City of Portsmouth College

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings

This is a provider that requires improvement Leaders and governors have been slow to reverse the college's decline in performance. Leaders and managers have not improved the quality of teaching, learning and assessment.

Too few students and apprentices make the progress expected of them or achieve their qualifications. Too much teaching is uninspiring and attendance at most lessons is low. Students and apprentices do not develop and improve their skills in mathematics and English quickly enough.

Teachers, trainers and assessors do not take sufficient account of the different starting points of students and apprentices or of their potential when planning and delivering learning progr...ammes. Too few students are clear about what they have learned and what they need to do to improve their work. Trainers and assessors do not identify apprentices who are falling behind quickly enough and are too slow to put interventions in place.

Too few students and apprentices have a good understanding of British values. The provider has the following strengths Leaders and managers have very good arrangements for designing the curriculum through highly effective links with employers and other stakeholders. Students and apprentices are well behaved, confident and respectful, and a strong culture of safety permeates the college.

The vast majority of students with high needs achieve greater independence and many progress onto higher-level education programmes, supported internships or employment. The majority of adult students make good progress in learning and improve their skills and confidence.

Information about the provider

Highbury College is a medium-sized general further education college serving the city of Portsmouth and the surrounding areas of East Hampshire, Fareham, Gosport and Havant.

The college has six centres: Highbury Campus, Highbury City of Portsmouth Centre, Highbury Northarbour Centre, Highbury Arundel Centre, Highbury Apprenticeships (Birmingham) and the Solent Marine Academy based in the dockyard of Portsmouth. The college provides education and training programmes in a number of community venues in and around Portsmouth. Portsmouth is one of the most densely populated cities in the country.

It has the fourth largest economy in the South East, with a broad employment base, and is the national home of the Royal Navy. The city has several areas of high deprivation. Portsmouth has a higher proportion of young people not in education, employment or training compared to Hampshire and the South East region average.

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