Strategic Plan 2015-2020 Raising Aspirations, Realising Potential, Supporting Success

Foreword

Contents

The last five years have been a challenging time for the Further Education sector, as well as for businesses, communities and individuals across the country. Petroc has risen to the challenge and achieved many successes, with positive inspections from agencies including OFSTED and the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) for Higher Education, as well as becoming a leading college for A Level provision in Devon.

Foreword

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Where We Are Now

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Mission, Vision and Values

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Aims

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We have been proactive in growing key areas of activity to meet local needs, such as Apprenticeships and Higher Education and have taken an entrepreneurial approach to improving our resilience through diversifying our income and increasing our efficiency, whilst maintaining our focus on quality. We recognise, however, that there is much more to be done to support economic growth, create high quality jobs and improve quality of life across the area we serve. Petroc’s Strategic Plan 2015–2020 outlines the college’s approach to the next five years to drive forward economic, social and cultural success, deliver excellence and meet local needs, and continue to attract investment to maintain financial stability and provide a high quality environment and workforce.

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Where We Are Now Petroc is an entrepreneurial and inclusive college of Further and Higher Education, predominately serving the businesses, communities and individuals of Mid and Northern Devon; but also supporting the skills and development needs of the wider South West region, through exciting and productive partnerships: 

We deliver education and training, either directly or through our more than seventy partners, to over 16,000 learners each year (of which nearly 4,000 are full time)

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We provide Higher Education, which now includes four Honours Degree programmes, to 500 people to address the higher skills needs of our area

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We support nearly 2,000 employers with education, training and business development; including 700 through Apprenticeships

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In 2014/15 more than 15,000 people in the community engaged in social and cultural activities arranged and delivered by our students

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Our offering covers all curriculum areas from entry level to Honours Degrees and, in some specialist areas, beyond

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Since 2012, when OFSTED judged our provision as “Good with Outstanding” features, we have driven forward significant quality improvements

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The Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) for Higher Education has confirmed that Petroc meets UK standards set for University Education with good practice in Employability and Special Support for learners

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We are proactive in attracting investment and take pride in our strong financial management and control. Our turnover is around £36m, the vast majority of which is spent in our local communities, supporting local businesses and creating high quality job opportunities

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We employ nearly 1,000 staff, which equates to 640 full time equivalent posts, and we have maintained our Investors in People status

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From 2012-2015 we have invested £23m in improving our facilities, whilst reducing our footprint by 13% 3

Mission, Vision and Values Mission Leading our Community in Learning, Enterprise and Skills; Equipping it for the Future, Economically, Socially and Culturally

Vision Raising Aspirations, Realising Potential, Supporting Success

Values In achieving our Mission and Vision we will be: 

forward thinking

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inclusive

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friendly

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Aims, Objectives & Outcomes Our Aims and Objectives have been designed to deliver Outcomes which will meet the identified skills needs of businesses, communities and individuals across our area to achieve sustainable economic growth, create high quality jobs, and improve quality of life. In line with strategic economic plans for the wider area, we will continue to contribute towards creating a responsive environment where businesses and individuals can reach their potential through working together to ensure they have the skills to capitalise on our area’s distinctive assets. We have consulted widely with the following groups to refine our strategic aims for the coming five years:  Current learners  Employers  Staff  Community Groups  Parents/Guardians of young learners  Stakeholder organisations This consultation has resulted in the identification of our three key aims and associated objectives and outcomes, which encapsulate the following three themes: Theme 1: What we are seeking to achieve Theme 2: Our undertaking to be outstanding in all we do Theme 3: How we will ensure we have the infrastructure to deliver

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Aim 1: To equip our communities with skills for growth; economically, socially and culturally Introduction Unemployment rates in our area are low, but this masks underperformance against a number of economic measures, indicating significant untapped potential for growth and prosperity. We have an important role to play in creating the economic environment to enable all businesses, communities and individuals to reach their full potential. Through identifying, understanding and meeting the skills needs of our area and providing inclusive and inspirational teaching and learning, we will promote innovation, productivity and profitability. We recognise the value of social and cultural prosperity in supporting economic growth. Taking a broad view of learning, we will enrich the cultural and social life of our communities, promoting personal development for all ages through learning for fun and pleasure and encouraging research-based enquiry.

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Aim 1 Objectives & Outcomes: Objectives         

develop the employability skills of all our learners, and maximise the number of people with essential skills for success, including maths and English stimulate and meet the demand for Apprenticeships, Higher Apprenticeships and Degree and Post Graduate level qualifications align our curriculum to meet identified local and, as appropriate, regional, national and international needs, underpinned by scholarly activity promote Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) skills as a pathway to prosperity, embracing fully the opportunities provided by regional developments. continually explore the use of new technologies to promote the accessibility and flexibility of learning and personal development opportunities continue to develop our ‘Outstanding’ A Level provision to encourage progression to top universities and high quality employment, with a focus on STEM and other subject areas to meet local need support young people and adults facing barriers to engagement to maximise their potential build on our excellent partnerships with Jobcentre Plus and other stakeholders, and support young people and adults to gain and progress within employment develop a broad and inclusive range of opportunities to enrich the cultural and social prosperity of our area

Outcomes by 2020          

to have increased the percentage of learners successfully achieving employment within six months of completing their course by 10% points to have increased Apprenticeship numbers by 36%, Higher Apprenticeships numbers by 100% and the number of people studying University courses at Petroc by 22% to reduce the instance of local employers reporting skills gaps to have increased the number of young people and adults engaged in STEM provision to 80% of the cohort to have increased delivery by blended learning to 10% to have maintained the number of young people studying A Level and Vocational programmes at the College to have increased the number of learners accessing adult learner loans by 60% to have increased the number of young people gaining a place at University by 8% points and at a Russell Group University by 10% to work in partnership towards developing a STEM Innovation, Higher Skills and Science Park in Barnstaple annually, over 17,000 individuals will access opportunities aimed at cultural and/or social enrichment, with a profile which reflects and enriches our local community 7

Aim 2: To deliver excellence in providing inspiring learning and personal development opportunities which meet the needs of our businesses, communities and individuals Introduction The College has a responsibility to businesses, communities, individuals and other stakeholders across the area to provide outstanding quality and success. In order to achieve this aim, the College will concentrate resources on providing outstanding learning and personal development opportunities combined with high quality support. We will continue to develop and strengthen our culture of innovation and enterprise. Encouraging pride in our learners and our work, and accountability for successful outcomes, will be the basis of our improvement strategy. We will use technology innovatively and effectively to underpin delivery and equip our staff and learners with the digital skills required by today’s technology driven society. Full engagement with our range of customer voices to enhance quality and the learner experience will be key to ensuring we are meeting both personal aspirations and industry standards. We will ensure that we listen and take effective action to improve what we do, and demonstrate accountability to our stakeholders. We will continue to develop a personalised approach to learning, with a clear line of sight to employment and careers. Ensuring that our students are engaged, resilient and fully aware of their progress will be at the heart of our Strategy. Our provision will build on our strengths and focus on effectively meeting the skills and development needs of existing and emerging markets. We will ensure that our outstanding strength in partnership working is further developed and built upon.

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Aim 2 Objectives & Outcomes: Objectives  deliver high quality provision across all areas, including 16-19 Study Programmes, Traineeships, Apprenticeships, and Higher Education  deliver high quality English, mathematics, employability and life skills to support effective progression through employment and personal development  engage effectively with all customer and stakeholder groups to support the design and delivery of a wide range of responsive opportunities which effectively meet the needs of the local area  ensure provision and delivery methods embrace evolving digital and technological advances to facilitate accessibility and to exceed expectation and need  engender a bold and creative culture, where learners and staff are ambitious and aspiring  be regionally and nationally recognised and highly valued in our community and across the sector, shaping and influencing policy and practice because of the exceptional education and training we provide Outcomes by 2020        

to achieve OFSTED ‘Outstanding’ at the next Inspection to maintain our position as a leading college for A-Level provision in Devon to meet the Higher Education UK standards in future Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) inspections to increase our performance against external accountability measures each year to raise the percentage of high grades achieved by young learners in English and Mathematics each year to achieve year on year improvements in customer satisfaction measures to achieve and maintain externally awarded quality standards in relevant areas (Matrix; Investors in People) to increase the overall qualification levels of the College workforce and ensure staff are supported to undertake scholarly and professional development activities to address emerging needs of digital literacy and multimedia curriculum delivery methods  to achieve recognition for excellence at local, regional and national levels through relevant awards

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Aim 3: Finance and Facilities Introduction Over recent years the College has maintained a stable financial position and secured substantial capital investment, benefitting our learners and local communities. In addition, Petroc has successfully drawn down and delivered European and other non-core Government funding. The College has also developed a responsive marketing strategy and sought to provide the organisation with a supportive and developmental human resources function. The College will continue to face significant challenges with its mainstream funding as a result of on-going Government austerity measures and there is a need to maintain delivery of significant efficiencies in all areas of operation. Objectives  attract, develop and maintain a highly skilled, innovative and flexible workforce;  invest in the college estate, equipment and information technology to provide resilient, aspirational, relevant learning environments, placing innovative technology at the heart of learning;  engender and promote a culture of environmental sustainability within college practices;  optimise the use of resources in terms of room utilisation, average class size and staffing;  deliver a dynamic and accessible information, guidance and marketing strategy that inspires and informs communities;  maintain and improve financial health through growing income streams, whilst reducing costs through improved efficiency;  increase resilience of income streams through diversification of activity and exploring new markets for existing activity (International/European/other). Outcomes by 2020  simplified and clear HR practices that empower managers and employees to develop and achieve within a dynamic workplace;  decision making processes will demonstrate best value is achieved in terms of financial, physical and natural resources. ILT and infrastructure meets the curriculum need in terms of speed performance and adaptability to changing skills and learning initiative’s;  environmental assessment meets EcoTec Assessment Criteria;  through sustainable principles the College estate meets or exceeds national benchmarks in terms of condition rating, fabric and established utilisation rates with high levels of user satisfaction;  achievement of targets identified within the Marketing Strategy;  improve financial health from Satisfactory to Good;  increase income diversity by 5%.

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