Nothing Less Than Outstanding
At the beginning of October, Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College was inspected by Ofsted – the Office for Standards in Education. The inspectors’ report, published on November 23, confirms that QE is a centre of excellence and is one of the country’s leading colleges. The inspectors focused on five key areas – effectiveness of provision, capacity to improve, achievement and standards, quality of provision, leadership and management – and they concluded that the college was outstanding in all aspects of its work. Hence the top grade – grade1 - was awarded across the board.
The report celebrates the success of the College and talks in glowing terms about its outstanding features. It focuses on the College’s ‘excellent reputation,’ recognises that there is ‘an all pervading sense of high expectation and scholarship within the College’ which, with ‘outstanding teaching and learning’ and ‘outstanding personal and pastoral support’, results in students attaining exceptional success rates that are ‘well above national averages.’ There is acknowledgement that the college has ‘an inclusive environment which provides well for a diverse community of students’ and that the College’s success emanates from ‘outstanding leadership and management’ and governance that is ‘excellent.’
Principal, Tim Fisher comments:
"This outstanding inspection report reflects the commitment and endeavour of our students as well as the skill and professionalism of our staff. A clean sweep of grade ones is the highest possible judgment that Ofsted can make and it confirms our position as one of the country’s top sixth form colleges. We are all delighted with the report but equally determined to push on to further success in the future. It is great news for the people of Darlington and the surrounding area that Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College is recognised nationally as providing the highest quality of experience for its students."
Chris Wiper, Chair of Governors at Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College adds:
"The report is excellent and is exactly what I expected for such a high achieving college as QE. All concerned are to be congratulated but I would like, in particular, to pay tribute to David Heaton, who retired as Principal in the summer, and to Tim Fisher, the current Principal, for their sterling work and outstanding skills in bringing first rate educational opportunities to the people of Darlington. They are both truly inspirational leaders who have set a clear strategic direction and educational character for the College."
The full Ofsted report is published on www.ofsted.gov.uk. It identifies the following key strengths:
high success rates
students make excellent progress
outstanding teaching and learning
broad curriculum and extensive opportunities for enrichment
effective partnership working with local schools, community, employers and higher education institutions
excellent academic and personal support
thorough and effective arrangements for quality assurance
a culture of high expectations for both staff and students
strong senior leadership which effectively promotes improvement
the use of accommodation and resources to support learning
strong focus on the views of students
November 27, 2007