Update - November 2015

the latest news from around your College

UPDATE November 2015

Outdoor Adventure team recruit student assistant instructor and social media blogger - page 3

BCS BEDFORD COLLEGE SERVICES

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

02 Principal update

Bedford College November Open Day Tuesday 3 November 2015 5.00pm-8.00pm

The Bedford Sixth Form Open Day Thursday 12 November 2015 5.00pm-8.00pm

02 Centre for the Creative Arts news

Shuttleworth College November Open Day Saturday 7 November 2015 9.30am-12.30pm

Achievements Ceremony Wednesday 2 December 2015 Bedford Corn Exchange

04 Sales & Marketing news

03 Centre for Enterprise & Technology news 03 Centre for Professional & People Services news 04 Customer Service news

05 Student Services 05 People news 06 Spotlight... Bedford College Services (BCS)

Find us on Facebook www.facebook.com/bedfordcollege www.facebook.com/shuttleworthcoll www.facebook.com/bedfordsixthform

Find us on Twitter www.twitter.com/bedfordcollege www.twitter.com/shuttleworthcol www.twitter.com/thebedfordsixth

Want to contribute? If you have something to contribute, please email shyde@bedford.ac.uk by Monday 9 November

Local College income £m

PRINCIPAL UPDATE

Progress We are a College that aims to ensure every student achieves at least Advanced Levels of skills and leaves us with good maths and English skills. We know that progression gives you a better life. If you leave after Level 1 you have only a 60% chance of employment, leave at Level 3 and this rises to 93%, at Level 4 it is 98%.

We now have data on progression last year to this. Only 563 of 961 students below Level 3 have progressed (59%).

Best progression was 78% and lowest was 44%. It is clearly important that we keep almost all students until they achieve Level 3 so we will be setting much higher progression targets to ensure we are being more ambitious for students.

We also have test data on this year’s student intake on their maths and English, which shows just how much we need to support students leaving school. 42% of new students tested below Level 1 in English, 56% tested below Level 1 in maths.

Only 1% of students studying below Level 3 tested as having maths skills at Level 2. This has to be our main priority as educators and the Executive Planning Group will be working with managers to ensure our programmes are designed to address these major issues.

Bedford College Northampton Tresham Milton Keynes excl national prison contract Barnfield Moulton Luton Sixth Form Aylesbury Central Beds

35 28 25 25 23 20 14 13 12

In our quest to reclaim our history I am delighted that we managed to track down a portrait of Sir Fred Mander, the main man behind the development of our Cauldwell Street campus (formerly Mander College). Thanks to the Borough Council for sending it to us. Our next project is to find images of the College’s first Principal, Margaret Stansfeld.

You can follow Ian on Twitter @ipryce

CENTRE FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS NEWS Kick-start career in advertising

Big Beast In preparation for the Area Review process that Dave Pridmore explained at our staff meetings we have collected some general information on our relative size. A decade or so ago we were smaller than all colleges in Hertfordshire, Milton Keynes and Northamptonshire, and smaller than Barnfield. I used the term “defying gravity” at our staff meetings and these tables from 2013-14 show how we have grown against our competitor colleges: Bedford Schools – students aged 16-18 Bedford College Sharnbrook Bedford Modern Bedford School Biddenham Wootton Mark Rutherford Bedford Girls Hastingsbury St Thomas More Bedford Academy Kimberley

3,328 693 305 299 290 265 248 201 194 193 177 158

After winning a YCN Award for his designs in a competition sponsored by Santander, Will Richards studying in the first year of his HND Graphic Design course has now been selected to produce a live online campaign to advertise why Santander is the bank for students.

Will and the three other YCN competition team winners were invited by Santander to produce a sample short film at their advertising agency's offices in London, which was then posted online for the public to vote on. In addition, all contestants were asked to formally pitch their ideas to Santander and their creatives at the Soho Hotel. Working alone, and beating off competition from graduates including a young creative team employed by M&C Saatchi, Will was eventually chosen as the overall winner. He will now work on a final campaign with Santander and Engine in the spring of 2016 on a paid placement in their London studios.

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UPDATE · NOVEMBER 2015

Bridge is open for business once again

on the music team. The tracks were also both recorded here at Bedford College studios.

Find out more at: blacksmokesymphony.com LEFT: Charlie Luscombe with his band Black Smoke Syphony

From the 6-30 January 2016, Bedford College’s award winning Higher National Diploma Graphic Design course will again be open for business. Trading as Bridge, a student team guided by tutors Jeffrey Tribe, Danny Stijelja and David Litchfield (along with the professional backing of Bonfire Design and We Can Creative) is inviting local businesses and individuals to employ student teams for the design of logos, adverts, leaflets and any other small print items for an astonishing one-off flat fee of only £160 (excluding VAT).

The course here at Bedford has established itself both locally and nationally as a high quality provision for Graphic Design, winning countless awards and competitions. In past years our students have successfully developed advertising campaigns for private schools, a national health and medical supplier and identities for architects, museums and galleries and a wide range of other businesses.

The initiative will provide students with valuable commercial experience and help them to bridge the link between client design needs and education. Additionally, it will raise valuable funding to enable the course to exhibit their work in June 2016 at D&AD’s (Design and Art Direction’s) New Blood annual graduate exhibition, which showcases the best emerging new UK talent.

CENTRE FOR ENTERPRISE & TECHNOLOGY NEWS Taking the lead at the Skills Show Well done to Kylan McCaffrey, a second year Level 3 computing student, who has been selected to be a Team Leader at the Skills Show UK held at the NEC in Birmingham.

During the summer, Kylan underwent a selection process open to all students in the UK, of which only 15 have been selected. Going forward, he will undertake further training by the Skills Show and will oversee teams of volunteers during the event in November.

LEFT: Kylan McCaffrey

The deadline for submissions is Monday 6 January 2016.

Contact Jeffrey Tribe for more details via jtribe@bedford.ac.uk or ext. 5412 Great media networking opportunities for students in conjunction with University of Bedfordshire Students on the Media Production and Music Technology foundation degrees, which are validated by the University of Bedfordshire, now have the opportunity to be involved in the University’s Media Junction. Media Junction aims to enhance the student experience by creating opportunities for students to network with each other, across degree pathways in order to make films and create media content.

CENTRE FOR PROFESSIONAL & PEOPLE SERVICES NEWS Table tennis gold at Sainsbury’s School Games LEFT: Daniel Bullen takes gold in national competition

One of our Media students, Michael Kilby, attended the Media Junction events. He received a first class degree and has now gone on to start the MA at the University of Bedfordshire, hence there is an explicit link between student engagement with this type of extra curricula activity and their engagement with their course.

Charlie releases second single Performing Arts lecturer Charlie Luscombe is having a great time with his Country - Rock band Black Smoke Symphony who released their second single, ‘Coming Home’ on iTunes, Amazon and Spotify on Friday 9 October. They recorded their debut single ‘Wait all Night’ earlier this year.

Both tracks were produced by Stevie V and were engineered and mastered by Lee Head, both of who are lecturers here

UPDATE · NOVEMBER 2015

After winning silver for the past two years, Sport student Daniel Bullen was delighted to get his hands on a gold medal in Table Tennis at the 2015 Sainsbury’s School Games. The 17-year-old athlete, representing England Midlands, beat Megan Shackleton (E-NE) 3-0 (11-9, 11-4, 12-10) to take the title. Daniel said: “I’m over the moon, really. After coming

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away last year I worked my socks off to get better. “I’ve got more experience and I’ve come straight back from a [GB Para] training camp in Slovenia, which helped. Also, I had my own coach in my corner this year.”

Daniel reached the final thanks to a monumental comeback against Nicko Anderson. He had beaten Anderson 3-0 in the team competition but when Anderson took the first two sets it appeared that a reversal of that result was on the cards.

But Daniel found another gear and turned it around to win it 3-2 (14-16, 7-11, 11-9, 11-3, 11-5). He said: “He [Nicko] played really well the second time. I had to really fight to get that win. He didn’t want to give away his title”.

Extra-Curricular Activities for Outdoor Adventure

CUSTOMER SERVICE NEWS Institute of Customer Service Employee Survey As part of the College’s commitment to improve the student/ customer experience and deliver world-class customer service, staff took part in the Institute of Customer Service (ICS) ServCheck Survey in Spring 2015. The purpose of the survey was to benchmark ourselves against other education providers and some of the best national organisations for customer service to identify where we need to improve.

425 staff completed the survey covering Bedford College, The Bedford Sixth Form and Shuttleworth College, and a copy of the results can be found on the customer service section of the staff intranet. Bedford College Group achieved an overall score of 60.13, compared to the average for the education sector of 62.00 and nationally 66.40. The Customer Service Steering Group are in the process of attending departmental meetings to share the results and get your views on how we can improve.

FAR LEFT: Outdoor Adventure team at Grafham Water

What next?

This year, as part of offering extracurricular activities to the students on the course, the Outdoor Adventure team have set up two new roles for second year students.

These are Assistant Instructor and Social Media Blogger.

These roles have been created alongside the Student Rep positon to allow the students opportunities to further develop their employment skills and provide role models to the first year students starting out on their course.

The Social Media Blogger will be involved in raising the profile of the outdoor courses and showcasing the different fundraising events the students are involved in. The Assistant Instructor role is aimed at developing the second years instructing and coaching skills by allowing them to assist on practical sessions with the first years. Through this they will be working towards industry recognised instructor qualifications which will support their work placement after Easter 2016 and enhance their career prospects in future employment.

An example of this in action is shown in the photo where second year students Phil Clarke, Charley Keep and Alfie Waters are pictured alongside the first year students in a sailing session at Grafham Water Abseiling on a sunny day Our Public Services students made the most of the bright blue skies on Friday 9 October and abseiled down the side of the Tower block! On the following Wednesday it was the turn of the Outdoor Education students from Shuttleworth.

In response to the survey findings, we have: • Developed a People Plan to address those areas which are particularly low against benchmarks. The Plan has been approved by the Executive and is being overseen by the Customer Service Steering Group. A copy of this Plan can be found on the customer service section of the staff intranet.

• Undertaken a further staff survey in September to explore some areas that had a low score in more details, particularly around staff feeling valued by their line manager, supporting staff when things go wrong, rewarding and recognising staff who provide good service, and working with other teams to achieve excellent service. 474 staff completed this survey.

The results are currently being analysed and we will share them with you shortly.

How can you get involved?

If you would like to influence how customer service is delivered at the College to improve the student experience, you can get involved by: • Joining the Customer Service Working Group and influencing the approach we take to customer service • Joining the Innovation Group to have your say on how we can encourage more ideas • Becoming a Customer Service Trainer to provide training to staff.

To find out more contact Sarah Baxter on ext. 5920 or email sbaxter@bedford.ac.uk

FAR LEFT: Abseiling down the Tower Block

SALES AND MARKERTING NEWS Market Share Analysis From November, the 2014/2015 ILR and Schools data will be available for the College to look at on the market share software Vector. Within our key recruitment area this will enable us to understand our market share for 16-18 classroom learning, adult classroom learning and apprenticeships. The tool also enables us to look at market 04

UPDATE · NOVEMBER 2015

share by subject and qualification type. Not only will this information give us an indication of how well we are recruiting from the area, it can also help us identify subjects and courses that individuals living in the area are likely to study that we currently do not offer.

If you would like training on how to use the tool and for user names and login details, please contact Katie Featherstone on kfeatherstone@bedford.ac.uk or on ext. 5541.

encouraging students to compete in a sports festival which is to be held at Luton Sixth Form on 9 December.

Bedford College is the lead college of the Bedfordshire Colleges Sports Partnership, so we have great opportunities for students to participate and compete in their chosen sports.

PEOPLE NEWS LEFT: Mark Lewis at the Chicago Marathon

Mark takes on Chicago!

New course information sheet templates The marketing team has updated the course information sheet templates. You will find the updated templates on the staff intranet under Marketing.

We are responsible for course information which appears on our websites. An average of 25,000 people per month visit our course database which makes it even more important that course information is accurate and up-todate. We would encourage all teaching staff to review course information sheets on a regular basis.

You will find a ‘modifications to a course information sheet’ and a ‘course information sheet’ template for new courses available on the staff intranet.

STUDENT SERVICES NEWS Freshers Fair

Mark Lewis, Hospitality & Catering Assistant Director, ran the Chicago Marathon on Sunday 11 October. He travelled out on the Friday and was back at work by the Wednesday!

Here’s Mark’s account of the trip.

“After 16 weeks of training for four nights per week and running an average of 50 miles per week, I finally jetted off to Chicago, USA to complete my five major marathon event.

6,000 miles later I finally landed in the windy city. Wow, what a wonderful city; I was very impressed with the city and the organisation of the event.

I got up at 5.30am to start the race at 7.30am. It was 26.2 miles through and around the amazing architecture and communal art the city has to show off. Temperatures rose to a rather warm 26ºC, a little too warm for us runners, but it bought the crowds out who were spectacular and loud!

Once again Freshers Fair 2015 saw record numbers of students attending, covering all three main campuses of Bedford College, Shuttleworth College and The Bedford Sixth Form. Held over consecutive weeks, the events attracted over 1,900 students, who all had a chance to sign up to enrichment clubs and societies, meet with college and external agencies and gain vital health, wellbeing and safety information. The stall holders varied from Bedfordshire Police and NHS Sexual Health clinics to local young farmers and council departments. This year saw a drop in stall holders and services, with the organisations saying that funding has been cut for promotion and outreach. However, the number of students was up 9% on last year.

Launch of the Sports+ programme Last week saw the launch of the Sports+ programme. Over 250 students have already signed up to participate at our Freshers’ Fairs, which were held across all three campuses, but there are lots more spaces available.

This term we are delivering over 10 different lunch-time and evening sports and activities for students to join in. These including rush hockey, dance and rugby, so there is loads on offer. As part of the Sports+ programme, we will be

UPDATE · NOVEMBER 2015

Struggling with toe and calf injuries, and ‘man flu’, I completed the course in four hours 20 minutes; slightly slower than my usual pace but all things considered, I was still proud of my achievements.

Thanks to all, especially the Hospitality team for their good wishes and support.”

Starters and Leavers Since we last reported there have been a number of changes in staff.

We have said goodbye to: Jacqueline Reilly Susan Draycott Michelle Bagnall Roger Airey Gillian Airey Junii Whyte Reshmin Haq Mandy Culley Cleo Porte Lucy Fuller Hannah Wing Rebecca Wyse 05

We are saying hello to: Teaching Directorate Rachel Marginson Student Services Houda Vernege-Fanus Engineering & Building Services

Alexander Baldwin

FAR LEFT: Preparation for Freshers Fair

SPOTLIGHT

What were the main achievements last year?

Last year saw the launch of the Munch & Mocha brand across the College's three campuses and the Munch & Mocha restaurants at Cauldwell Street and Shuttleworth both benefitted from refurbishments.

What does your department do?

Bedford College Services Ltd (BCS) is a subsidiary of Bedford College that provides food services to students across all Bedford College sites. As well as providing catering, BCS operate across the leisure, hospitality, theatre and facilities hire sectors.

Munch & Mocha is now an established brand and we have managed to keep our pricing extremely competitive.

BCS comprises three brands: Trinity Arts & Leisure, Munch & Mocha and The Venue Hub. Trinity Arts & Leisure is a sports and leisure complex on Bromham Road, Bedford. The facility features a 25 metre six-lane swimming pool, gym facilities and a multifunction room for fitness classes. For more information visit www.trinityleisure.co.uk Munch & Mocha is the brand that encompasses the catering options offered by BCS across the College's three campuses.

Munch & Mocha offers refreshments and freshly cooked food to staff and students and also has the capacity to offer catering for externally booked events.

Numbers on our Trinity Arts & Leisure School of Fish programme (which teaches children how to swim) have reached a record high and the swim school is going from strength to strength.

What is it like to work in your department?

Working within BCS is busy and exciting; no two days are ever the same! We are constantly looking at ways to provide exceptional customer service, enhance the student experience and reinvest in education.

What offers do you have for staff?

We have a free swim at Trinity Arts & Leisure until Friday 13 November – just present your Staff ID card at Reception.

LEFT: Some of the BCS team (Back row, left to right) Zowie McArdle Susan Wills Vincenzo Cosmai Richard McLeod

The Venue Hub @ Bedford College is BCS’ newest acquisition.

Processes are being put in place for BCS to hire out the commercially viable facilities on Bedford College campuses to external organisations and individuals for meetings, events and experiences. Facilities that are hired out on a commercial basis will fall under the banner of ‘The Venue Hub’.

(Front row left to right) Josephine Waterston Amanda Riches Beverly Cosmai Palo Chandhar Andrew Keen

Where are you based?

Across the three sites: Trinity Arts & Leisure on Bromham Road, Cauldwell Street and Shuttleworth College How many members are in your team?

BCS has a team of 28 core staff and a number of associates across all sites. The team is headed up by Andrew Keen, Managing Director, and Amanda Riches, General Manager What challenges will you be facing this year?

At Trinity Arts & Leisure we are always keeping an eye on the latest fitness crazes and trends. With the use of a termly discount card, students and staff can benefit from savings on a host of leisure activities – come and see us for more information! At Trinity we will continue to run our highly successful NPLQ Lifeguard Training courses and aim to promote health and well-being in the local area.

As we’ve said, this year will see the exciting launch of The Venue Hub @ Bedford College. The Venue Hub will take Bedford College assets and facilities to the local market, with a view to capturing commercial revenue that will be reinvested in education. Through our two theatres and accompanying facilities we aspire to promote performing arts and foster local creativity.

Our aim to provide opportunities for students will be fulfilled by offering many work placements and an Apprenticeship in Hospitality & Leisure at BCS.

With effect from Monday 2 November, The Mansion House car park will no longer be available to any College staff or students. It is to be used exclusively

by The Shuttleworth Trust staff and The Mansion House customers/visitors only.

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UPDATE · NOVEMBER 2015