cordwainers college inspection report 1999 · 2012. 7. 3. · cordwainers college greater london...

REPORT FROM THE INSPECTORATE

CordwainersCollege

THEFURTHEREDUCATIONFUNDINGCOUNCIL

1998-99

THE FURTHER EDUCATION FUNDING COUNCIL

The Further Education Funding Council (FEFC) has a legal duty to makesure further education in England is properly assessed. The FEFC’sinspectorate inspects and reports on each college of further educationaccording to a four-year cycle. It also inspects other further educationprovision funded by the FEFC. In fulfilling its work programme, theinspectorate assesses and reports nationally on the curriculum,disseminates good practice and advises the FEFC’s quality assessmentcommittee.

College inspections are carried out in accordance with the framework andguidelines described in Council Circulars 97/12, 97/13 and 97/22.Inspections seek to validate the data and judgements provided by collegesin self-assessment reports. They involve full-time inspectors andregistered part-time inspectors who have knowledge of, and experience in,the work they inspect. A member of the Council’s audit service works withinspectors in assessing aspects of governance and management. Allcolleges are invited to nominate a senior member of their staff toparticipate in the inspection as a team member.

Cheylesmore HouseQuinton RoadCoventry CV1 2WTTelephone 01203 863000Fax 01203 863100Website http://www.fefc.ac.uk

© FEFC 1999 You may photocopy this report and use extracts inpromotional or other material provided quotes areaccurate, and the findings are not misrepresented.

Paragraph

Summary

Context

The college and its mission 1

The inspection 7

Curriculum areas

Saddlery 10

Footwear and accessories 17

Art and design 23

Cross-college provision

Support for students 30

General resources 38

Quality assurance 44

Governance 54

Management 61

Conclusions 68

College statistics

Cordwainers College

Contents

Grade DescriptorsInspectors assess the strengths and weaknessesof each aspect of provision they inspect. Theirassessments are set out in the report. They usea five-point scale to summarise the balancebetween strengths and weaknesses.

The descriptors for the grades are:

• grade 1 – outstanding provision which hasmany strengths and few weaknesses

• grade 2 – good provision in which thestrengths clearly outweigh the weaknesses

• grade 3 – satisfactory provision withstrengths but also some weaknesses

• grade 4 – less than satisfactory provisionin which the weaknesses clearly outweighthe strengths

• grade 5 – poor provision which has fewstrengths and many weaknesses.

Audit conclusions are expressed as good,adequate or weak.

Aggregated grades for aspects of cross-collegeprovision and curriculum areas, for collegesinspected during 1997-98, are shown in thefollowing table.

Grade

1 2 3 4 5% % % % %

Curriculumareas 9 60 29 2 –

Cross-college provision 18 54 24 4 –

Source: Quality and Standards in Further Educationin England 1997-98: Chief inspector’s annual reportSample size: 108 college inspections

Student AchievementsWhere data on student achievements appear intables, levels of achievement are shown in threeways:

• as expected completions, which is thenumber of initial enrolments onqualifications where the student expectedto complete the qualification in a givenyear. For example, a student on a two-year programme who began theirprogramme in October 1995, would appearin the results for 1996-97 because this isthe year in which they expected tocomplete their qualification

• as a retention rate, which is thepercentage of qualifications which thestudents have completed as expected (orare continuing with the prospect of latecompletion). For programmes of study oftwo years or more, retention is calculatedacross the whole programme, that is, fromthe start to the end of the qualification

• as an achievement rate, which is thenumber of qualifications students havefully achieved as a percentage ofcompleted qualifications with a knownoutcome. Partial achievements are notshown.

Cordwainers College

Greater London Region

Inspected May 1999

Cordwainers College is a small specialistdesignated college in the London borough ofHackney. It has an international reputation forits leather work and footwear design courses. Itoffers courses in two of the 10 FEFC programmeareas. The college is a registered charityincorporated under the Companies Act. It isgenerously supported through the commitmentof its governing body, the Cordwainers CollegeAssociation Limited, and by related industriesthrough its trade and industry advisorycommittee. The college has experienceddifficulties since 1998 when it lost nearly all itssenior managers and some key members ofacademic staff through resignations andredundancies. Governors took decisive action inappointing an experienced acting principal whois contracted to correct a poor financial position.A new principal is to be appointed by January2000. Inspectors recognise that the college’sself-assessment was produced at an inauspicioustime in the college’s otherwise extensive andstable history. The college made some realisticand self-critical judgements about its provision.Inspectors concluded that there are manyadditional weaknesses in the structure andoperation of the college which were notrecognised. In particular, there are significantweaknesses in quality assurance. The collegehas not undertaken lesson observation toidentify weaknesses in teaching and learning.

There is confusion over the mission and thestrategic plan is no longer relevant. The interimnature of management arrangements has anegative effect on both operational planning andon management of the curriculum. Students’achievements and retention on some courses arebelow average. The learning environment isgenerally poor.

The college has strengths in its specialist staffexpertise, in some documentation, in someverification procedures, in some of its resources,in marketing, and in its reputation and linkswith industry. The college should: improve itsteaching and learning strategies; re-establish itsquality assurance policy and develop anoperational framework which extends qualityassurance to all college functions; review itsstrategic planning process; establish a policy forpunctuality and attendance; develop andestablish the setting and achievement of targets;develop the reporting and use of performanceindicators and benchmarks to review students’retention and achievements; continue thedevelopment of its learning support services;review its accommodation strategy, including itsplans for maintenance and refurbishment;improve its IT provision and increase its use inthe curriculum. The association should considerits membership in relation to its mission, andarrange for the regular and formal review of thecollege’s academic performance and policies.

The grades awarded as a result of the inspectionare given below.

Cordwainers College1

Summary

Curriculum area Grade

Saddlery 3

Footwear and accessories 3

Art and design 3

Cross-college provision Grade

Support for students 3

General resources 4

Quality assurance 5

Governance 3

Management 4

The College and its Mission

1 Cordwainers College is a small, designatedspecialist college situated in the London boroughof Hackney. It was established in 1887 as aleather trades school and adapted, as the firstschool of its kind in the world, to providetechnical training for the shoe manufacturingindustry. The college is a registered charityincorporated under the Companies Act. Itsgovernors, the Cordwainers College AssociationLimited, are drawn mainly from the leather-related livery companies and the leatherindustry. The college enjoys a high national andinternational reputation for its specialist leatherwork courses and has strong links with thefootwear and fashion industries both in theUnited Kingdom and overseas. The college’sfirst trade advisory committee was formed in1896. The current advisory committee which isactive in its support of the college, includesrepresentatives from leading companies, andindependent designers and retailers, associatedwith leather goods, saddlery and footwear.

2 The college has been at the present sitesince 1946. In recent years it has developedand diversified its curriculum programme toprovide further and higher education courses infootwear, fashion accessories, saddlery and artand design. All the college’s further educationcourses fall within the Further EducationFunding Council (FEFC) programme area forart, design and performing arts or, to a lesserextent, in the programme area for engineering.The college has links with City University, whichvalidates an undergraduate course. The collegehas begun to establish worldwide educationallinks with other institutions to offer training inrelated subjects. It has links with sevenuniversities in the United States of Americathrough a biennial semester programme. Inaddition, Cordwainers College services thedelivery of the footwear and accessories optionswhich are part of the menswear/women’s wearfashion MA programme offered by the RoyalCollege of Art.

3 The college recruits locally from Hackneyand surrounding boroughs as well as nationallyand internationally to its specialist courses. The FEFC has identified the college as one of agroup of institutions which typically recruits ahigh percentage of students from disadvantagedareas. The profile of students shows that 80%of students are aged 19 or over and of these45% of students are aged 25 and over.

4 Since the last inspection, some significantchanges have been made in the distribution ofthe college’s work by level. Overall enrolmentshave increased by 12% against enrolments in1994-95. Provision of higher education as apart of the whole has increased by 9% andenrolments to non-schedule 2 work haveincreased from 8% to 18% of the total studentpopulation. Enrolments to courses at nationalvocational qualification (NVQ) levels 1 to 3 havedeclined from 62% to 43% of the total studentpopulation.

5 The FEFC now provides less than half ofthe college’s total income, but is the college’ssingle main source of funding. Tuition fees area significant element of college income since afifth of the full-time students are from outsidethe European Union. The contribution from theHigher Education Funding Council for Englandhas increased significantly. Additional financialand other support comes from the CordwainersCompany, other relevant livery companies andassociated industries and businesses.Cordwainers College is also involved in anumber of European projects aided by thedesignation of the borough of Hackney as part of a European objective 2 area.

6 The mission of the college is to maintainand develop its role as a world centre foreducation, training, research and consultancy inits specialist areas. It also seeks to preserve thehighest standards of traditional craft skills andto play an active role in the development of newproducts, processes, techniques and services tomeet the changing needs of its future clients.


Context

The Inspection

7 The college was inspected during the weekbeginning 10 May 1999. Before the inspection,inspectors reviewed the self-assessment reportand considered information from otherdirectorates of the FEFC. The college’sindividualised student record (ISR) data for1996, 1997 and 1998 were used to compile thetables in the curriculum area reports. Theinspection was carried out by six inspectors andan auditor for a total of 28 working days. Theyobserved 24 lessons, evaluated students’ workand examined college documents. Meetingswere held with governors, managers, othercollege staff, student groups and representativesfrom the British Footwear Association, theEducation Business Partnership Islington, andthe college’s Trade and Industry AdvisoryCommittee.

8 The following table shows the grades givento the lessons inspected and the profile for allcolleges inspected in 1997-98. Of the 24 lessonsinspected, 38% were judged to be good, butnone outstanding, and 8% were judged to beless than satisfactory. This profile compareswith the average of 65% and 6%, respectively,for all lessons observed during 1997-98.

9 The following table shows the attendancerates in the lessons observed and the nationalaverage for all colleges inspected in 1997-98.The highest attendance level, 77%, was insaddlery classes and the lowest, 55%, infootwear and accessories classes.


Context

Programme Grade Totals1 2 3 4 5

GNVQ 0 3 0 0 0 3

Other vocational 0 6 13 2 0 21

Total (No.) 0 9 13 2 0 24

Total (%) 0 38 54 8 0 100

National average, allinspected colleges1997-98 (%) 19 46 29 6 0 100

Source for national average: Quality and Standards in Further Education in England 1997-98: Chief inspector’sannual report

Lessons: inspection grades by programme ofstudy

Average number Average attendance

of students (%)

Cordwainers College 11.0 65

National average, all inspected colleges 1997-98 10.4 77

Source for national average: Quality and Standards in Further Education in England 1997-98: Chief inspector’sannual report

Attendance rates in lessons observed

Curriculum Areas

Saddlery

Grade 3 10 Inspectors observed six lessons. Theyincluded most of the college’s courses insaddlery which cover bridle, harness andsaddle making, tack repairs and lorinery (the metal parts associated with harness andsaddlery). Inspectors agreed with most of thestrengths and weaknesses identified by theself-assessment report.

11 Students’ qualification aims in their firstyear of studies are the City and Guilds ofLondon Institute (C&G) certificate in saddleryand the loriners intermediate certificate. Intheir second year, students take the C&Gadvanced certificate in saddlery and the lorinerssenior certificate examination. Students alsohave the opportunity to submit work forassessment by the Worshipful Company ofSaddlers as part of the National SkillsAssessment scheme.

12 A new course leader is having to addressmany issues as a consequence of significantchanges in staffing. The number of students

following courses in this area has declinedsignificantly. Students’ files are poorlyorganised and information on students’achievements is incomplete. There are fewrecords of course team meetings. This hasmade it difficult for the course leader to monitorstudents’ achievements. Inspectors agreed thatthe judgements in the college’s self-assessmentreport are realistic about the poor quality ofsome course documentation and the lack ofrigour of course review and evaluation.

13 Most teaching is satisfactory. In practicallessons, teachers give clear demonstrations andprovide close supervision of students’ work.Students respect the professionalism andexpertise of their teachers. The teaching ispurposeful and students know what is expectedof them. Students are able to work individuallyon practical activities and carry out their workcompetently and safely. Students often assisteach other with their set tasks. Those whoattend regularly are highly motivated anddevelop good, relevant, craft skills. In general,students’ class work is of an appropriatestandard. Teachers make good reference toindustrial practice. In some lessons, teachersfail to plan the work effectively and have poorclassroom management. Students’ attendance is not monitored systematically and teachers do not respond effectively to students’ poorpunctuality. Schemes of work are minimal andare not accompanied by lesson plans. Teachersmake little use of visual displays to encouragestudents’ learning. Only a minority of studentshave their learning abilities or needs identifiedand met. Because of low recruitment, studentsworking at different levels are frequentlycombined into the same class. Some teachersdo not cope well with students of differentability in the same lesson.

14 Teachers do not have a consistent standardfor assignment briefs and, in some cases, do notprovide clear assessment criteria. In assessingstudents’ work they do not always apply thesame standards. Teachers mark students’ work


Key strengths

• good retention and examination passrates

• students’ attainment of good craft skills

• good progression to employment

• staff with a high level of technicalexpertise

Weaknesses

• declining recruitment rates

• poorly organised and incomplete coursedocumentation

• some poor classroom management

• poor punctuality and irregularattendance in some lessons

• few opportunities for work placement

Curriculum Areas


accurately but some of their written commentsare not detailed enough to help students toimprove their work. The course leader has aclear understanding of the need to improve thequality of the students’ experiences and isencouraging students to acquire both traditionaland modern skills. This is useful in theworkplace and is welcomed by employers. Thecollege is also developing productive links with a variety of employers. In the past there havebeen few opportunities for work placements inthis subject area.

15 Examination pass rates and retention aregenerally good and inspectors agreed with thecollege’s identification of them as a strength inits self-assessment report. Pass rates for theC&G advanced certificate in 1998 showed anincrease on those in 1996. Pass rates for theC&G certificate increased in 1997 over those in1996, but dropped in 1998. Maximum retention

has been achieved on the advanced certificatefor the last three years. However, somestudents’ attendance is poor. Many studentshave difficulty attending scheduled classesbecause of work commitments. Students have won prizes in a number of nationalcompetitions. Those students who enter for the Worshipful Company of Saddlers skills testsare usually successful. A high proportion ofstudents find work in the industry.

16 Teachers have good vocationalqualifications and demonstrate a thoroughknowledge and understanding of their subject.The self-assessment report identified a need for staff to acquire teaching qualifications.Inspectors agreed with this. Most workshopequipment is old but suitable for its purpose.Workshops are appropriately organised but arein poor decorative order and provide a poorlearning environment for students.

Type of qualification Level Numbers and Completion year

outcome 1996 1997 1998

C&G rural saddlery 1 Expected completions 16 24 13certificate Retention (%) 100 92 92

Achievement (%) 50 91 83

C&G rural saddlery 2 Expected completions 26 16 21advanced certificate Retention (%) 100 100 100


Source: ISR (1996 and 1997), college (1998)

A summary of achievement and retentionrates in saddlery, 1996 to 1998

Curriculum Areas

Footwear and Accessories

Grade 317 Inspectors observed eight lessonscovering part-time and full-time furthereducation courses in footwear, accessoriesand leather goods. Inspectors agreed withmany judgements in the self-assessmentreport but identified other strengths andweaknesses.

18 The college offers full-time and part-timecourses in footwear and accessories. Otherpart-time courses are available in relatedsubjects such as millinery, pattern cutting forfootwear, and professional practice fordesigners. Most courses are linked to industry,though some are non-certificated. Over the lastthree years, recruitment has been good to boththe national diploma and the C&G footwearcourses. In the current academic year,recruitment to the national diploma hasdeclined. A range of related higher educationcourses provides good progressionopportunities. Inspectors agreed with thejudgement in the self-assessment that the collegehas excellent links with local and national

industry. These links inform curriculumdevelopments and have resulted in donations of specialist machinery and sponsorship.

19 Students benefit from sharing specialistfacilities with advanced level students. In mostlessons, students are responsive, well motivatedand work purposefully. Students developcompetence in practical studies and receivegood advice and support from expert staff.Students discuss their individual technicalproblems with teachers who give clearinstructions on the processes they should follow.In a good lesson, held in a design developmentresource centre, the teacher varied the activitieseffectively to enable students to work on a widerange of tasks which included two-dimensionaldesign work, surface decoration for leather, andthe production of working drawings, andpresentation sheets. Teachers frequently checkstudents’ progress to see that studentsunderstand what is expected of them. However,some lessons are poorly managed. Inspectorsnoted that teachers made little or no commenton students’ poor attendance and punctualitywhich they observed in the majority of lessons.These weaknesses were not identified by thecollege in its self-assessment.

20 Teachers do not include specificassessment criteria for specialist and key skillsin their assignment briefs. This does notcorrespond to awarding body guidelines. Thereare insufficient formal, interim assessments forextended assignments. Teachers do not providesufficient formal written feedback. There aremany omissions in the sheets used to record theresults of assessments and students wereunclear about their achievement for someprojects. Inspectors were not able to supportthe finding in the college’s self-assessment thatassessment records are up to date and thatstudents’ progress is monitored and recorded.

21 Students achieve appropriate standards ofwork. In 1997-98, all students, who completedtheir studies and remained in the UnitedKingdom, progressed to higher education or


Key strengths

• excellent links with industry

• benefit for students from workingalongside advanced level students

• good specialist machinery andequipment

• a high level of specialist staff expertise

Weaknesses

• poor attendance and punctuality

• ineffective course planning andmonitoring of students’ progress

• some poorly-managed lessons

• some dull accommodation in poorcondition

Curriculum Areas


employment. In 1996-97, pass rates on thenational diploma course fell to well below thenational average for equivalent nationaldiplomas in design but improved in 1997-98.Retention on C&G courses is good. Examinationresults on C&G courses are poor, primarilybecause many students are reluctant to sit theexamination. Course reviews are carried outannually for full-time courses. Part-time staffhave little involvement in the review process.This weakness was not identified in the self-assessment report. Based on the data available,inspectors were not able to agree with thefinding in the college’s self-assessment thatthere is a high level of student attainment in thissubject area.

22 The college has good specialist facilities forfootwear and accessories. Workshops are wellequipped with industrial machinery. Thefacilities include computer-aided design software

applications to an international standard fordesign and pattern cutting. This systemsimulates many applications used in thefootwear industry. Technician support is goodand technicians help students to use specialistequipment to ensure that health and safetyrequirements are met. The design developmentresource centre is used effectively as a teachingarea and as an open access facility for studentswishing to work on their own. Some lessonsare held in dull accommodation which is in apoor state of repair. Staff have a high level of specialist expertise and good industrialexperience. This was identified as a strength in the college’s self-assessment and inspectorsagreed with the judgement. The libraryresource for footwear and accessories is usedwell by staff and students. It includes a widerange of good-quality periodicals and fashionforecasting information.


outcome 1996 1997 1998

C&G footwear manufacture 2 Expected completions 51 41 48stage I Retention (%) 98 100 60


BTEC national diploma in 3 Expected completions 28 38 35design footwear/accessories Retention (%) 43 53 74and footwear technology Achievement (%) 92 50 81

Source: ISR (1996 and 1997), college (1998)

A summary of achievement and retentionrates in footwear and accessories, 1996 to1998

Curriculum Areas

Art and Design

Grade 323 Inspectors observed 10 lessons coveringgeneral art and design courses atintermediate and advanced level. Theyagreed with some strengths and weaknessesidentified in the college’s self-assessmentreport. They also identified some weaknessesnot recognised by the college.

24 The college offers a GNVQ intermediatecourse and a diploma in foundation studies atadvanced level. In 1998, the college decided tohalt recruitment to a GNVQ advanced courseand to reinstate a national diploma in generalart and design. During the inspection, studentswere completing the final year of the GNVQadvanced course. The college also offersspecialist design studies in higher educationwhich provide a progression route. Coursehandbooks and students’ handbooks are of agood standard. They provide clear explanationsof college services, curriculum content, teaching

and learning methods, assessment andprogression opportunities. Inspectors found thatthe college’s self-assessment report understatedthe quality of course documentation.

25 The college relies excessively on thecontribution of part-time teachers. Inspectorsagreed with the college’s view that this over-reliance has a detrimental impact on thecontent, organisation and management of thecurriculum. The team supporting the one full-time co-ordinator comprises one fractional full-time teacher and seven part-time, hourly-paid,teachers. Part-time teachers are not normallyavailable to attend art and design team meetingsor to contribute to course review and evaluation.Minutes of team meetings record discussionabout students’ motivation and achievements,project assignments, internal and externalverification and key skills. Responsibility anddeadlines for action are not recorded.

26 Most of the teaching was satisfactory andsome was good. In the best lessons, teachersuse good schemes of work and plan lessons,projects and assignments well. In a good lessonon the GNVQ advanced course, the teachersuccessfully held students’ attention by relatingbusiness practice in marketing to students’ ownart and design interests and enabled students toprepare a personal business plan. Teachersshare aims and objectives with students andintegrate key skills with assignment briefs.These are discussed with students duringpersonal tutorials. Teachers frequently checkstudents’ learning and encourage students toquestion issues under discussion. In a fewlessons, teaching and learning wasunsatisfactory. In many lessons, poorpunctuality disrupts teaching and learning. In one lesson, late arrivals repeatedly disturbedboth the teacher and other students makingpresentations of their work. The eventualattendance in this lesson was less than half thenumber on the register. Attendance during theinspection was well below the national averagefor the sector. Some teaching of IT has only


Key strengths

• thorough course documentation

• effective assessment and internalverification

• good pass and retention rates forgeneral national vocational qualification(GNVQ) intermediate

Weaknesses

• lack of opportunity for part-timeteachers to contribute to curriculummanagement

• poor punctuality and attendance

• GNVQ advanced pass and retentionrates well below the national average

• little use of information technology (IT)within the curriculum

• poor specialist accommodation andequipment

Curriculum Areas


recently been introduced. Inspectors saw littleevidence of the use of IT in the curriculum andconcluded that the use of IT is underdeveloped.Inspectors considered that the college’s overallfindings for teaching and learning in its self-assessment report for this subject area wereovergenerous.

27 There are effective procedures forassessing students’ work. Assessment is fairand well organised. Teachers give good supportto students to help them make progress. A goodsystem of internal verification is well establishedacross the programme area. Inspectors agreedwith the college that the programme area hasstrengths in its assessment procedures.

28 The self-assessment report identified thatstudents’ achievements on some courses are astrength and inspectors agreed. For example, in1998, examination pass rates and retentionrates for the GNVQ intermediate level course

were above national average. However, In1998, the examination success rate andretention for the GNVQ advanced course werewell below the national average.

29 Since the last inspection, the college hasprovided additional accommodation for art anddesign. Studio space is adequate; there is asmall ceramics workshop and a print roomwhich provides sufficient space for textiles andsome basic printmaking. Most specialistaccommodation and equipment are in poorcondition. Studios and classrooms are in needof refurbishment. A small woodworkingworkshop was temporarily out of use because it did not meet health and safety regulations.Photographic facilities are poor and students are unable to make effective use of someequipment because of a lack of techniciansupport. Students have little access to ITresources.


outcome 1996 1997 1998

GNVQ intermediate art and 2 Expected completions 15 12 14

design Retention (%) 60 83 86


GNVQ advanced art and 3 Expected completions * 13 34

design Retention (%) * 77 59

Achievement (%) * 80 60

BTEC diploma in foundation 3 Expected completions 20 15 28

studies in art and design Retention (%) 85 87 100


Source: ISR (1996 and 1997), college (1998)*course not offered

A summary of achievement and retentionrates in art and design, 1996 to 1998

Support for Students

Grade 330 The college’s self-assessment reportlisted a number of strengths and weaknessesin student support services. It did not directlyidentify some important weaknesses.

31 Inspectors agreed with the self-assessmentreport that the college produces a range ofattractive and informative publicity material.Administrative staff provide comprehensiveinformation about the college and its courses,and deal effectively and efficiently withinquiries. Course leaders interview mostapplicants and offer them specialist andimpartial advice. Overseas applicants whocannot be interviewed have their applicationsprocessed through detailed correspondence.

32 The college has developed links with manylocal schools. Staff visit schools regularly toinform teachers and pupils about the college.Schools are invited to open days and exhibitions

to see the work of the college. The collegeparticipates in projects organised by theIslington and Hackney business and educationpartnership. These enable local school pupils toexperience basic practical work in the college.The college identified these as strengths in itsself-assessment report and inspectors agreed.

33 Since January 1998, the college has madeconsiderable progress in developing an effectivesystem of initial screening. Students receiveeffective support in a range of language andstudy skills techniques. There are reliable andinformative reports on individual students’progress and worksheets for use with individualstudents. The self-assessment report stated thatlearning support for individual students is astrength. It also recognises that there arelimitations in its provision. Support is onlyavailable to students at certain times each weekand there is no designated learning supportcentre to develop a full range of resources.Inspectors agreed with both the strengths andweaknesses identified by the college.

34 The personal tutorial programme is definedin a tutors’ handbook. This gives clearinformation about some tutoring work butinsufficient guidance on other aspects such asgroup tutorials. For example, there is aspecification for personal tutorials to guidetutors to monitor students’ progress effectively.The tutorial programme entitles each student totwo personal interviews each term. Time is alsoallowed for tutors to organise occasional grouptutorials on general issues. Most studentsreceive their quota of individual tutorials.Students also value the frequent opportunitieswhich tutors take in a small and friendly collegeto discuss issues and problems. Group tutorialsare held less regularly and not all are of highquality. Teachers have had no in-servicetraining to develop skills in personal tutoring.There is no personal tutorial entitlement forpart-time students, although course tutors areencouraged to assist students with difficulties.Some students have indicated that they would

Key strengths

• prize-winning, attractive andinformative college publicity material

• good links with schools

• good learning support for individualstudents

• well-managed residentialaccommodation for students

• effective counselling and welfare advicefrom college staff

Weaknesses

• delivery of the tutorial programme

• incomplete guidance for tutors

• ineffective attention to attendance andpunctuality

• inadequate co-ordination andmonitoring of careers support

• under-resourcing of learning support


Cross-college Provision



welcome written reports on their progress butthe college has not yet responded to thisrequest.

35 During the inspection, poor attendance andpunctuality emerged as major weaknesses.They were not identified as problems in thecollege’s self-assessment report. There are noclear procedures for attendance or punctualityin either the tutors’ or students’ handbooks.The system of monitoring attendance as part ofthe progress reviews for individual students isclearly ineffective. Students themselves are notclear what the college expects and what action itwill take to deal with poor attendance andpunctuality.

36 The college has addressed a concern aboutthe lack of specialist careers advice from thelocal careers service since identifying it in itsself-assessment. This support is only availablefor 14 days each year. Typically in a specialistcollege, inspectors found evidence of goodsupport from teachers and library staff. Manystudents receive good advice on how to developand implement a personal career plan. Thecareers advice offered in the college is not co-ordinated and its quality is not monitored.Some students are not clear about the help theyshould receive and the students’ handbookoffers limited information. Some students havenot developed effective career plans, and someinformation on the jobs noticeboard issubstantially out of date. The self-assessmentreport did not acknowledge these weaknesses.

37 The college’s modern, attractive and well-managed residence offers good-qualityaccommodation and a supportive environment.The college gives priority to first-year studentsto help them to adjust to being away fromhome. Staff supervising the residence liaiseeffectively with other staff in the college overany concerns about students in the residence.Students value the counselling and adviceavailable in the college, and inspectors agreedwith the self-assessment report that this is astrength. A part-time counsellor deals with a

wide range of welfare enquiries and asignificant number of requests each year forcounselling. Useful information is available tostudents on benefits, accommodation andfinancial issues. The counsellor is supported in her work by a local practising psychiatrist.The college has a hardship fund and bursaries,including support from the Cordwainers andSaddlers Companies to help students who havefinancial problems. There are clear criteria forthis support and a well-explained applicationprocess.

General Resources

Grade 438 Inspectors agreed with most of thestrengths and weaknesses identified in thecollege’s self-assessment report. Inspectorsconcluded that some strengths wereunderstated and that a few weaknesses were not identified.

39 The college occupies a single site inHackney. Since the last inspection, the collegehas benefited from two major building projects.

Key strengths

• the Cordwainers Leather IndustriesCentre

• the students’ common room andresidential accommodation

• effective library and resource services

Weaknesses

• lack of a current accommodationstrategy

• poor condition of much teachingaccommodation

• insufficient IT resources available tostudents and staff

• inadequate work areas for teachers

• poor access for students with restrictedmobility


A student residence with 87 bedrooms wascompleted in 1996. It is situated beside thecollege main building and provides excellentaccommodation for students. Also in 1996, athree-storey ‘Cordwainers Leather IndustryCentre’ was completed. The centre provides arange of services and opportunities for thefashion footwear and accessories industries. A small shop, open during the lunch period,provides students with a selection of artmaterials at cost price.

40 Accommodation is a significant problemfor the college. There are no clear priorities and accommodation is not effectively managed.Information on room use is not available. The college does not have an up-to-dateaccommodation strategy. The college did notfully recognise these weaknesses in its self-assessment report. However, there was a frankassessment that accommodation is shabby andin need of much refurbishment. There is noinformation centre for prospective students toobtain advice and guidance. Temporarybuildings used as general classrooms areunsatisfactory. There is generally poor accessfor students with restricted mobility. Thecollege has made no progress with itsaccommodation strategy since submitting anunsuccessful bid for lottery funding to improveits estates.

41 The college has some well-equippedworkshops for shoe manufacturing, saddleryand leather goods. It makes good use of smallexhibition spaces to show students’ work. Thecollege is developing a maintenance and repairplan and has recently refurbished a combinedstudent common room and refectory. Thislarge, well-lit room, provides a useful place forstudents to meet and to study. Staff rooms areinadequate and few teachers have access tocomputers. Most teaching rooms in art anddesign are unkempt and are not always usedeffectively.

42 The library has had a significant reductionin its budget but it is well used and is effective.In its self-assessment report, the college

recognised that the library and resources centreare small and in need of investment. Thelibrary is well managed by a full-time librariansupported by a full-time library assistant and apart-time assistant librarian. It maintainsconvenient opening hours and students valuethe service and the support they receive. Sincethe last inspection, the college has installed acomputerised library system. Data available forfunding, cataloguing, usage, stocktaking andordering are much improved. The library hastwo computers with access to the internet andone CD-ROM facility. Liaison between thelibrarian and curriculum managers is good.The librarian attends course team and courseleader meetings and has up-to-date knowledgeof curriculum and course developments. Thelibrary’s annual review and development plandemonstrates good performance against realisticand challenging targets. These strengths werenot sufficiently emphasised in the college’s self-assessment report.

43 Since the last inspection, the college hasestablished a small IT centre with 28 computers,two scanners and five printers. It has alsoimproved its computer network to supportadministrative and academic communicationssystems. There are not enough computersavailable to staff and students and the centrehas difficulty in meeting a growing demand.The overall ratio of computers to full-timeequivalent students is low at 1:14. The college’sself-assessment report did not fully acknowledgethis problem or the lack of a strategy forupdating, managing and teaching IT. There is a‘computer user’ policy but the effectiveness ofthe centre is not well monitored. These issuesare being addressed by the college. Thecomputer-aided design system used by footweardesigners and manufacturers is available tostudents. The Cordwainers Leather IndustryCentre building provides additional resourcesfor students. This area includes somecomputers, visual aids, specialist equipment and materials, information on current trends,displays of students’ work and otherinspirational material for students’ reference.




Quality Assurance

Grade 544 Although inspectors found that thecollege had made some realistic judgementsabout its quality assurance arrangements, theinspection team was unable to agree with thecollege’s assessment of the strengths andweaknesses of quality assurance. Inspectorsidentified significant weaknesses which werenot mentioned in the self-assessment reportand considered that strengths wereoverstated.

45 Inspectors agreed with the finding in theself-assessment report that quality assuranceneeds further development. The college has not yet created a unified and workable qualityassurance system. It had made some progressin developing quality assurance when changes in the management structure in 1998 interrupted the development and

implementation process. Neither annual review and evaluation nor staff appraisal werefully implemented in 1998.

46 The college’s systems for monitoring andreporting on quality assurance are disjointed.There is no quality assurance policy and noclear, well-documented framework for qualityassurance. There are insufficient links betweenquality assurance, self-assessment and strategicplanning. Teachers and staff have littleunderstanding of the purpose of qualityassurance or of their role in quality assuranceprocesses. Compliance with quality assuranceprocedures is not enforced. The collegerecognises that some course teams have notconducted regular reviews of their performancewith sufficient rigour. Action plans areincomplete or insufficiently detailed. Forexample, low achievement is not addressed byaction points. Information on performance isnot collected systematically or evaluated indepth. Few course teams set precise andmeasurable targets or use performanceindicators. The art and design course team areimplementing a well-planned internalverification process which is to be used as amodel for the college.

47 Following the last inspection, asubcommittee of the academic committee, the academic standards and developmentcommittee, was set up to monitor academicquality assurance. The role of these committeesin relation to each other is not clear and theirimpact on academic quality has been limited.The academic committee did not meet on oneoccasion but was subsequently reconvened bythe acting principal. Staff report that it isbeginning to become a lively forum for debateon issues that could lead to improvement in thequality of provision.

48 Quality assurance procedures are not welldeveloped in all cross-college support areas.Some customer service standards exist. Inmany areas they do not exist or are at an earlystage of development. Some areas, such as the

Key strengths

• good internal verification procedures

• staff development linked to the college’sand individual staff needs

Weaknesses

• lack of a clear, coherent qualityassurance framework

• inconsistent implementation of qualityassurance procedures

• discontinuity of key activities such asannual review and evaluation andappraisal

• insufficiently rigorous course reviewand evaluation

• lack of staff awareness of qualityassurance processes

• insufficient use of standards,performance indicators and targets

• overgenerous grading in the self-assessment report


library, identify standards and undertake checkson the quality of service. In 1998, few cross-college areas evaluated their practice andprovision. The library has continued to evaluateits performance, in contrast to most other areas.

49 The college gives insufficient attention toanalysing student data. Examination successesand retention are considered by the academicstandards and development committee and bythe academic committee but their evaluation has lacked rigour. The self-assessment reportrecognised a need to improve the use ofperformance indicators for attendance, retention and achievement. Targets forretention and achievement have only recentlybeen established.

50 Survey questionnaires and courseevaluations are used to elicit students’ views onthe quality of courses and college services. The level of response to questionnaires has beenpoor. Support service managers and courseteam leaders decide what action should betaken in the light of students’ responses. Thisaction is not systematically monitored and thereis an uneven level of feedback to students on theresults.

51 The students’ handbook includes thecharter. Although the handbook is available toall students, they are generally not familiar withthe charter or aware of their entitlements andcommitments. The charter is not usedeffectively as part of the quality assuranceprocess. It contains a few measurable targets. There has been some analysis of theachievement of these targets, for example, thespeed of response to postal or telephoneenquiries. The complaints procedure is outlinedin the charter. Most students use less formalways to register their complaints through, forexample, course team meetings. The collegedoes not have procedures to analyse the natureand range of complaints or whether they areresolved to students’ satisfaction.

52 The college is committed to professionaldevelopment for staff. Although the budget is

small, there are good opportunities for staff toundertake training courses and engage in otherforms of personal development. Staff speakappreciatively of the training opportunities theyare offered. Priorities for staff activities arerelated to individual and college needs. Anannual appraisal system was introduced afterthe last inspection. The system broke down in1998 with the departure of key appraisers and,at present, it makes little contribution to thecollege’s effectiveness. Most staff were notappraised in 1998 and only a few have beenappraised in 1999.

53 The college’s first self-assessment reportcovered all aspects of its work. Each academicand cross-college area produced an individualself-assessment. Lesson observations were notcarried out and little use was made ofperformance indicators to assist staff to assessthe quality of teaching and learning incurriculum areas. The self-assessment reportdid not include all the weaknesses identifiedduring the inspection. The proportion of lessonsidentified by inspectors as good or outstandinghas declined since the last inspection.

Governance

Grade 354 Inspectors agreed with the strengths and weaknesses identified in the self-assessment report. One key weaknessrelating to membership of the governing body was not identified.


Key strengths

• the commitment, business expertise andspecialist knowledge of governors

• practical support of the WorshipfulCompany of Cordwainers and contactswith industry

• decisive action to address weaknesses



55 The FEFC’s audit service concludes that,within the scope of its assessment, thegovernance of the college is adequate. TheCordwainers College Association Limitedsubstantially conducts its business in accordance with its memorandum and articlesof association. It also substantially fulfils itsresponsibilities under the financialmemorandum with the FEFC.

56 The association has 20 members. Six are nominated by the Worshipful Company ofCordwainers. The principal and two seniormembers of the Worshipful Company ofCordwainers are ex-officio members. There aretwo staff members, one student member, and atraining and enterprise council (TEC) nominee.In addition, seven members are co-opted by theassociation. They include three from otherlivery companies and a governor nominated bythe borough of Hackney. There are currentlytwo vacancies, including one for the membernominated by FOCUS Central London, the local TEC. The present membership includes 11 governors whose terms of office have nowexpired. They have not been formallyreappointed, as required by the memorandum of association.

57 Governors are strongly committed to thecollege. They have a broad range of businessexpertise. Many are experienced and influentialin the trades and industries relevant to thecollege’s specialisms of footwear and leathergoods. The association’s strong links with the

Worshipful Company of Cordwainers havebenefited the college and its students. Thecollege’s residential building was wholly fundedthrough a charitable organisation managed bythe Cordwainers Company. These strengthswere acknowledged in the college’s self-assessment report. Three members, apart fromthe staff members and the acting principal, areexperienced in education. Only one member ofthe association is experienced in a field of artand design. This aspect of the college’s work isunder-represented in the membership of theassociation and contributes to the confusionamongst teaching staff about the college’smission and identity. The gender and ethnicmake-up of the association does not reflect thestudent body or the community in which thecollege is situated, a weakness not identified inthe self-assessment report. There are fivewomen members of the association, four ofwhom are the acting principal and the staff andstudent governors. None of the members is ofminority ethnic origin. There is scope withinthe articles of association for a broader range ofmembers to be recruited. The association doesnot have a search committee to give advice onthe appointment of governors.

58 The association has the followingcommittees: finance and general purposes;audit; and the remuneration of senior staff.There is also a trade and industry advisorycommittee which provides advice, resources,work placements and other opportunities forstudents. The committees have terms ofreference which clearly identify theirresponsibilities and relationship to thecorporation. The association has notestablished a quorum for each of its committees.It is not clear how many members need to bepresent for a committee to be quorate and makevalid decisions. Terms of reference for the auditcommittee have not been revised to reflect thoserecommended in the Audit Code of Practice.Governors maintain an effective oversight of thecollege’s finances. Members of the finance andgeneral purposes committee are sent copies of

Weaknesses

• membership does not fully reflect thecollege’s mission, student body or localcommunity

• inadequate involvement indetermination of strategic plan

• insufficient monitoring of the college’sacademic performance

• no appraisal of the performance of theprincipal


the management accounts each month. Theaccounts are formally received each term byboth the finance and general purposescommittee and the association.

59 During 1998, the association took decisiveaction when they identified management andfinancial problems in the college. Since then,their main focus has been on the college’sfinancial recovery. Governors are not able toreceive regular reports against strategicobjectives because of the lack of a relevantstrategic plan. The association has not usedmeasures relating to students’ retention andachievements to monitor the college’s academicperformance. It does not monitor theimplementation of the college’s policies, forexample, on equal opportunities. In their self-assessment, governors identified the need to setacademic priorities and targets and to beinvolved in the strategic planning process at anearlier stage. They acknowledge that they werenot sufficiently critical during the developmentprocess for the 1997 to 2002 strategic plan.However, the association identified financialdifficulties at an early stage of the plan’soperations. Governors have not appraised theperformance of the principal, a weaknessrecognised in the self-assessment report.

60 The clerk to the association is independentof the college and is appropriately experienced.Governors receive good-quality agenda andminutes for all meetings. Most newly appointedgovernors receive information about theirduties, although a structured inductionprogramme has not been established. The self-assessment report identified this weakness.The student governor was not inducted into herrole. The self-assessment report was drafted bya small group of governors with help from theclerk. It was then presented to the fullassociation for discussion and confirmation.This was the first time the association hadreviewed its performance, and governors foundit a valuable exercise. The association hasrecently adopted a code of conduct and revised

its register of interests to reflect the Nolancommittee’s recommendations on openness andaccountability. Not all governors havecompleted the new declaration of interests. Theassociation does not have effective procedures toensure that governors declare their interestsannually.

Management

Grade 461 Inspectors agreed with most of thestrengths and weaknesses identified by thecollege. Some additional and fundamentalweaknesses were not identified by the college.

62 The management of the college is undergood temporary control. In October 1998,following the departure of the previousprincipal, governors appointed an experiencedacting principal on a temporary contract forthree days a week. Governors have advertisedfor a new principal to start by January 2000.Earlier in 1998, three director posts weredeleted to reduce management costs. Anattempt to recruit a vice-principal provedunsuccessful. The brief for the acting principal

Key strengths

• exceptionally strong links with industryand the local community

• decisive action to improve the college’sfinancial position

• increased diversity of funding

Weaknesses

• the interim nature of current seniormanagement arrangements

• the lack of an up-to-date strategic plan

• under-achievement of FEFC enrolmenttargets

• uncertainty amongst staff about thecollege’s mission and identity

• inadequate monitoring of policies




is to improve the college’s financial position.She was assisted by an external consultant forthe first six months of her appointment. Theacting principal has formed a seniormanagement team comprising the director offinance and administration, and three co-ordinators, who deal, respectively, with thecurriculum, resources and services. This groupmeets regularly. Two of the co-ordinators haveadditional academic duties.

63 Only some aspects of the college’s strategicplan 1997 to 2002 are still considered current.The plan is no longer regarded by managers asrelevant because it was based on unsoundfinancial predictions. There is no updatedcurriculum strategy. Many staff report a lack ofcohesion between the college’s traditional craftdisciplines and the more recent art and designprovision. There is little sharing of goodpractice across the curriculum because there isno common rationale for the college’sprogramme of courses. The college’s self-assessment report acknowledged that themission statement is unrealistic in its stated aimto be the premier global provider of art anddesign, as well as its distinct leather workspecialisms. As a result, not all staff support themission statement. These issues have anadverse impact on the interim managementarrangements and have considerably increasedthe workload of the recently appointed co-ordinators. The issues were not fullyacknowledged in the self-assessment report.

64 The acting principal has initiated arecovery plan to overcome the college’s financial deficit. Decisive action has been taken, including rigorous application of teachers’contractual terms. The college has not met itsFEFC enrolment targets since 1995-96. It madea financial deficit in 1997-98 and projects areduced deficit for the current year. Thecollege’s financial recovery is partly dependenton increased recruitment of overseas students.Recruitment of non-European Union studentshas increased fourfold since the last inspection.

The college recognises the importance of marketresearch to its future success. A new marketingmanager has been appointed and a good rangeof marketing and promotional activities is takingplace this year. A fuller marketing plan is beingdeveloped.

65 The FEFC’s audit service concludes that,within the scope of its review, the college’sfinancial management is adequate. Thecollege’s income is obtained from severalsources. The finance team provides timelymanagement accounts which are reviewedmonthly by senior managers and members ofthe finance and general purposes committee.The accounts include an income andexpenditure account, balance sheet and acashflow forecast prepared on a rolling 12-month basis. They have recently beenimproved by the inclusion of financial targets.There is a written commentary to aid theunderstanding of readers but it does not coverall aspects. The computerised financialaccounting system is not used to prepare themanagement accounts. The self-assessment report acknowledged that the college’s financial regulations are notcomprehensive. They are being revised.Internal and external auditors have notidentified significant weaknesses in the college’s internal controls.

66 Managers have not used performanceindicators to identify trends in students’retention and achievements. The college’smanagement information systems are beingdeveloped to make them year 2000 compliantand to improve the services and data availableto college staff.

67 The college’s mission statement commitsthe college to equality in all aspects of itsprovision. The equal opportunities policy isgiven in brief in the students’ handbook, and infull in the staff handbook. There are examplesof the promotion of equality through curriculumprojects. The college supports a well-integratedcommunity of young people from many


countries and ethnic backgrounds. It recruits ahigh proportion of students from disadvantagedareas, particularly to its art and design andshort courses, which attract predominantly localstudents. There is no overall system to ensurethe implementation and monitoring of thecollege’s policies. The college’s health andsafety policy is monitored through a health andsafety committee. The minutes of thiscommittee do not always record clearly theactions to be taken, or confirm when actions arecompleted. These weaknesses were notidentified in the self-assessment report.

Conclusions

68 The self-assessment report prepared forthe inspection was the first produced by thecollege. It provided a useful basis for planningand conducting the inspection. Inspectorsacknowledged that the self-assessment wasundertaken in difficult circumstances andconsider that the college made some realisticand self-critical judgements about the quality ofits provision. They concluded, however, thatthere are many additional weaknesses that thecollege did not recognise. The report containedlittle or no use of performance indicators or ofdata relating, for example, to students’ retentionand achievements. Inspectors agreed with thegrade awarded by the college for only one of the three curriculum areas inspected. Thegrades awarded by inspectors for the other two curriculum areas were one grade worsethan those given by the college. Inspectorsjudged all of the sample of curriculum provisionas satisfactory. In the cross-college areas, theinspection team judged the college to beovergenerous in its assessment of all aspects ofprovision other than governance. Significantweaknesses were not identified in the areas ofquality assurance, management, generalresources and support for students.

69 Strengths and weaknesses identified duringthe inspection are listed under each section ofthis report. The main strengths and weaknessesare identified in the summary.


College Statistics


Student numbers by age (April 1999)

Age %

Under 16 0

16-18 years 17

19-24 years 36

25+ years 45

Not known 2

Total 100

Source: college data

Student numbers by level of study (April 1999)

Level of study %

Foundation 4

Intermediate 22

Advanced 17

Higher education 39

Leisure/recreation (non-schedule 2) 18

Total 100


Student numbers by mode of attendance andcurriculum area (April 1999)

Programme Full Part Total area time time provision

%

Engineering 61 37 23

Art and design 260 60 77

Total 321 97 100


Widening participation

Based on a postcode analysis of 1995-96 ISRdata, the college recruited 64% of students fromdisadvantaged areas defined in relation to theDepartment of the Environment Index of LocalConditions.

Staff expressed as full-time equivalents(May 1999)

Perm- Fixed Casual Totalanent term

Direct learning contact 10 12 0 22

Supporting direct learning contact 8 3 0 11

Other support 18 3 0 21

Total 36 18 0 54

Source: college data, rounded to nearest full-time equivalent

College Statistics

Three-year Trends

Financial data

1996 1997 1998

Income £1,905,000 £2,148,000 £2,022,000

Average level of funding (ALF)Out-turn to 1997; funded 1998 £30.05 £31.16 £26.04*

Payroll as a proportion of income 61% 66% 72%

Achievement of funding target 87% 90% 90%

Diversity of income 54% 59% 60%

Operating surplus £29,000 -£47,000 -£35,000

Sources: Income – Council Circulars 97/35 (1996), 98/43 (1997), college (1998)ALF – Performance Indicators 1996-97 (1996 and 1997), Funding Allocations 1997-98 (1998)Payroll – Council Circulars 97/35 (1996), 98/43 (1997), college (1998)Achievement of funding target – Performance Indicators 1996-97 (1996 and 1997), college (1998)Diversity of income – Council Circulars 97/35 (1996), 98/43 (1997), college (1998)Operating surplus – Council Circulars 97/35 (1996), 98/43 (1997), college (1998)*provisional data

Students’ achievements data

Level Retention Students aged 16 to 18 Students aged 19 or overand pass 1996 1997 1998 1996 1997 1998

1 Expected completions n/a n/a n/a 33 19 22

Retention (%) n/a n/a n/a 100 100 73

Achievement (%) n/a n/a n/a 12 0 0

2 Expected completions 31 25 23 112 108 126

Retention (%) 81 92 83 98 97 68

Achievement (%) 52 60 70 36 39 29

3 Expected completions 24 22 30 26 27 50

Retention (%) 88 86 93 85 81 94

Achievement (%) 75 68 70 73 44 72

4 or 5 Expected completions 5 1 9 46 70 71

Retention (%) 100 100 100 98 93 96

Achievement (%) 80 100 89 96 90 96

Short Expected completions n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a

courses Retention (%) n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a

Achievement (%) n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a

Unknown/ Expected completions n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a

unclassified Retention (%) n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a

Achievement (%) n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a

Source: ISRn/a: not applicable


Published by the

Further Education Funding Council

Website http://www.fefc.ac.uk

© FEFC August 1999

FEFC Inspection Report 95/99

cordwainers college inspection report 1999 · 2012. 7. 3. · cordwainers college greater london...

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