Braintree College looks to the future

Jim Addison, the enthusiastic new interim principal at Braintree College, has been seconded from Colchester Institute until the two institutions merge on January 1.

The College At Braintree, as it will then be known, will focus purely on full and part-time vocational courses for 16-year-olds and over.

No new A-Levels will be offered from September. Provision will only be given to second- year students continuing their studies.

“There is going to be a move away from the breadth of the programmes offered to vocational ones,” said Mr Addison, who joined Colchester Institute in 1989 and, before taking up post at Braintree, was director of development and operations (west).

“This year is the last year we will have A-levels. We have 50 students that are completing their studies, out of 1,000 full- time students.

“We are moving away from what the college used to be. In the local community there is a perception about Braintree College and it seems to be very negative and I think we have got to turn that around. I don’t think it is completely fair, but we have got to make sure people recognise the good that is here.

“The main focus is about creating opportunities locally because there are issues in Braintree about young people who don’t continue in education or into employment and we have got to, in the best interests of the community, make sure there are opportunities and give them skills that make them more employable.

“I understand there is a skills gap from local businesses.”

Figures from Connexions show 5.8 per cent of 16 to 19-year-olds in Braintree district last year were not in education, employment or training.

This compares with 5.65 per cent in Colchester, eight per cent in Tendring and 3.42 per cent in Chelmsford.

Mr Addison said it was important to raise young people’s aspirations and also create more learning opportunities for mature students, all within Braintree or at the Witham campus, so that students did not have to travel to Colchester or Chelmsford.

The college will work alongside the new Braintree Sixth Form Centre, which has an open day on Tuesday, and adult community learning centres.

Much of what the new-look curriculum will offer depends upon how much money the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) – the college’s main funder – is willing to put into a merger support fund.

Colchester Institute will decide how it will invest that cash in Braintree.

“It is committed to maintaining and enhancing provision here because its own strategy is about developing satellite developments,” said Mr Addison.

Millions of pounds will need to go into the merger pot, but Mr Addison said the college was currently negotiating with the LSC and should have a better idea of the amount next month.

Catering and hairdressing are just two of the subjects not currently offered at Braintree, but significant cash will be needed for new industry standard kitchens and salons if the college is to provide the courses.

Other possible courses include plumbing and electrical installation. All the ideas stem from what employers and residents want, and the Government’s drive to promote apprenticeships.

The aim for the next academic year is to try to maintain at least the existing number of students – 1,050 full-time and 2,000 part-timers.

There has been an increase in the number of part-timers, partly due to the number of people out of work wanting to improve their skills to get back into work.

There are currently 80 youngsters, who will be joined by nearly 100 more in September, who are taking skills courses, such as bricklaying and motor vehicle studies alongside their GCSEs.

These are especially popular with youngsters who prefer practical subjects over academic, but also give them the chance to broaden their skills and get an insight into what they want to do.

The number of students who apply to go onto full-time courses from this scheme is also higher than the number who come from other avenues.

Mr Addison said it was important to make the curriculum flexible and responsive to different people’s needs, but not to be everything to everybody, as it has in the past.

Nineteen organisations, inc-luding Braintree Council and schools, responded to a public consultation on the proposed merger in April and May.

Only one was not positive. The rest, said Mr Addison, were very keen, and stressed the need to keep the college in Braintree, to have the new name linked to the town and for the courses provided to be maintained and improved.

Although Braintree Council has identified a possible new home for the college, a relocation is not on the immediate horizon.

“Obviously, that’s going to be quite a long way off. There is no way we can say in the next three to five years, Braintree College will be relocating. But obviously having the opportunity to relocate is good if we develop,”` said Mr Addison.

The college’s Witham campus will also be reviewed to see if it can offer a wider range of courses than the NVQs and IT training currently available.

“Witham has got the academies and adult community learning centre. It needs The College at Braintree to be part of that debate because there will be areas that we are best placed to deliver,” said Mr Addison.

“What will be developed in Witham will be complementary to whatever else is in Witham and in Braintree.”

Out of all the changes, though, he said the main task was to promote the college to the people of Braintree.

“The main task I have is to make sure the people of Braintree recognise there is a plan for the future, there are good things happening already, and recognise and celebrate those and get them involved in the development of the college.

“If there are more needs, we will aim to respond to them. We are not here to compete with the schools or adult community learning, or anyone. We will collaborate," said Mr Addison.

And vocational courses for children aged 14 to 16 have also proved popular.