Four In A Row - East Durham College Rated ‘GOOD’ In Glowing Report From Ofsted

East Durham College is delighted to announce it has been graded as ‘GOOD’ following a rigorous four-day, full inspection by Ofsted; with an outstanding rating for behaviour and attitudes.

A team of eight inspectors visited all areas of the college’s provision, from 28th September to 1st October 2021, scrutinizing teaching, learning and college life at the campus sites in Peterlee and Houghall, in Durham, as well as visiting apprentices and their employers around the area.

EDC was amongst the first general FE colleges in England to be fully inspected by Ofsted since the COVID pandemic hit in March 2020, and it was the first for East Durham College under Ofsted’s new Education Inspection Framework (EIF) introduced in September 2019. Under the EIF, evidence from a number of different observation activities, deep dives into individual students’ learner journey and meaningful and challenging discussions with college leaders, governors, staff and students, as well as scrutiny of curriculum documents, learner records and published data all contributed to the final judgement. 

The inspectors’ report opens by saying: ‘Learners thoroughly enjoy attending and learning at the college’ and ‘behaviour and attitudes to learning are exceptional’ in a ‘Safe and nurturing environment… taught by enthusiastic and knowledgeable teachers and trainer coaches who are subject specialists.’

It went on to say: ‘Learners and apprentices of all ages study on programmes appropriate to their starting points that provide the opportunity for them to progress to higher levels of study, gain employment or move into alternative jobs’ and ‘achieve their learning goals and career aspirations.’

This is the fourth GOOD grading in a row for EDC following Ofsted inspections in 2008, 2014, 2018 and now 2021; the third since Suzanne Duncan joined the college as Principal and Chief Executive.

“We are absolutely thrilled with the judgement and the glowing inspection report we have received from Ofsted,” remarked Suzanne.

“It goes without saying, the last 20-months have been extremely challenging and unprecedented times in the education sector. We’ve all adapted and worked incredibly hard to ensure our students receive the very best education and experience during their time at East Durham College; on behalf of the governors and myself, we’d sincerely like to thank all our staff and students for their dedication, resilience and determination to excel and this shines through in this report.

“We look forward to continuing our journey of improvement and further developing the high-quality experience we strive to provide to all our students.”

David Butler, Chair of Governors at East Durham College, added:

“‘On behalf of everyone involved with the college, we welcome this report which reinforces the ever-growing reputation of the college amongst learners and employers.

“It’s been a really difficult period for both staff and students but our determination to work together to continue to offer the best educational experience we can, whatever the challenges we face, has been endorsed in this report.

“With continued strong growth in student numbers and further significant investment coming soon, at our land based campus at Houghall, we are set to help even more students achieve their ambitions.”

Easington MP Grahame Morris said:

“I would like to congratulate East Durham College, staff and students for the excellent Ofsted report. East Durham College set high expectations for students and I am delighted the behaviour and attitude of learners to meeting these standards have been recognised as outstanding by inspectors.
 
“I am confident that East Durham College will build on the report and continue to deliver exceptional education, skills and training opportunities to the residents and young people of County Durham and beyond.
 
“Well done to the leadership team, staff and students for this report”.

To read the full report, please visit Ofsted’s website or follow this link: https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/provider/31/131859

East Durham College Official Ofsted Gradings:

OVERALL EFFECTIVENESS GOOD
The quality of education Good
Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding
Personal Development   Good
Leadership and management   Good
Education programmes for young people Good
Adult learning programmes Good
Apprenticeships  Good
Provision for learners with high needs       Good

Inspection dates 28th September to 1st October 2021.