TWO inspection reports published last week gave Jewel and Esk Valley College a reasonably clean bill of health.
They cover a range of subjects and different aspects of the way the college is run.
HMI found that more than 90 per cent of lessons observed were very good or good. Fifty elements of the eight subjects reviewed were good while 19 were fair.
In a college-wide review, inspectors judged five of the eight aspects they looked at to be good - access and inclusion arrangements, support for students with learning difficulties, resources for learners, staff and quality assurance.
But the report seemed to take a divided view of the college’s leadership and direction which inspectors rated only fair.
This is despite praising Howard McKenzie, the new principal, for taking “decisive action and developing a clear vision of where the college needed to be in the future”. Mr McKenzie had only been in the post for three months prior to the inspection last November.
HMI said, however, that “the nature and purpose of impending changes had not been made sufficiently clear to staff”. There were said to be fears over job security and several of the college’s partners had “some misconceptions” about its future role.
Two of the other aspects found to be fair were guidance and quality improvement.
Mr McKenzie said the reports provided “a good stepping stone with which to focus on restructuring and improving our strategy”.
The reports on Jewel and Esk Valley College are the latest in the series which envisages that all colleges will be inspected by the summer of 2004.
