Let me tell you about some of the exceptional achievements the College has had during the last academic year (2011/12).
Digital Media Suite
Hair Salon
Beauty Salon
The most important aspect of our work is the number of students who gain their qualifications and then progress to a valid destination. The table below shows a comparator of qualification achievements which demonstrates how we compare to our local Colleges. This information has been extracted from the Department for Education Performance Tables, published in January 2012.
| College | % achieving three or more A levels (or equivalent) |
|---|---|
| John Ruskin College | 95 |
| Reigate College | 87 |
| Croydon College | 87 |
| Coulsdon College | 84 |
| Carshalton College | 74 |
| Bromley College | 69 |
| East Surrey College | 54 |
In addition our value added results from the national ALPS system again graded student achievements as ‘outstanding’.
Also in 2012 BIS published learner destination data for 16 to 19 year olds, and John Ruskin College has come out as the top local College, with 95% of leavers going on to a recognised place in University or paid employment. These figures reflect the advances we continue to make in the quality of our teaching and learning which can now boast about 40% outstanding with the vast majority remaining graded as good.
Our move to a vocational curriculum requires facilities that reflect the best found in the world of work. Our estates and reinvestment strategy received a boost through several grants from the government totalling £1.6 million, and coupled with our own investments has facilitated a total transformation of large parts of the Colleges Campus. New facilities to come on-line in September 2012 will be a new, Student Services lounge, TV broadcasting studio, IT networking room, Business management suite, an International and Higher Education lounge and outdoor recreation facilities.
We have had additional cause for celebration this year as the College was awarded the MATRIX standard, the national quality standard for our information, advice and guidance services and we also achieved Highly Commended for the national LSIS learner voice awards in the category of most improved provider. These awards are a pleasing recognition of the tremendous advances experienced at the College which also include, the first apprenticeships for both 16 to 18 year olds and over 19’s, and the successful completion of the College first ever Higher Education programme. Another development has been the introduction of our international portfolio, designed to increase the global experiences of our students and offer courses to students from other countries.
In fulfilling our mission to respond to the needs of local learners we have increased our KS4 learner numbers to over 200 with half attending John Ruskin College full-time. The Vocational Increased Flexibility programmes have gained popularity after the local authority confirmed the previous year that pupils attending John Ruskin College gained a GCSE grade higher across all of their GCSE’s in comparison to all other pupils with similar prior attainment.
Our successes have ensured that the College is now firmly on course to achieve its ambition in becoming outstanding in the eyes of each and every one of its learners in offering programmes to meet their needs. In short we have already ensured that we are providing an unrivalled vocational offer to local learners by proving they both achieve their qualifications and progress to University or the world of work.
Tim Eyton-Jones
Principal and Chief Executive
John Ruskin 6th Form College