CITY OF GLASGOW COLLEGE / MERGER PROPOSAL DOCUMENT
17
Young students
The college will house some of
the most economically-signii cant
vocational disciplines. It will therefore
be an important launch pad for young
students to acquire skills and embark
simultaneously on their learning and
their professional career paths, for
example, through employed-status
training as Modern Apprentices and the
multiple well-signposted progression
routes to higher education. A signii cant
part of the college portfolio will remain
devoted to supporting ef ective
transitions from school both through
multiple points of access to mainstream
provision and through courses developed
for More Chances More Choices
collaborative initiatives. The college will
remain committed to working ef ectively
with local schools and with the City
Council regeneration teams to achieve
high levels of youth employment and
a seamless progression from positive
learning outcomes into work. This will be
well supported through our progression
ladder, with accredited provision
from Scottish Credit and Qualii cation
Framework (SCQF) level1-2 up to 10 so
that, to take one example alone, in care,
a student could begin studying at say
Skills for Work Intermediate 1 level and
progress seamlessly up to SCQF level 10
in clearly marked stages.
The college also has a signii cant and
'inescapable' role to play in successful
delivery of 16+Learning Choices and it is
widely recognised that encouraging all
young people to stay in learning post-16
is the best way of ensuring their longterm
employability and contribution
to society. Increasing the proportion of
school leavers in positive and sustained
destinations calls for all learning providers
including schools to be part of a single
coherent system; to support this process
the college will continue to play a key
role in the Youth Employability Groups
(YEGs) which are established within each
of the 5 CHCP local planning areas. The
YEGs and YEG sub-groups respond to the
needs of More Choices More Chances
(MCMC) young people at a local level
by working closely and in partnership
with various agencies including: Skills
Development Scotland; Education
Services Colleges; Glasgow Community
and Safety Services; Regeneration
Agencies Culture and Sport Glasgow;
Community Planning; Job Centre Plus
and local schools.
Partnership working around improving
enrolment, attendance and the key
area of transition can contribute
signii cantly to the overall attainment
and achievement of young people,
particularly given the challenges many
young people face. The college along
with its partners will increase its focus on
looked after and accommodated young
people, disengaged and disadvantaged
young people and develop its
understanding of, and coordination of
support to, these particular groups.
The college will continue to play a
key role within Community Planning
Partnerships and local Regeneration
Agencies by jointly agreeing priorities
and actions and planning services in a
way that will ensure the most ef ective
delivery within each community.
Adult returners and
progressing students
The professional disciplines of ered by
the college will make it a congenial and
supportive environment for all students,
whether adults returning to education
for the i rst time since leaving school or
as experienced students seeking to build
on their current qualii cations. The wideranging
vocational disciplines, the focus
on new and developing disciplines, such
as media, design and communication,
broadcasting and IT, and the emphasis on
knowledge transfer partnerships make
the new college ideally suited to those
aiming to extend their skills or apply
their expertise in new i elds. The volume
of activity will be sui cient to maintain
niche provision in specialist learning
domains and to of er students a choice of
learning and delivery methodologies in
popular disciplines. The capacity to of er
real personalised learning with greater
l exibility in subjects, options and learning
modes will be greatly enhanced within
the comprehensive portfolio of the new
college.
Community students
Our community provision is highly
regarded and remains critical to the
regeneration of the Gorbals area in
particular. The merged college is fully
committed to working with partners to
support the aspirations of those who
face barriers to participating in learning
or sustainable employment. The college
will build on its experience in supporting
disengaged or fragile learners. We will
continue provision for individuals with
addiction or mental health dii culties;
for those who are homeless; for minority
groups such as asylum seekers, those
from black or minority ethnic (BME)
communities, LGBT groups, disengaged
young people; lone carers; single parents.
We will work proactively within the
Community Planning Partnerships
to promote engagement and i rst
steps provision as well as supporting
employability and personal development
through facilitating access to our
vocational disciplines and work-focussed
learning environments.
We are in a unique position to provide
well-supported progression for
inexperienced or vulnerable learners that
leads them seamlessly and inclusively
from threshold provision which builds
coni dence and enhances literacy and
numeracy skills to achieving success on
highly-valued professionally accredited
qualii cations.
SECTION 6: Supporting Evidence Base
6.1 Academic Benefi ts