Agenda item

Agenda item

LTE Group Performance update

Report of the Chief Executive of the LTE Group.

 

This report provides an update on the work of LTE Group, including a wider overview and detail of the broader work in education and skills performed by LTE Group in support of the Manchester and Greater Manchester skills strategy.  The report also includes an update for The Manchester College together with an overview and performance update for Total People and provision of apprenticeships.

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report of the Chief Executive – LTE Group, which provided a progress update on the broader work in education and skills performed by LTE Group in support of the Manchester and Greater Manchester skills strategy.  The report also included an update for The Manchester College together with an overview and performance update for Total People and provision of apprenticeships.

 

The Committee received a presentation from Officers from the LTE Group which included the following main points and:-

 

·                The strategic aims of the Manchester College 2020 strategy;

·                The challenges that faced both the 16-18 and post 19 learners markets;

·                Study programme expectations for Manchester College students;

·                Performance details of the College’s 2018/19 Ofsted self-assessment;

·                ALPS performance across BTEC, A-Levels and AS Levels;

·                Work experience offer performance;

·                The performance of Total People, which continued to perform well above national achievement rates for training providers in terms of performance of apprentices and employers;

·                The contribution to professional learning of MOL, providing high level online only programmes;

·                The work of the Novus Works initiative which had engaged with more than 600 ex-offenders in helping them into full time employment on release; and

·                The launch and first year performance of UCEN, which was a study offer specifically to address the needs of local residents who were not able to study in higher education through the normal channels.

 

Some of the key points that arose from the Committees discussions were:-

 

·                Was there any financial pressure on the College to keep students on courses;

·                How would the College compare if its ALPs performance was benchmarked amongst comparator institutions;

·                Was there any specific reasons as to what was driving the College’s performance improvements;

·                Clarification was sought as to what the self-assessment teaching and learning percentages referred to;

·                Why was there no data around destinations;

·                Was there any specific reasons as to why A Level intake was showing the least value added in the ALPS performance;

·                Despite the positive performance of Total People, less than 1% of apprenticeships were being delivered by Total People services, as such who was delivering the remaining apprenticeships and how was the quality of these apprenticeships being ensured; and

·                Did Manchester College work with other colleges outside of Manchester to improve the level of education for Manchester residents

 

The Committee was advised that the College was under no financial pressure to retain students on courses.  The Committee was assured that the College was the only organisation within the Association of Colleges to have delivered its financial targets consistently for the last six years and although the College did have a zero tolerance approach to certain issues that would result in the removal of students from courses if these were breached, the College looked to engage with all students in a positive manner.  In order to do this, it was reported that the College had established campus support teams to help re-engage students into their studies.

 

Officers explained that benchmarking of ALPS was not published nationally but the College was starting to pull this information together in order to compare itself to similar institutions.  In terms of the College’s pace of improved performance, it was explained that improvements were being made at the time of its last Ofsted inspection but due to the size of the campus this had taken time to become demonstrable. 

 

The Committee was advised that the College had established its own self-assessment framework for teaching and learning as a move away from graded observations, to a more observational based form of assessment for tutors.  This was based on the advice of inspectors at the last Ofsted inspection. The self-assessment teaching and learning percentages referred to the results from second round of observations of tutors.  It was also reported that the destination figures for the College overall was 94% positive destinations, with the most significant increase in positive destinations within Adults.

 

The Head of Work and Skills explained that some employers had their own training providers to provide their own apprenticeship programmes.  There was also a vast amount of other providers that delivered programmes for employers across the country.  The only way it was possible to evaluate the quality of these providers was through Ofsted reporting, employee feedback and achievement rate for apprentices in the city.  The Council had no leverage over apprenticeship providers in the city or across Greater Manchester.

 

Officers advised that from a Total People perspective, they would work in partnership with any other GM or North West college where that was the requirement of the employer, as the apprenticeship programme was employer led.  There was also a Greater Manchester Colleges group which included nine colleges which looked to develop collaborative partnerships, which included looking at ways to improve the level of education provided.

 

Decision

 

The Committee:-

 

(1)       notes the update; and

(2)       requests that Officers present the information contained within the presentation in a report format for future reports.

 

[Councillor Hacking declared a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in this item due to being a Director of the LTE Group and a Governor of Manchester College.  He left the meeting during consideration of this item.]

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