Adult and community learning Wokingham Ofsted report
Adult learners in the Wokingham borough receive good teaching in good accommodation according to the service’s latest Ofsted report.
The Wokingham council works with partners such as Bracknell and Wokingham College to provide traditional vocational and non-vocational adult education courses and also contracts with community groups to deliver specialised courses targeted at specific needs and geographical areas.
Overall, the report rated the achievement and standards of Wokingham service as good, with inspectors praising the teaching, resources, accommodation, partnership work, retention of learners, management and monitoring of providers’ performance and action planning. Inspectors noted that learners ‘speak highly of their achievements in class and how much they enjoy attending’ and that ‘learners receive good teaching and learning. Learning sessions are well planned, with a wide range of activities and topics. Teachers make good use of information and learning technology and good quality learning resources in learning sessions.’
The way in which the Wokingham borough council works with partners such as the college and voluntary sector organisations was also praised, as was the council’s My Family Matters course, which was developed to help families who were identified by some of the Wokingham borough’s primary schools as needing some additional support. These families were invited to join a series of evening and morning sessions devoted to developing parents’ skills to help them support their families. The report stated that ‘the development of parenting and social skills on the My Family Matters course is excellent’.
The inspectors asked learners what they thought of the Wokingham council’s provision and concluded that they liked the welcoming atmosphere of all centres, the teachers, volunteers and staff, the way the courses are well organised and meet individual needs, the benefits of learning close to home, with family and with friends.
The report also highlighted areas where the service could be improved – and has been working with partners to develop. These are, arrangements to assess and record learners’ progress, development of the skills for life strategy, planning of provision to meet the needs of under-represented groups, observation of teaching and learning and information on how learners can progress.
The report rated Wokingham council’s capacity to improve as good and Wokingham Borough Council is already concentrating on the areas highlighted by the inspection with a quality improvement plan in place, the installation of a new information system, the introduction of tutor training days and expansion of neighbourhood delivery and the family learning service.
Wokingham Borough Council lifelong learning manager Wendy Crosson-Smith said: “It is clear our learners enjoy their courses and appreciated the good teaching and facilities we offer. This report is a real credit to all our staff and volunteers and I am delighted the inspectors have recognised their skill and hard work. One of the main points of these Ofsted reports is to highlight areas that can be worked on and the inspection team confirmed that we are concentrating on the right areas. We are confident we can make the improvements suggested and have already taken steps in line with the recommendations.”
The Wokingham council works with partners such as Bracknell and Wokingham College to provide traditional vocational and non-vocational adult education courses and also contracts with community groups to deliver specialised courses targeted at specific needs and geographical areas.
Overall, the report rated the achievement and standards of Wokingham service as good, with inspectors praising the teaching, resources, accommodation, partnership work, retention of learners, management and monitoring of providers’ performance and action planning. Inspectors noted that learners ‘speak highly of their achievements in class and how much they enjoy attending’ and that ‘learners receive good teaching and learning. Learning sessions are well planned, with a wide range of activities and topics. Teachers make good use of information and learning technology and good quality learning resources in learning sessions.’
The way in which the Wokingham borough council works with partners such as the college and voluntary sector organisations was also praised, as was the council’s My Family Matters course, which was developed to help families who were identified by some of the Wokingham borough’s primary schools as needing some additional support. These families were invited to join a series of evening and morning sessions devoted to developing parents’ skills to help them support their families. The report stated that ‘the development of parenting and social skills on the My Family Matters course is excellent’.
The inspectors asked learners what they thought of the Wokingham council’s provision and concluded that they liked the welcoming atmosphere of all centres, the teachers, volunteers and staff, the way the courses are well organised and meet individual needs, the benefits of learning close to home, with family and with friends.
The report also highlighted areas where the service could be improved – and has been working with partners to develop. These are, arrangements to assess and record learners’ progress, development of the skills for life strategy, planning of provision to meet the needs of under-represented groups, observation of teaching and learning and information on how learners can progress.
The report rated Wokingham council’s capacity to improve as good and Wokingham Borough Council is already concentrating on the areas highlighted by the inspection with a quality improvement plan in place, the installation of a new information system, the introduction of tutor training days and expansion of neighbourhood delivery and the family learning service.
Wokingham Borough Council lifelong learning manager Wendy Crosson-Smith said: “It is clear our learners enjoy their courses and appreciated the good teaching and facilities we offer. This report is a real credit to all our staff and volunteers and I am delighted the inspectors have recognised their skill and hard work. One of the main points of these Ofsted reports is to highlight areas that can be worked on and the inspection team confirmed that we are concentrating on the right areas. We are confident we can make the improvements suggested and have already taken steps in line with the recommendations.”
Wokingham Borough Council
<< Home