinsic part of the overall College Strategic Plan and the College reaffirms its commitment within the HE strategy to the development and enhancement of its HE provision by setting out FOUR KEY Strategic aims to achieve this over the two year timeframe (2014-16). The HE Strategy articulates with the overall College Strategic Plan and with cross-college strategies, policies and groups including: Employability Strategy (HE) Enhancement Strategy (HE); Teaching and Learning Strategy and Student Engagement Strategy (HE). In addition, the Strategy has been benchmarked against the QAA UK Quality Code s success indicators. 4. KEY STRATEGIC AIMS 1. Quality Enhancement 2. Employability 3. Student Experience & Learner Voice 4. Sustainability and Growth Priority Targets for 2014-2016 The priority targets for the HE Faculty reflect the need for maintaining (2) Employability and (4) Sustainability & Growth: To undertake a review of provision, to map courses against those at local universities to be able to create a vision of niche programme delivery to meet the needs of our students. To consolidate student numbers into a suite of successful courses and to reduce those that recruit poorly. To develop a range of Foundation Degrees to complement the HNDs and future proof the College against funding changes and the possible transfer of HN loans. To develop a Higher Apprenticeship offer in partnership with the Business Development Team and local employers to diversify the local offer. STRATEGIC AIM 1: QUALITY ENHANCEMENT Overarching objective: To provide a high quality, inclusive HE teaching and learning experience that meets the requirements of students, employers and the QA 10
a. Continue to build on recommendations of the QAA 2014 Review through the active monitoring of the Action Plan by the HE Committee. b. Continue to monitor the implementation of the College HE Enhancement Strategy 2014 through College-wide local and national quality reviews and remain flexible in response to QAA guidelines. c. Achieve improving levels of student satisfaction through the Student Engagement Strategy. d. HE offer continues to meet the expectations of students and stakeholders. e. To monitor applications and outcomes from different groups of learners in order to strive towards parity of outcomes. f. Continue to promote staff scholarly activity and monitor impact of staff CPD on learning environment and building of HE ethos. STRATEGIC AIM 2: EMPLOYABILITY Overarching Objective: To embed employability skills throughout the HE curriculum to prepare students for employment and to meet the needs of employers To monitor the College s HE Employability Policy 2014: a. Improving student satisfaction with the opportunities and support for developing their employability wherever necessary, appropriate and practicable. b. Aid the embedding of employability within the curriculum by offering a relevant curriculum that meets the current and future needs of local and national employers and ensure substantial employer input into programmes by a variety of means. c. To work effectively with employers to inform our curriculum and quality enhancement e.g. to develop Foundation Degrees; to develop provision in STEM subjects. d. Continual emphasis on developing students as independent learners to grow their aspirations, build competencies and increase their employability skills. e. The development and enhancement of key strategic focal points as determined by the QAA HE Review 2014 and associated action plan, HE Committee and HE Strategy 201-4-16 f. Raise the profile of employability, including its benefits to students, employers and academic staff. STRATEGIC AIM 3: STUDENT EXPERIENCE & LEARNER VOICE Overarching Objective: To ensure all HE students have the best possible academic, pastoral and personal experience during their time with us. a. To continue to work with the student body to raise the levels of satisfaction with HE programmes of study 11
b. To maintain the student council meetings, with minutes and actions to be clearly displayed in student areas across the HE faculty. c. To increase the number of electronic resources available to supplement physical publications available from the Learning Resources Centre. d. Ensure that all complaints from HE students are dealt with in line with the HE Feedback Policy. STRATEGIC AIM 4: SUSTAINABILITY & GROWTH Overarching Objective: To continue to offer an inclusive, distinctive and high quality College HE experience that is demand-led a. To ensure our HE offer is fit for purpose in short, medium and long term in terms of local, regional and national strategies: 1. Consolidation of numbers on successful programmes 2. Review provision against local competition b. To increase internal progression from 10% to 25% on specific courses. c. to recruit to target d. To encourage non-traditional entrants to engage with higher education. (Mature students, care leavers, returners to education, young males, students with disabilities and students from low participation neighbourhoods.) e. To maintain momentum in the research and development of new provision by developing minimum one new course per year. f. To continue to review the low fee strategy so as not to put up barriers to widening participation g. To maintain an appropriate high quality learning environment and specialist resources. h. To proactively manage high level risks through the Risk Management Group i. To maintain accurate and complete public information to students and stakeholders j. To build on advanced apprenticeships to higher apprenticeships at levels 4 and 5 to focus initially on Health through engagement with NHS Appendix 1: Key strategic risks The key risks to the successful delivery of Canterbury College s Higher Education Strategy are: Not being responsive to the short, medium and long-term changes in the HE environment Failure to recruit to target Reduction of funding opportunities for HE Not meeting or understanding the needs of students sufficiently to enhance their experience Lack of employer engagement to build and enhance the offer Insufficient use of effective market intelligence to inform the offer Insufficient expertise and CPD in delivering areas for development 12
Central systems not responsive to HE data demands among others Staffing issues Duplication of provision by local competitors Failure to engage cross College support for new policies Appendix 2: Targets (Action Plan) [END] 13